Mochi Tsuki 餅つき

餅つき (read: mochi tsuki) literally means mochi pounding, refering to the traditional Japanese festival where people pound the glutinous rice in a big wooden mortar with large wooden hammers/mallets. Last Tuesday, Japanese class ended 30 mins early especially for this school-organised mochitsuki event held at the beautiful Okuma Garden, and they even specially invited several sumo wrestlers down to perform the mochitsuki. 2 people pound the rice with a rhythmic step and shouts, and the rice soon becomes the sticky mass the eventually becomes mochi in various forms. Mochi is traditionally eaten in Japan all-year-round, but especially during New Year's.


(Rashaaa! Trying my hand out at pounding the glutinous rice into mochi!)


Besides allowing the students to try their hands at the pounding, they also gave out the freshly pounded mochi in a variety of ways - with red bean paste, with finely grounded peanut, with nori and shoyu or in soup. I loved the peanut and red bean one best! I ended up taking 3 plates' of these. =P

Mochi with (left) peanut, (right) nori seaweed and shoyu..

Mochi with (left) peanut, (right) red bean paste.