Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Mochi Ice Cream

Homemade red bean mochi ice cream

Since I had already made the red bean ice cream, I thought I'd try to make mochi ice cream with it. There a bunch of directions on-line, and it seemed simple enough. Heck, you didn't even need to turn on the stove; you cook the mochi in the microwave! But what the recipes don't tell you is that mochi is the stickiest thing on earth! It'll stick to your fingers, your hands, the bowl, the utensils you use, the utensils you use to try to unstick it from the utensils you use... I got so frustrated after trying to make 3 of them (2 of which ended up in my mouth rather than back in the freezer because they were so ugly), I gave up. But here's the recipe if you want to try. =)

Mochi Ice Cream (adapted from here)
makes 10

Ice cream flavor of your choice
100 grams glutinous rice flour
180 ml water
50 grams sugar
Cornstarch

Let the ice cream sit in room temperature for a few minutes or until it becomes soften. Scoop and roll the ice cream into 10 round balls. Put the ice cream balls back in the freezer to re-harden.

Red bean ice cream balls

Mix the water, sugar and flour together well in a microwavable mixing bowl. Cover and microwave for 2 minutes. Stir batter, re-cover, and microwave for another 30 seconds. Stir once more and allow to cool.

Making the mochi

Cover the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch glass baking dish with cornstarch. Once the mochi is cool, spread it out in the dish. Cut and divide into 10 pieces.

Pick up one piece of dough. Flatten it with your palm and wrap it around a ball of ice cream. Repeat this process for the other pieces of mochi and ice cream.

Place it in the freezer to re-harden the ice cream. About 10 minutes before serving, let sit at room temperature to soften slightly.

Homemade mochi ice cream
Honestly, it looks like a frozen thumb on a mini-bun....

I think next time (if there is a next time) I try to make mochi ice cream, I might try this recipe, which includes corn syrup in the mochi (to keep it soft and pliable when frozen) and freezing the mochi before wrapping the ice cream. I think this might make the mochi less sticky to work with and obviously prevent the ice cream from melting too much while you're working with it.

3 comments:

  1. From looking at your recipe, I guess making the mochi ice cream is similar to making daifuku except you put ice cream inside instead of the azuki bean paste filling.

    Perhaps some of the methods used in daifuku-making can help you with your mochi ice cream? When making daifuku, the mochi doesn't stick to your hands much if you keep it coated with cornstarch/potatostarch.

    As for the utensils, for stirring the blob of mochi, use wet utensils (dip your spoon in water before trying to stir). For cutting the mochi, coat your knife with cornstarch.

    Your recipe looks interesting. I may have to try it sometime. Doesn't the mochi get hard after freezing, though?

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  2. Thanks for the tips! If I ever do try making this again I'll definitely use them. The mochi does get a little hard, but usually I thaw the mochi ice cream a little at room temperature for maybe 10 minutes before serving.

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  3. I like this delicious Red Bean Ice Cream Recipe because it's healthy and tasty.

    Red Bean Ice Cream Recipe

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