However, after following your recipe, I ended up with something that wasn’t quite right. It seemed like it was still far too fluid. So, while I ended up with something, it still isn’t mochi. I’m from Hawaii but live mainland side now. My recipe is more local-style, which means it’s more mochi-like than cake-like. The ingredients are all the same, but I use salted butter and omit the added salt. It’s such a casual recipe that I’ve found that any brand of salted butter is fine. No one notices a difference. As you see above, ingredients for this recipe are all pantry-friendly. If you have butter and eggs, you can make this any time! If you have an unexpected guest over, butter mochi is a great dessert to make, especially when you serve it warm. Overview: Cooking Steps Crisp caramelized edges, chewy and gooey in the middle with fragrant coconut flavor, butter mochi is one of the most popular desserts in Hawaii. It’s a sort of hybrid dessert combining Japanese mochi with local coconut cake.

Mochiko is made from glutinous rice, which does not contain gluten. This makes it a good option for people with gluten sensitivities or allergies.

Add a can of milk (doesn’t matter which one), vanilla, 1 lb box mochiko, baking powder (I use a small sieve for the powder to prevent lumps). Like any flour, mochiko has a shelf life of about six months. Store the unopened box in a dark, dry area away from strong odors and direct sunlight. Once you open the box, transfer it to a sealed container and store the flour in the fridge or freezer. Substitutions The first difference is mochiko flour is very fine, while shiratamako flour looks more like coarse granules. Making it is simpler than the long, tedious process of shiratamako. The glutinous rice is washed in water to make mochiko, then dehydrated and ground into fine powder. For amounts, the changes are 2 tsp of baking powder, the sugar varies from 1 1/2 to 2 c depending on if I throw in additional ingredients like chocolate chips, dried pineapple, etc. My personal preference for a plain cake is 1 3/4 sugar. For the coconut milk, the can size doesn’t matter as different brands have different sizes. As long as it’s somewhere between 12-15 oz it will work. I use full fat Aroy-D or Thai Kitchen brands since they are highly rated on ATK. I increase the flavoring to 1 tbsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste.

I highly recommend sprinkling unsweetened coconut flakes on top of the batter before baking. You could also add them to the batter and mix them all up. Butter Mochi Tips For crispy edges and a chewy center, bake at 375ºF (190ºC) for 45 minutes. I should mention that every oven is different (size, gas/electric, etc), so you may want to test and adjust. A lot of recipes online suggest baking at 350ºF (177ºC) while only a few suggest 375ºF. I personally like to bake mine at 375ºF for 45 minutes for crispy edges and a chewy center. Make sure an inserted skewer comes out clean. Mix until no lumps! No need to worry about overmixing! Since mochiko (glutinous rice flour) is not wheat flour, we don’t have to worry about overmixing this batter. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator or at room temperature. Microwave for 5-10 seconds before serving. You’d find that most recipes say it only last for 3 days, but I’ve also tested freezing my butter mochi and it tastes just as amazing after defrosting and microwaving to warm it up a little.My family has enjoyed our fair share of butter mochi—from Shueido, a Japanese confectionery store in San Jose, to souvenirs from Hawaii to Naomi’s homemade one (she’s a JOC team member). Today I’m sharing our family’s favorite version. It’s rich but not too sweet with subtle hints of vanilla, butter, and coconut. The interior is wonderfully chewy and the crust is addictively crispy. In addition to mochiko, you will find another sweet rice flour called shiratamako for Japanese desserts like mochi. Both are glutinous rice flour but differ in texture and flavor. My processing is very different though. I don’t use a mixer because even though you don’t get gluten, you do get air, which will make it very cakey and I want to have a little of the density of mochi but lightened up with the baking powder. So either a whisk, wooden spoon or a spoonula is used. I also try to use one bowl so clean up is easier since I don’t have a dishwasher! Just like any other home cooking, it’s really up to you how you and your family enjoy it. Experiment with what you like, and use the recipe I share today as a base and adjust from there. How to Make Butter Mochi Ingredients You’ll Need The next time I went to the local Chinese wholesale market and asked them for flour I could use to make mochi, this ended up being a different brand of glutinous rice flour, which while providing better results, still didn’t work. Both batches ended up having large lumps when I reached the stage where I add sugar.