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Isobeyaki (grilled mochi with soy and nori)
Puffed, crisp-skinned rice cakes glazed in sweet soy and wrapped in nori
In the first days of the year, Japanese kitchens are full of mochi, the rice cakes pounded or bought for Shōgatsu, and isobeyaki is the easiest, most loved way to eat them. The name means 'grilled on the rocky shore', after the sea flavour of nori, and mochi itself stands for strength and long life because it stretches without breaking. Each cake puffs and blisters in the pan, then gets a lacquer of sweet soy and a crisp sheet of seaweed; the outside crackles while the inside turns stretchy and molten. Serve as a snack with green tea, or alongside a bowl of miso soup. Chef's tip: brush the soy on only once the mochi has puffed, or it will burn before the middle is soft.
- Total time
- 15 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 8 kirimochi (dried rice cake blocks)about 50 g each
- 1 tsp neutral oilfor the pan
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp sugar
- 2 nori sheetseach cut into 4 strips
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Method
0/5 doneStep 2: Wipe a non-stick frying pan with 1 tsp neutral oil and lay in 8 kirimochi (dried rice cake blocks) in a single layer, spaced apart. Cook covered over medium-low heat for 4 minutes, until the undersides are golden and crisp.
4 minStep 3: Turn them and cook covered for another 3–4 minutes, until they swell, blister and feel soft when pressed with chopsticks.
4 minStep 4: Brush the mochi with the soy mixture, turn them in the pan for 30 seconds each side until the glaze bubbles and turns glossy, then take the pan off the heat. Common mistake: glazing too early; the sugar scorches before the centre has softened.
1 minStep 5: Wrap each piece in a strip of 2 nori sheets while hot, so the seaweed clings, and eat straight away while crisp. Mochi is a choking risk: cut it into small pieces for young children and older people and eat slowly.
2 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 250 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 54 g
- Fat
- 2 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does isobeyaki (grilled mochi with soy and nori) take?
- About 15 minutes in total: 5 minutes to prepare and 10 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 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.
- What can I use instead of soy sauce?
- Tamari, same amount (gluten free).
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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