Mochi

Mochi (Japanese饼, even with Honorativpräfix: o-mochi or Omochi ) is the name for Japanese rice cakes are traditionally eaten especially at New Year.

In the usual preparation of sticky rice used in Japan is first steamed. Traditionally, it is then beaten in wooden vats with large wooden hammers, with a helper after each stroke applies the rice clumps. This traditional way of preparation but is now shown almost exclusively at local fairs or public shows of sumo wrestlers. Normally take over machines this step because of the enormous expenditure of energy, which is required.

Mochi can be cooked as soft cake or eaten in dried form. Often they are roasted and served with sugar, soy sauce or nori. At New Year they will be as an accompaniment to Zoni, a special New Year's soup, eaten.

Because of their stickiness and tradition, as many Mochis to celebrate the new year to eat, it comes every year to deaths by suffocation, which is of Japanese newspapers in the form of "New Year's death statistics" reported and is often picked up by Western media.

Swell

• Alan Davidson: The Oxford Companion to Food, 2nd. ed Oxford 2006, article Mochi, p 512