AI-generated image
Hakka mochi
Kèjiā máshǔ (客家麻糬): steamed sticky rice dough pinched into pieces and rolled in sweet peanut powder
At Hakka weddings, temple festivals and housewarmings in Hsinchu and Miaoli, an aunt stands over a big bowl of warm, glossy rice dough and squeezes it out between thumb and forefinger, dropping each little ball straight into sweet ground peanuts for the guests. The dough is soft, stretchy and barely sweet; the peanut sugar coats it in a fragrant, slightly gritty layer. In Beipu old town it's sold the same way to visitors, with black sesame as a second coating. People often grind the peanuts too long and end up with peanut butter, which clumps instead of dusting. Chef's tip: oil your hands and the bowl lightly before pinching, and eat the mochi the same day, while it's still pillowy.
- Total time
- 40 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the dough
- 9 oz glutinous rice flour
- 1 oz caster sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1 tbsp vegetable oilplus a little for your hands
For the coating
- 5 ½ oz roasted unsalted peanutsskins rubbed off
- 2 ⅛ oz caster sugar
- 1 ⅜ oz ground toasted black sesame mixed with 1 tbsp sugar (optional)
Shop this recipe on Amazon
What you'll need
Spices & pantry
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Mix 9 oz glutinous rice flour and 1 oz caster sugar in a heatproof bowl, then stir in 1 cup water gradually to a smooth, thick batter like soft cake mixture.
Step 2: Set the bowl in a steamer over boiling water, cover and steam over a high heat for 20–25 minutes, stirring once halfway, until the dough is translucent all the way through with no white streaks.
25 minStep 3: Meanwhile, pulse 5 ½ oz roasted unsalted peanuts with 2 ⅛ oz caster sugar in a food processor in short bursts until it looks like coarse sand. Stop before it turns oily and pasty. Tip it onto a large plate.
Step 4: Add 1 tbsp vegetable oil to the hot dough and beat it hard with a wooden spoon or a dough scraper for 2–3 minutes, until smooth, glossy and very stretchy.
3 minStep 5: Oil your hands. Grab a handful of warm dough, squeeze it up through the circle of your thumb and forefinger to form a walnut-sized ball and pinch it off into the peanut powder.
Step 6: Roll each piece to coat it completely; roll some in the 1 ⅜ oz ground toasted black sesame mixed with 1 tbsp sugar mix if using. Serve warm or at room temperature on the same day.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 8 g
- Carbs
- 55 g
- Fat
- 10 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does hakka mochi take?
- About 40 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 25 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of caster sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
- What can I use instead of caster sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Baklava
The famous layered pastry: crisp sheets of buttered fillo sandwich a filling of almonds, pistachios and cashews spiced with cinnamon, cardamom and saffron. After baking, the hot baklava is soaked in a syrup of sugar, honey, lemon, rose and cardamom and decorated with almond and pistachio flakes. Cut into 40 diamonds; serve with fresh cream or ice cream.
Undu walalu
Walalu means bangles, and these dark, sticky rings of fried urad dal soaked in kithul treacle are a sweet that Sinhala families bring out for Avurudu and for special almsgivings, often made in large batches by an aunt known for her steady hand. A thick, fluffy paste of ground black gram is piped into loops and fried until crisp, then plunged straight into warm treacle, so the rings stay crunchy on the outside while drinking up the syrup. They taste a little like a darker, smokier jalebi, with a toffee finish from the palm treacle. Watery batter is what ruins them; it spreads into flat blobs, so grind the soaked dal with as little water as possible and beat it until light. This recipe uses no asafoetida, so it is naturally gluten free. Chef's tip: pipe the rings onto small squares of baking paper and lower them into the oil paper and all; the paper peels away in seconds.
Sri Lankan
Marquesitas
Evening in Mérida's Plaza Grande means the smell of marquesitas: thin batter pressed in hot hinged irons until crisp, then rolled like a cigar around grated Edam cheese and a sweet filling such as cajeta, chocolate-hazelnut spread or jam. Edam came to the Yucatán through the port trade with the Netherlands and became part of the local cooking, and the salty-sweet combination is the whole point. At home you can cook them in a thin, wide frying pan. Edam is usually made with animal rennet, so check the label or use a vegetarian Gouda-style cheese. Chef's tip: roll while the crêpe is still in the pan and hot; within seconds it hardens and will crack.
Mexican