Mitarashi Dango Recipe ( みたらし団子 )

Photo: Uncut Recipes

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TRADITIONAL JAPANESE RECIPE: Dango (団子) is a Japanese dumpling and sweet made from mochiko (rice flour), related to mochi. It is often served with green tea. Dango is eaten year-round, but the different varieties are traditionally eaten in given seasons. Three to five dango are often served on a skewer.

Mitarashi Dango is a great snack and quite satisfying without being overly sweet, perfect with hot green tea or better, Matcha.

This dessert’s name, Mitarashi, comes from a festival of a famous shrine in the city of Kyoto in western Japan. Mitarashi Dango was thought to be made as an offering for gods at this shrine in the 14th century. Since then, Mitarashi Dango was sold at street venders in shrines in Kyoto and eventually all over Japan. Today it is quite common. You can find it at Japanese sweet shops, of course, and also at supermarkets and convenience stores.



TYPES:

The many different varieties of dango are usually named after the various seasonings served on or with it.

- Anko is commonly made with (sweetened) red bean paste; ingredients other than azuki are used on rare occasions.

- Chadango is green-tea flavored dango.

- Botchan dango has three colors. One is colored by red beans, the second by eggs, and the third by green tea.

- Denpun dango from Hokkaido is made from potato flour and baked with sweet boiled beans.

- Kuri dango is coated in chestnut paste.

- Chichi dango is a slightly sweet, light treat usually eaten as a dessert.

- Hanami Dango also has three colors, and is traditionally made during Sakura-viewing season, hence the name (Hanami means "flower viewing"; hana meaning "flower", and mi meaning "to see").

- Goma uses sesame seeds. It is both sweet and salty.

- Kibi dango is made with millet flour. This variety is prominently featured in the tale of Momotaro, a folkloric Japanese hero, who offers the rounded ball (not skewered) to three talking animals in exchange for their aid in fighting demons.

- Kinako is made with toasted soy flour.

- Kushi dango' is held by a skewer.

- Mitarashi is covered with a syrup made from shouyu (soy sauce), sugar, and starch.

- Nikudango is a type of meatball.

- Teppanyaki on a skewer has a tangy teppanyaki taste.

- Sasa dango is produced and eaten primarily in Niigata Prefecture. Sasa dango has two varieties: onna dango and otoko dango. Onna dango (literally "female dango") is filled with anko, while the otoko dango (literally "male dango") is filled with kinpira. The dango is wrapped in leaves of sasa for the purpose of preservation.

 

 

 

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Skill Level:	Time: 60 Minutes
Price:	Makes: 8 Pieces

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Ingredients:

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Conversions

 

 

 

Directions:

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01 - In a bowl, mix Tofu and Mochiko well. The dough should be not too loose nor too firm (about the firmness of an earlobe).

02 - Scoop out table spoon size portions of dough and roll into balls.

03 - Boil Water in a large pot, and cook the Dough Balls until they float. Once they float in the boiling water, cook 2-3 minutes longer, then remove from the water using a mesh strainer and place onto a plate lined with a paper towel.



04 - Make Mitarashi sauce: In a small pot, add all the ingredients for the sauce and stir. Cook until the sauce boils and keep it warm.



05 - Slide 3-4 Dango balls onto each skewer.

06 - Heat a non-stick frying pan at medium heat, place skewered Dango, and cook until lightly browned.

07 - Put Dango on a plate and pour the sauce on top.

Notes:

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- If you cannot find Katakuriko potato starch you can use regular cornstarch.

- Alternative Sauce could be Sweet Soy Glaze Sauce.

 

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Written by: Uncut Recipes

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