Grapes Daifuku

Sometime ago, I discovered the existance of this cute little mochi with red bean paste and strawberry fillings from here. Apparently this type of mochi is called daifuku. This Japanese sweet treat is quite similar to our Malaysian Chinese kueh called "nuo mi zhi", "chi fa bun", "chi pa" or "loh mai chi" in the various Chinese dialects. The difference is only on the fillings. The "loh mai chi" has a sweet peanut fillings.

Daifuku that I attempted to make has red bean paste and grapes fillings. Grapes has many health benefits. It is said that grapes are one of the healthiest fruits around. But not many people are aware that grape's skin and seeds are also very beneficial to our health. They are believed to have antioxidant properties. Previously, I will always peel its skin and remove its seeds before popping it into my mouth. But I have been eating the whole fruit since I was told of its benefits. Oh! by the way, grape is considered as a type of berry. This is new to me! I never knew that.

The recipe that I am using to make these cute little daifukus comes from the link above. However, I made some minor changes to it. I replaced the strawberries with grapes and I used lesser red bean paste so that it would not be overly sweet. I also pre-baked the corn starch used for dusting. Please see the followings for my amended version:

(Makes 6)

Grapes Daifuku

Ingredients:

Skin:

100 g glutinous rice flour

20 g sugar

150 ml water

Filling:

120 g red bean paste

6 pcs grapes

Baked corn starch for dusting

Method:

1. Wash and drain the grapes. Pat dry using kitchen towel. 

2. Divide the red bean paste into 6 portion with 20 g each portion.

3. Take 1 portion of the red bean paste and flatten it. Wrap a piece of grape with it. Repeat with the other 5 pieces. Set aside.

4. Add glutinous rice flour and sugar into a microwave-safe bowl. 

5. Add in water in 3 parts. Mix well till the batter is smooth.

6. Microwave it for 1 minute and stir with a spatula till well mixed.

7. Microwave again for another minute and then stir with spatula till well mixed. At this stage, it begins to look like mochi although there are still some floury parts.

8. Microwave for another 30 seconds. You may microwave for another 30 seconds if it is still a bit floury. At this stage, it should be translucent.

9. Put the baked corn flour in a tray. Remove the mochi from the bowl to the tray.

10. Dust your hands with the baked corn starch and coat the mochi with the corn starch so that it will be easier to handle.

11. Divide the mochi into 6 equal portions.

12. Flatten a portion of the mochi and dust with more baked corn starch if necessary for easier handling.

13. Wrap a ball of fillings prepared earlier with the flatten mochi. For detailed guidance, please refer to the link mentioned above. 

14. Repeat with the other 5 portions.

15. Serve at room temperature. 

Notes:

1. Best consume on the same day.

2. If not consumed immediately,  store in an air-tight container to prevent it from hardened.

2. As we do not have very sweet tooth, I used reduced sugar version of the red bean paste with reduced weightage as well.

This is how the daifuku looks like after fillings was wrapped

The mochi was divided into 6 equal portions before they were used to wrap the fillings

It became firmer on the next day after it was taken out from fridge. The picture below shows how it looks like on the next day straight from the fridge. You may compare it with the rest of the photos to see its difference. It was extremely soft on the first day thus making it difficult to maintain its shape after cutting. Despite of this, I love how soft these daifukus are. These little cutesies really made my day.

This shot was taken on the next day immediately after it was taken out from fridge.