Mochiko: The Japanese Fine Glutinous Rice Flour

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Mochiko flour is also known as sweet rice flour or glutinous rice flour, and it’s a popular gluten-free flour used in many Asian bakeries and households.

Mochiko is a type of glutinous rice flour that is used in many traditional Japanese sweets. It is flour made from mochigome or sweet rice.

Mochiko is made from short-grain glutinous rice milled into a fine powder. The powder is then combined with water to form a sticky dough. This dough is then formed into shapes and steamed.

What is mochiko

Mochiko is often used to make dango, a popular Japanese dessert. Dango is made by taking the sticky dough and shaping it into small balls. The balls are then steamed and served with a sweet sauce or filling.

It’s actually one of the differences between dango and daifuku, for example, that uses mochigome in its whole form to pound into a type of dough.

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What does “mochiko” mean?

Mochiko comes from “mochi,” the glutinous mochigome rice it’s made from, and “ko,” which stands for child or infant, like a term of endearment for the rice flour that sprung from the rice itself.

What does mochiko taste like?

Mochiko has a subtly sweet flavor with a slightly chewy texture. It is often used in conjunction with other ingredients to create various flavors.

A very affordable great tasting mochiko is this one from Koda Farms:

Koda farms mochiko rice flour

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What’s the difference between mochiko and shiratamako?

The main difference between mochiko and shiratamako is the texture. Both are made from short-grain glutinous mochigome, but mochiko is milled into a fine powder. This results in flour that is very fine and powdery. Shiratamako, on the other hand, is more coarse and granular.

What’s the difference between mochiko and glutinous rice flour?

Mochiko is glutinous rice flour, but there are more types of this kind of flour like shiratamako, so calling it the same would be erroneous.

Is mochiko healthy?

Mochiko is made from glutinous rice, which does not contain gluten. This makes it a good option for people with gluten sensitivities or allergies.

Additionally, mochiko is low in fat and calories. However, because it is made from rice, it does contain carbohydrates, and rice flour also has less healthy properties than the rice itself.

Conclusion

Mochiko is a great way to use mochigome in your dishes without having to pound it into oblivion.

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Joost Nusselder, the founder of Bite My Bun is a content marketer, dad and loves trying out new food with Japanese food at the heart of his passion, and together with his team he's been creating in-depth blog articles since 2016 to help loyal readers with recipes and cooking tips.