Pounding Mochi in Taiwan

麻糬，是一種用糯米或小米製成的甜點，在台灣客家、閩南及原住民裡中，都有的傳統特色食物。因民族與地區的不同，麻糬的做法與口味也各異。其中，以花蓮阿美族麻糬，最廣為人知，這裡的麻糬內餡相當多樣，有紅豆、綠豆、芝麻與芋泥等口味，是遊客到花蓮旅遊的熱門伴手禮。不過，不單單花蓮阿美族，台灣各地的部落都有麻糬文化，遊客到部落旅行，除了可以購買麻糬外，還可以參加搗麻糬體驗，了解麻糬到底是怎麼做出來的唷！

Mochi is made by glutinous rice (sticky rice) or millet. It is a special and traditional dessert for Hakka, Amoy, and Taiwan’s aborigines. Due to regional and cultural differences, the methods in the making and taste of Mochi are also different. Among all kinds, the Mochi from the Amie tribe in Wua-lien has been the most popular one. It has a variety of stuffing, such as red bean, green bean, sesame, and taro paste. The tourists come to Wua-lien like to buy Mochi as the gifts to take home. In addition to the Amie tribe in Wua-lien, many other tribes in Taiwan have the Mochi culture. When you visit tribes in Taiwan, besides buying Mochi, try to experience pounding Mochi to learn the making of this popular dessert.

統麻糬是沒有包餡的，僅僅是蘸著花生粉及糖粉吃。製作麻糬並不難，第一步驟是先裝糯米蒸熟，然後備妥蘸料－花生粉。

The traditional Mochi has no stuffing and it is eaten by dipping in the peanut powder or sugar. It is not difficult to make Mochi. The first thing is to steam the glutinous rice and then prepare the peanut powder dipping.

糯米蒸熟後，取出熱騰騰的糯米放入木臼中，用一隻腳頂著木臼的下緣，以固定用木臼，然後手持木杵上下樁打。

After the rice is cooked, place the rice in a wooden mortar while it is still hot. Use a foot to hold against the mortar so that it is stable. Pound Mochi with a wooden mallet.

搗麻糬是件相當粗重的工作，因為糯米越搗越黏，越黏就越耗費體力。兩人同心協力還是相當困難，搗沒幾下就手軟。

Pounding Mochi requires heavy labor, because Mochi is very sticky and will become stickier after it is pounded. It will even then need more strength to pound with the mallet. It requires two persons to coordinate the pounding. We got tried very fast.

搗麻糬要像這樣，把木杵高高舉起，再重重下打，且必須趁熱搗好，不然等糯米涼了變硬了，就搗不動了。

It looks like this when you are pounding Mochi: Lift up the mallet high and pound hard. You have to pound when the rice is still hot, or it won’t let you pound at all when it gets cold.

還是阿美族勇士厲害，沒一會兒功夫，糯米就變成光滑的麻糬了！

What a tough Amie warrior! Only a few minutes, the glutinous rice has become a smooth Mochi!

麻糬搗好後，把麻糬抓成小塊，再蘸上花生糖粉，就可以開始享受了。麻糬好不好吃，與搗的功力有關，因為後來有阿美族勇士的拔刀相助，我們才能吃到超級香Q且彈牙的麻糬，大夥吃的相當開心。

After it was pounded, we broke the Mochi into smaller pieces. Now we can enjoy the Mochi by dipping it in the peanut sugar powder. The harder the pounding, the better the taste of the Mochi. With the Amie warrior’s help, we were able to get the best texture of the Mochi and enjoyed our dessert.

有機會到台灣部落走走，千萬別只是到商店買買麻糬，要實際體驗親手搗麻糬的樂趣，這樣才沒白來一趟哦！

While you visit the tribes in Taiwan, don’t just pick up Mochi from the store, try the experience of making the Mochi yourself to make it a worthwhile trip! Read More