My name is Micaela.

and I'm Loretta.

And today we are at Arigato Japan's cooking class where we are going to learn how to make

"Wagashi", which is....

Traditional Japanese Sweets!

Today we’re learning to make Japanese traditional sweets using different types of mochi flour.

First, we’re using shiratama-ko to make round mochi balls. This powder feels crunchy

because it’s mixed with potato starch, resulting in a more “rubbery” mochi texture when

cooked.

Loretta got stuff in her hair! We have no idea how, or why?

To make this healthy treat, all you need to do is mix one part shiratama-ko and one part

tofu, and boil the rice cakes until they are cooked. Once they're done, carefully set them

aside to cool--and that's it!

Are you having fun?

Yeah, definitely.

You actually get to see what you're eating? A lot of times when you see wagashi everywhere

you go, across Japan, you don't actually see what goes into it.

So now that you actually get to see what goes into it it's like, it looks better, tastes

better.

Next, we’re making "Ichigo Daifuku", an iconic Japanese dessert filled with bean paste

and fresh strawberries.

Our first step is to prepare the filling, by coating our fresh strawberries in the bean

paste, and setting them aside.

It's important to leave the tip of the strawberry uncovered, because, it looks better that way!

For this recipe we’re using a combination of the starchy shiratamako powder, and mochiko,

a powder that makes a more soft and “gooey” type of mochi.

As they cook in the microwave, they form a texture similar to hard rubber, it's almost

impossible to stir.

Oh wow, it's very sticky!

I don't think I can do this, I'm not strong enough!

That's enough, that's enough!

I'm so weak!

Thank you! Weak, no!

I'm so weak.

Cooking is tiresome!

Finally when the mochi is done, it’s covered in starch and cut into small pieces.

These small pieces are then used to cover the bean paste and strawberry fillings that

we set aside earlier.

Red down!

Red DOWN!

Oh, okay.

Oh, interesting, okay, so...

Basically, you put the strawberry tip at the top, and you put the mochi over it so when

you make it you have this little red--I don't know if you can see it, it's red, red dot,

very cute! I think I did it! I think I did it.

You did good!

Us Westerners tend to dress our desserts in sugar, sugar, and more sugar. But instead

of chocolate or caramel syrup, traditional Japanese sweets like to rely on the natural

sweetness of fruits and bean paste to compliment the delicate flavour of the mochi.

Uwaaah.

Shiratama made with tofu, and rice cakes with strawberry and bean paste, yup, this is one

healthy snack!

We have these gorgeous Ichigo Daifuku--I made these! I MADE THESE! Maybe. I dunno. Someone

else might have made this one. But I helped! And that's important!

It's so good!

So, for all of you who are visiting Tokyo, and you're looking for some cool stuff to

do, you should check out ARIGATO JAPAN, I'll put the link in description below, the cooking

classes are also really good but they also do food tours late at night where um they

walk around neighborhoods and they drop into little Mom and Pop restaurants, and try some

traditional Japanese food-- and it's places that as a tourist you wouldn't normally get

to try out, so, it's a great way to experience a little bit more authenticity when you're

in Japan, especially when you're in Tokyo where it's very, you know, normally very touristy,

yeah.

So you can learn more about Arigato Japan by checking out the link in the description~~!