Mochi ice cream is a confection made from

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese

mochi A mochi ( ; Japanese ) is a Japanese rice cake made of , a short-grain Japonica rice, japonica glutinous rice, and sometimes other ingredients such as water, sugar, and cornstarch. The steamed rice is pounded into paste and molded into the ...

(pounded

sticky rice Sticky may refer to: Adhesion *Adhesion, the tendency of dissimilar particles or surfaces to cling to one another *Sticky mat, an adhesive mat used in cleanrooms to lessen contamination from footwear *Sticky note, a generic term for a Post-it Note ...

) with an

ice cream Ice cream is a frozen dessert typically made from milk or cream that has been flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as Chocolate, cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit, such as strawberries or peaches. Food ...

filling. It was invented by Japanese-American businesswoman and community activist Frances Hashimoto with help from her husband, Joel.

Description

Mochi ice cream is a small, round confection consisting of a soft, pounded sticky rice dumpling (

) formed around an ice cream filling. The ice cream adds flavor and creaminess to the confectionery while the mochi adds sweetness and texture. The traditional ice cream flavors used are vanilla, chocolate and strawberry. Other flavors, such as

Kona coffee Kona coffee is the market name for coffee (''Coffea arabica'') cultivated on the slopes of Hualalai and Mauna Loa in the North and South Kona Districts of the Big Island of Hawaii. It is one of the most expensive coffees in the world. Only coff ...

, plum wine,

green tea Green tea is a type of tea made from the leaves and buds of the '' Camellia sinensis'' that have not undergone the withering and oxidation process that creates oolong teas and black teas. Green tea originated in China in the late 1st millenn ...

, and

red bean Red bean is a common name for several varieties of beans and plants and may refer to: * ''Small red beans'', also known as "Mexican red beans," "Central American red beans," and "New Orleans red beans" * Adzuki bean (''Vigna angularis''), commonly ...

, are also widely used. Mochi can also be flavored as a complement to the ice cream filling. When making mochi, it is dusted with either potato or cornstarch to keep it from caking while being formed and handled.

History

Japanese daifuku is the predecessor to mochi ice cream, commonly featuring

adzuki bean ''Vigna angularis'', also known as the , azuki bean, aduki bean, red bean, or red mung bean, is an Annual plant, annual vine widely cultivated throughout East Asia for its small (approximately long) bean. The cultivars most familiar in East A ...

filling. Due to the temperature and consistency of mochi and ice cream, both components must be modified. This is to achieve the right viscosity that will remain constant regardless of changes in temperature.Eto, Masa
Pursuit of Innovative Food
''Masa's Message'', A&D Company Ltd., March 2004. Technical information on Yukimi Daifuku. URL accessed August 10, 2006. An early predecessor form of the dessert was originally produced by Lotte as Yukimi Daifuku in 1981. The company first made the product by using a rice starch instead of

and a rice milk instead of real ice cream. Frances Hashimoto, the former president and CEO of Mikawaya, is credited as the inventor of mochi ice cream. Hashimoto's husband, Joel Friedman, conceived the idea of taking small orbs of ice cream and wrapping them in a Japanese traditional

rice cake. Frances Hashimoto expanded on her husband's idea, inventing the fusion dessert now popular in the United States and elsewhere. Hashimoto introduced seven flavors in the mochi product line. Mikawaya, a company in America, began production of mochi ice cream in the United States in 1993.Mainstream America Embraces Mochi Ice Cream
''sushiandtofu.com'', All Japan News, December, 2001. History of Mochi Ice Cream and Mikawaya Bakery-Confectionery. URL accessed August 10, 2006

/ref>About Us
''Mikawaya'', 2005. URL accessed January 18, 2007. Research and development took over a decade to evolve into the mass production form used today, due to the complex interactions of the ingredients. Trial and error was used in order to successfully pull the delicate mochi dough over the ice cream without leaving a sodden mess. Friedman explained that in order to conduct production of the ice cream, experts in fields ranging from construction to microbiology were brought in to perfect the state-of-the-art production building. Mikawaya debuted their mochi ice cream in Hawaii in 1994. The frozen treat was so popular, it captured 15% of the novelty frozen treat market during its first four months. Mochi ice cream gained huge popularity in the UK following a viral TikTok trend, which began in January 2021. The trend of ‘Looking for Little Moons in Big Tesco’ became a sensation, receiving 341.8M views and a surge in sales of 1400% in Tesco alone. Now, stores like

Trader Joe's Trader Joe's is an American grocery store chain headquartered in Monrovia, California, with 597 locations across the US. The first Trader Joe's store was opened in 1967 by founder Joe Coulombe in Pasadena, California. In 1979, the chain was s ...

sell mochi ice cream with flavors such as mango, chocolate, and, in some places, purple yam.

References

External links

Mikawaya's official site

Lotte's official site (Japanese)

The joy of mochi
— June 14, 2006 Honolulu Weekly article, featuring ''Bubbies Homemade Ice Cream'' of Honolulu
Maeda-en Mochi Ice Cream site
*
Little Moons official website
{{Ice cream Californian cuisine Ice cream Japanese desserts and sweets Glutinous rice desserts

Description

History

See also

References

External links