Kujira-mochi (Steamed Walnut Rice-Flour Cake)
Quick answer
- Total time
- 110 min
- Level
- Hard
- Servings
- 40 servings
- Ingredients
- 6
About this dish
Kujira-mochi is a dense steamed rice-flour cake from the Mogami and Murayama areas of Yamagata.
Read more
Glutinous and non-glutinous rice flours are mixed into cooled brown-sugar syrup, rested overnight, poured over walnuts in deep molds, and steamed until set. Despite the whale in its name, it contains no whale. Suggested origins include a phrase meaning a good cake that keeps for a long time, its formerly whale-like size, and a resemblance to salted whale fat. One account links it to provisions made for the Shinjo domain about three centuries ago. Families also offered it before Hina dolls on the lunar Peach Festival and ate it to welcome spring.
Ingredients
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Instructions
Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.
- 1Finish
Reserve 0.5 cup of the 5.5 cups water under refrigeration for adjusting the batter the next day.
Combine the remaining 5 cups water, 1 teaspoon salt, and 600g dark brown sugar in a pot, stir over medium heat until dissolved, remove just before boiling, and cool to room temperature.
- 2Step
Whisk 10 cups glutinous rice flour and 2 cups non-glutinous rice flour together for 1 minute in a large bowl.
Add the cooled syrup in four portions, scraping the bottom with a wooden spatula each time, until the batter flows slowly and continuously from the spatula.
- 3Finish
Cover the bowl with a clean damp cloth wrung nearly dry and refrigerate for 8 to 12 hours.
The next day, stir from the bottom. If too stiff, add the reserved water 1 tablespoon at a time until the batter again flows slowly from a wooden spatula.
- 4Step
Line 4 deep heatproof steaming molds of 1L capacity with clean damp cloths wrung nearly dry.
Divide 100g shelled walnuts evenly over the four mold bottoms and pour in the batter, filling each mold no more than two-thirds high.
- 5Control
Set the molds in a steamer only after the water is boiling vigorously and producing abundant steam.
Cover and steam over high heat for 60 minutes. Check that the steamer does not run dry, adding boiling water if needed so the steam never stops.
- 6Prep
Confirm that the center of the deepest mold reaches at least 90°C, the raw rice-flour taste is gone, and the cake has set as one mass. Steam 10 minutes more if needed. Lift out with the cloth, cool completely, slice 1cm thick, and seal leftovers for refrigeration or freezing.
Practical Cooking Checks
The cues that matter most while cooking.
- Key technique
- Dense batter with ten parts glutinous to two parts rice flour
- Finish cue
- Confirm that the center of the deepest mold reaches at least 90°C, the raw rice-flour taste is gone, and the cake has set as one mass.
- Storage and reheating
- Rice flour absorbs more liquid overnight, so stir again the next day and use the reserved water gradually to restore a flowing consistency.
Cooking decision evidence
Calculated Charim data and applicable official cooking and food safety guidance.
This recipe
110min, 6 ingredients
Category median
45min, 6 ingredients
Based on 144 recipes
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