Mishi

Last updated 2026-11-10 — Mishi, also known as glutinous rice cake, is a traditional food eaten during the Winter Solstice. The process involves washing and soaking glutinous rice for 8 hours, then steaming it in a bamboo steamer. Once cooked, the rice is placed in a stone mortar and pounded until soft and ready to eat. It can also be shaped into a ball and placed on ground sweet potato powder, where it will naturally form a round cake as it cools and hardens. Alternatively, roasted rice, beans, peanuts, and sesame seeds can be ground into powder, mixed with sugar, and used to coat the pounded mishi. The pounded mishi can be cut into small pieces and rolled in the powder, or formed into round cakes, cut into pieces, and either fried or steamed soft before being served with the powder.