Mitarashi dango
Soy-glazed rice dumplings
Mitarashi dango (みたらし団子): grilled rice dumplings in a sweet soy glaze
Mitarashi dango are said to come from Shimogamo Shrine in Kyoto, where they were sold at the midsummer purification festival; today they are the snack of shrine fairs, flower-viewing picnics and station kiosks all over Japan. Chewy little rice-flour balls are threaded on skewers, toasted until speckled, and coated in a translucent, sweet-salty soy glaze that tastes a little like caramel. Mochi is very sticky: cut it into small pieces for young children and older people, and make sure they chew well and eat sitting down. The common mistake is a runny glaze: it must simmer until it turns clear and thick, or it slides off. Chef's tip: mix silken tofu into the rice flour instead of some of the water; the dumplings stay soft for hours instead of hardening as they cool.
- Total time
- 30 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the dumplings
- 3 ½ oz silken tofu
- 2 ½ tbsp waterabout; as needed
For the glaze
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 4 tbsp sugar
- ½ cup water
- 1 tbsp potato starch
Shop this recipe on Amazon
What you'll need
Spices & pantry
Fresh ingredients (1)
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Soak 8 bamboo skewers in water. Mix 1 ¾ oz joshinko (non-glutinous rice flour), 3 ½ oz shiratamako (glutinous rice flour) and 3 ½ oz silken tofu with your hand, then add 2 ½ tbsp water a little at a time until the dough feels as soft as an earlobe.
Step 2: Roll into 20 balls about 2.5 cm across.
Step 3: Drop the balls into a pan of boiling water. When they float, cook 2 minutes more, then lift into iced water and drain.
6 minStep 4: Thread 5 balls onto each pair of skewers, or 4 per single skewer.
Step 5: Toast the skewers in a dry non-stick pan or under a hot grill for 2–3 minutes per side, until lightly browned in patches.
5 minStep 6: For the glaze, whisk 2 tbsp soy sauce, 4 tbsp sugar, ½ cup water and 1 tbsp potato starch in a small pan. Stir over a medium heat for 2–3 minutes, until it boils, turns from cloudy to clear and thickens to coat a spoon.
3 minStep 7: Spoon the glaze over the dumplings and eat warm.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 240 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbs
- 52 g
- Fat
- 1 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does mitarashi dango take?
- About 30 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- What can I use instead of soy sauce?
- Tamari, same amount (gluten free).
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Kartoshka cakeCocoa and cake crumb truffles
Soviet cafés and school canteens sold these knobbly brown 'potatoes' for a few kopecks, and they began as a thrifty way to use up sponge and biscuit trimmings at the bakery. Crumbs are bound with butter and sweetened condensed milk, flavoured with cocoa and vanilla, shaped into little potatoes, rolled in cocoa and finished with two dabs of pale butter cream for the sprouts. They are fudgy and dense like a brownie truffle, need no oven, and children love making them. Traditional bakers added a spoonful of rum, an optional extra for adult batches only; this version is alcohol-free with vanilla. The usual slip is coarse crumbs, which make the potatoes crack, so blitz them as fine as sand. Chef's tip: chill the shaped potatoes for at least 20 minutes so they hold their shape and slice cleanly.
Russian
Undu walaluFried urad dal rings in treacle
Walalu means bangles, and these dark, sticky rings of fried urad dal soaked in kithul treacle are a sweet that Sinhala families bring out for Avurudu and for special almsgivings, often made in large batches by an aunt known for her steady hand. A thick, fluffy paste of ground black gram is piped into loops and fried until crisp, then plunged straight into warm treacle, so the rings stay crunchy on the outside while drinking up the syrup. They taste a little like a darker, smokier jalebi, with a toffee finish from the palm treacle. Watery batter is what ruins them; it spreads into flat blobs, so grind the soaked dal with as little water as possible and beat it until light. This recipe uses no asafoetida, so it is naturally gluten free. Chef's tip: pipe the rings onto small squares of baking paper and lower them into the oil paper and all; the paper peels away in seconds.
Sri Lankan
Yaki onigiriGrilled rice balls
Yaki onigiri (焼きおにぎり) are rice balls grilled until they form a crisp, toasty crust, then brushed with soy sauce glaze. They are eaten all over Japan, at izakaya, at barbecues and from the freezer section, as a snack or with miso soup. The inside stays soft and steamy while the outside crackles. Best eaten hot, straight from the pan. Chef's tip: let the shaped rice balls dry for 10 minutes before they go in the pan. A drier surface forms a better crust and won't stick, and the glaze goes on only at the end so it doesn't burn.