Hokkaido Potato Imomochi

Quick answer

Total time: 45 min
Level: Easy
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients: 9

About this dish

Imomochi is a Hokkaido snack made by mashing boiled potatoes while hot, kneading them with potato starch, shaping thick rounds, and browning them in butter.

It is also called imodango and developed when abundant potatoes stood in for glutinous rice used in mochi. Thorough kneading gives the cakes a browned surface and a cohesive, chewy center. A ground perilla seed and white sesame sauce seasoned with sugar and soy accompanies them. Mixing the starch before the potato cools is the key step that prevents cracking during shaping and cooking.

Ingredients (4 servings)

Ingredient	Amount	Unit
potatoes	800	g
water for boiling	1500	ml
potato starch	40	g
salt	1	pinch
butter	20	g
perilla seeds	1	tbsp
white sesame seeds	1	tbsp
sugar	2	tbsp
soy sauce	2	tbsp

Instructions

Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.

5 steps

1

Control

Peel 800g potatoes and cut into even pieces.

Place them in a pot with 1500ml water, bring to a boil, and cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes, until a chopstick passes easily through the center.
2

Season

Drain the potatoes completely and mash while hot.

Add 40g potato starch and 1 pinch salt, then knead for 3 minutes, until smooth and sticky like mochi.
3

Step

Divide the dough into 8 portions, compress each firmly, and shape into discs about 7cm wide and 1.5cm thick.

Smooth the edges so no cracks remain.
4

Control

Melt 20g butter in a frying pan over medium-low heat.

Cook the imomochi for about 4 minutes per side, until deep golden and hot through the center.
5

Finish

Finely grind 1 tablespoon perilla seeds and 1 tablespoon white sesame, then mix with 2 tablespoons sugar and 2 tablespoons soy sauce. Serve the sauce with the warm imomochi.

Practical Cooking Checks

The cues that matter most while cooking.

Key technique: Hot mashed potato kneaded with starch
Finish cue: Cook the imomochi for about 4 minutes per side, until deep golden and hot through the center.
Avoid this: Cook over medium-low heat so the center heats through and the surface browns evenly before the butter burns.