[Updated 11 June 2021]
For lovers of Japanese desserts, mochi ice cream is one of the most popular treats that you can get yourself. Made with glutinous rice flour, cornstarch, sugar, water and of course ice cream, this bite-sized confection is sweet, smooth and chewy to taste ? However, it’s not the easiest thing for Muslim travellers to find and enjoy since many of them contain alcohol.
So if you’ve never had a chance of savouring one yourself, make today the day that you do! With this halal mochi ice cream recipe, prepare to whip up some delicious Japanese desserts at home and enjoy them at the end of your meal ?
Ingredients (serves 12)
- 1 cup sweet glutinous rice flour
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
- Cornstarch for dusting
- Ice cream(s) of your choice
Equipment
- 12 cupcake liners (You can also use an empty egg carton and line it with plastic wrap. Refer to notes to see how it’s done!)
- Rolling pin
- Cookie dough scoop (You can also use a regular spoon, though bear in mind it’ll be tougher to shape the ice cream)
- 3.5 inch (9 cm) cookie cutter (You can also use the bottom of a drinking glass as a guide to cut out the dough)
Directions
- Using a cookie scoop, scoop out ice cream into cupcake liners. Pop them in the freezer for a few hours until they’re completely frozen solid.
- While they’re freezing, work on the mochi by adding sweet glutinous rice flour and sugar in a bowl. Whisk until thoroughly combined, then add water and stir until everything is properly incorporated.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and microwave for 1 minute.
- Remove plastic wrap, wet your spatula and fold the mixture repeatedly until evenly mixed.
- Cover it again and pop it in the microwave for 1 more minute. Remove the plastic wrap, wet your spatula once more and fold the mixture for the second time.
- Repeat this step for the third and last time; cover the bowl with plastic wrap and steam in the microwave but only for 30 seconds. Wet the spatula and fold the mochi.
- Place a sheet of parchment paper on a work surface and generously dust it with cornstarch.
- Pour the mochi out onto the parchment paper and generously dust the dough with cornstarch along with a rolling pin. Then gently roll the mochi out into a rectangle (about the size of a standard baking sheet) until about a quarter inch thick, evenly across the dough. Remember to dust the dough with cornstarch whenever necessary to avoid any stickiness.
- Transfer the parchment paper with the dough onto a baking sheet and place in the fridge, uncovered, for about 20 minutes until the dough is cold and set.
- Remove from the fridge and dust with cornstarch one again. Then cut out 12 circles using a cookie cutter.
- Once you have them all cut out, take a ball of ice cream out and get ready to wrap them. Dust off any excess cornstarch, place the ice cream in the centre of the dough, bring the edges together and gently pinch them together to seal. Try to work as quickly as possible to prevent melting.
- Wrap the mochi in plastic wrap and twist the ends semi-tightly to secure them. Then place in a muffin tin (or cupcake liners) and pop it in the freezer. Do the same for the remaining ice cream balls.
- Leave your mochi ice cream in the freezer for about 1 hour. When ready to serve, let them soften up for 1 to 2 minutes at room temperature before enjoying.
Notes:
- If you don’t have any cupcake liners, you can improvise using an egg carton and some plastic wrap instead. Simply remove the lid of the egg carton, cut off the top of the dividers, line it with plastic wrap and place a scoop of ice cream into each egg slot. Check out how Joshua Weissman does it in this video recipe (from 1.16 to 1.50) ?
- When wrapping the ice cream ball in the dough, make sure to work on one ice cream ball at a time. Don't take them all out at once since they'll melt pretty quickly.
- You can add some food colouring to your mochi to make it super Insta-worthy.
Now that you’ve got your next dessert covered, get ready to scoop, roll and wrap so that you can take a yummy bite out of these mochi ice cream yourself. For more ideas, check out more easy halal Japanese dessert recipes to satisfy all your sweet tooth cravings.