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Savory Kyoto
Essay by Risa Sekiguchi
Mochi and Mochitsuki
Rice cake-pounding festivals welcome the New Year
Kyoto in winter is a delight, even with its steadily dropping temperatures. The winter harvest of fruits and vegetables - such as mikan (tangerine), daikon (giant white radish) and kabu (turnip) - feature prominently in the cuisine. The city's residents are also busily preparing for the oshogatsu (New Years) celebrations. Savory Kyoto has featured oshogatsu osechi ryori (New Year's cuisine) in years past, but here we focus on one of its main ingredients: mochi.
Mochi (rice cake) is made from pounded mochigome (sweet, or glutinous rice) and is considered a special treat. The term ''cake'' might not be the best translation, as mochi is not airy and light. Instead, the consistency is more like taffy: stretchy, sticky, starchy and utterly delicious.
In the old days, rice was made into mochi by a laborious method of pounding and turning the rice in an usu (oversized wooden mortar). This image is so ingrained in Japanese culture that when looking at a full moon, instead of a ''man on the moon,'' we see a rabbit pounding mochi. Today most mochi is made by machine, but you can still see mochitsuki (rice cake-pounding) ceremonies in late December in the countryside. There, villagers gather to take turns pounding the rice (which has been steamed over boiling water in large wooden boxes called seiro) while reflecting on all the blessings they were given over the course of the year. The mochi is then blessed by a Shinto priest and offered to the gods before being enjoyed by the participants. It's heavy work and requires coordination: One or more participants pound the steamed rice with a kine (oversized wooden mallet) while an assistant quickly darts in to turn the rice while the mallet (or mallets) are raised. The rhythmic process is exciting and fascinating to watch.
The mochi is then turned onto a flat surface coated with mochiko (rice flour) and formed into round cakes and other treats, such as ohagi (mochi filled with sweet beans). Since such handiwork is so labor intensive (and Kyoto, in particular, has a long and extraordinary confectionary tradition), the mochitsuki ceremony is mainly a symbolic event to bring the community together and give thanks for the gods. It continues to survive, especially in rural villages in Japan and in Japanese diaspora communities worldwide.
Another important oshogatsu element featuring mochi are Kagami (mirror) mochi; two large mochi, six- to eight inches in diameter (the smaller placed on top of the larger said to represent the coming and going years) and topped with a daidai (orange). This is an ancient tradition, dating as far back as the Muromachi period (15th century), and you can see kagami mochi displayed in homes, usually in the family Shinto shrine.
Kagami mochi
Mochi is also used for ozoni, a hearty soup that is enjoyed only on January 1st as the first meal of the New Year. Made with chicken stock and filled with a variety of vegetables and mochi, it's a meal in a bowl, and so delicious it's a shame it's not available at other times of the year. On the second weekend in January, the kagami mochi is broken in a ceremony called kagami biraki (mirror opening) and enjoyed in a sweet bean soup called oshiroko.
Yomogi mochi
In and around Kyoto you can also see cascading willow branches with lovely pink and white mochi flowers called mochibana on display during the winter. Although this tradition started in the north to provide flowers in a season where there were none, it has spread throughout Japan.
Yaki-mochi
Today, you can buy mochi year-round at any Japanese grocery store. It's typically dried and packaged into individual portions, in either round or rectangular form. In Kyoto, head to Mochikiya on Nishiki Food Market east of Yanagibamba to try one of their freshly made daifuku (mochi filled with sweet bean), dango (small mochi on a stick), plain or yomogi (mugwort) mochi. They also make dried mochi, including large sliced cakes mixed with various ingredients, including kurogome (black bean) and togarashi (hot pepper). On weekend afternoons, they also hold mochitsuki demonstrations.
Daifuku
To prepare mochi, just grill it over an open flame until the center is soft and the outside, crunchy, or toast in a toaster oven. It will rise and form bubbles as it heats. Since mochi isn't seasoned, it's typically eaten with soy sauce (to which the mochi can be dipped before final roasting). Cover with a square of nori (seaweed) for a delicious and filling snack.
Risa Sekiguchi is co-owner of Mizuya, an online gallery for Japanese tableware, and the founder of Savory Japan, a website dedicated to Japanese cuisine and culture. For more information on mochi and other rice products, visit Savory Japan: www.savoryjapan.com
Photos by Hotaru Images
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