Kirimochi - Savory Mochi

So hubby and I bought a small toaster oven for our tiny apartment, and we noticed it had instructions for something called "kirimochi" along with a funky picture of a square with a lightbulb coming out of it.

Now what in the hell is that?!? LOL

So I googled kirimochi and found this Gourmet Traveller blog along with instructions on how to make savory mochi. As soon as I saw the pictures on the blog post, I connected the dots. I've seen these countless of times at the local groceries, just never thought to pick one up and take a good look at what it was. I have had many soups with chunks of mochi in them, but as much as I love mochi, I don't love them when they're gooey in a bowl of soup. My little toaster oven just made me realize I can have these mochi cakes toasted to a puffy crunchy goodness!!! Yay ^.^

Of course I had to buy a 1 kilo bag. Anything smaller wouldn't do. I'd eat these all day they're so yummy :P

I prepared my sauce with 2 teaspoons of brown sugar (or cane sugar) instead of honey, and about 2 Tablespoons of low sodium soy sauce.

At first I used a small nonstick skillet, testing out the method as shown in the Gourmet Traveller blog. While the mochi did not stick just as the post said, it actually burned before it had time to properly puff up and even my skillet charred a little since there wasn't anything else in the skillet other than 2 pieces of mochi. So that didn't work out too well. Perhaps I had the heat on too high?

So then I went back to my toaster oven and does as it instructed. Pop 2 in, turn up to 1000W and toast for 3-4 minutes. Wahlah - it worked - of course it has to work, right? Silly me.

And it was perfectly brown too!

After dipping into the sauce, I wrapped it with nori and ate it ^.^ It was yummy.

And since then, it has only been 5 days but my 1kilo bag already had 2/3 of its content eaten LOL! Hubby is not too keen on it, but I love its dual crunchy and chewy texture. I love it especially when eaten with spicy mentaiko - delicious!

And check this out: moffles - mochi waffles made with these mochi cakes, though it looks like this particular kind is rounded and not squarish rectangular like mine. That's not to say the squarish rectangular ones won't work, it probably will. Damn, now I wish I have a waffle machine!!!