Hasune-mochi (Steamed Lotus Root Stuffed with Rice)
Quick answer
- Total time
- 170 min
- Level
- Hard
- Servings
- 4 servings
- Ingredients
- 6
About this dish
Hasune-mochi is a celebratory dish from Kadoma in Osaka.
Read more
White glutinous rice and pale pink rice are packed separately into the holes of two thick lotus-root sections, the cut ends are sealed, and the roots steam for about 2 hours before being sliced into red-and-white rounds. Lotus root is considered auspicious because its open channels suggest a clear view of the future, and the two colors suit festive occasions. The clay soil of Kawachi and Kadoma helped make lotus root a local crop from the Edo period onward. Served in 8mm slices with kinako and sweet azuki paste, it combines chewy rice with the sweet, lightly crisp texture of steamed lotus root.
Instructions
Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.
- 1Control
Rinse 1 cup glutinous rice twice using part of the 2000ml water and collect the first cloudy rinse in a large container.
Add fresh water to make enough rice-washing liquid to cover 600g lotus root, and soak the rice separately. Refrigerate both at 4°C or below for 8 to 12 hours.
- 2Prep
Prepare two lotus-root sections of similar size, about 300g each, leaving one node closed and cutting only the opposite end straight. Peel, submerge completely in the rice-washing liquid overnight, then rinse once and dry the inside and outside.
- 3Prep
Drain the soaked glutinous rice in a sieve for 20 minutes and divide it exactly in half.
Leave one half white. Dissolve 1 pinch red food coloring in a few drops of water and mix it into the other half for a very pale pink color.
- 4Prep
Fill every channel of one lotus-root section with white rice and the other with pink rice.
Stand the roots upright, tap them gently on the work surface, and guide rice with a chopstick, filling only about 85 percent of each channel so the grains can expand.
- 5Control
Cover each open cut end with two layers of aluminum foil and tie firmly with cotton kitchen twine.
Line a fully steaming basket with a damp cloth, place the roots side by side, and cover them with another damp cloth.
- 6Control
Cover and steam over high heat for about 2 hours.
Replenish the steamer with boiling water before it runs dry. From 110 minutes, check that a bamboo skewer enters the thickest lotus root without resistance and no raw rice grains remain at the center.
- 7Finish
Cool the roots for 20 minutes, remove foil and twine, and slice crosswise 8mm thick.
Alternate white and pink rounds on a platter and serve with 40g kinako and 200g sweet azuki paste for dipping. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours.
Practical Cooking Checks
The cues that matter most while cooking.
- Key technique
- Two lotus roots filled separately with white and pink rice
- Finish cue
- Cool the roots for 20 minutes, remove foil and twine, and slice crosswise 8mm thick.
- Storage and reheating
- Refrigerate both at 4°C or below for 8 to 12 hours.
Cooking decision evidence
Calculated Charim data and applicable official food safety guidance.
This recipe
170min, 6 ingredients
Category median
38.5min, 8 ingredients
Based on 214 recipes
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