In Lebanon we’ve been used to only eating Mochis for dessert at Japanese restaurants where the dessert is nothing more than a rice paste with ice cream one could take home and enjoy anytime. In Paris, a new concept has seen the light of day - called "Mochi Chic" the company has one of the best Mochis I’ve ever had... located in the heart of Beaugrenelle their bites are addictive!
Mochi is Japanese rice cake made of mochigome, a short-grain japonica glutinous rice. The rice is pounded into paste and molded into the desired shape. In Japan it is traditionally made in a ceremony called mochitsuki. While also eaten year-round, mochi is a traditional food for the Japanese New Year and is commonly sold and eaten during that time. Mochi is a multi-component food consisting of polysaccharides, lipids, protein and water. Mochi has a heterogeneous structure of amylopectin gel, starch grains, and air bubbles. This rice is characterized by its lack of amylose in the starch and is derived from short or medium japonica rices. The protein concentration of the rice is higher than that of normal short-grain rice, and the two also differ in amylose content. In mochi rice, the amylose content is negligible, which results in its gel-like consistency.
Stored at an adequate temperature, the Mochis are stored inside a moving fridge installed on a bicycle. Choose one of ten flavors; mango, green tea, vanilla, cherry blossom, vanilla-chocolate, lychee, blueberry, chocolate-coco, passion fruit and pistachio.
You can have a box of six or choose individually. The Mochis are excellent! Beautifully rounded, adequately sized and stored at proper temperature, the rice paste embraces a heart of tasty ice cream. As sweet as they should be, the Mochis are addictive... one, another and a third, once you start you cannot stop. I loved how the rice paste is thin and not chewy, how the ice cream is cold without being too hard and icy, the correct quantity of sugar used and the flavors which pop around the mouth in style. I’ve had hundreds of Mochis: these are my favorites.
If they produce them or import them from Japan, I couldn’t t find any data online but honestly who cares: they do it right and I loved them. Hoping to have someone import them to Lebanon soon.
