Mochi

Japanese food · rice cake · New Year tradition

Made from sticky rice. Mochi starts with a special kind of short-grain rice called mochigome that gets steamed until it's super soft and sticky, then pounded into a smooth paste.

Pounded by hand. In Japan, people make mochi in a traditional ceremony called mochitsuki where they use big wooden mallets to pound the hot rice over and over until it becomes perfectly smooth and chewy.

New Year celebration. While people eat mochi all year long, it's especially important during Japanese New Year celebrations when families make and share it as a special tradition.

Endless shapes. After the rice paste is made, it can be molded into all kinds of shapes and sometimes filled with sweet things like red beans or fruit to make delicious snacks.