Hina Ichigo

Ingredient	10	10
doumyouji-ko	4¼ oz	120g
sugar	2 Tbsp.	2 Tbsp.
koshian	3½ oz.	100g
water	¾ cup	180ml
strawberries	10 small	10 small

Hina ichigo take their name from traditional Japanese Ohina-Sama dolls, which the red strawberry peeking out from its pillow of rice resembles. They use doumyouji-ko, an unusual type of mochi rice, which gives them a sticky, chewy texture.

Preparation

Wash and hull strawberries, then dry thoroughly.
Prepare koshian and divide into ten balls.

Directions

Koshian Ohagi

Soak doumyouji-ko.
Mix the doumyouji-ko, water and sugar in a microwaveable bowl; let stand 10 minutes.
Cook doumyouji-ko.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and microwave on high for 2:30 minutes. Let stand, covered, in microwave for another 10 minutes. Mix lightly with a wet wooden spatula, and turn out onto a damp, thoroughly wrung-out cloth. Form into a cylinder with the cloth, then cut into 10 equal pieces.
Fill and shape.
Wet your hands and flatten each piece of rice dough into a small disk. Place a ball of anko in the center of each disk, then press the strawberry into the anko, and fold the rice dough up around it, leaving the tip of the strawberry sticking out of the top.

Notes

A hina ichigo made with whole mochi rice

Doumyouji-ko is a type of rice flour made from mochi rice that has been steamed, dried, and then broken into a coarse flour partway between rice and ground mochiko. Well-stocked Japanese specialty stores should carry it.
If you can’t get your hands on doumyouji-ko, you can substitute mochi rice (also called sweet or glutenous rice), as shown here.
Doumyouji-ko takes its name from the Doumyouji temple in Osaka where it was first made; “ko” means “flour,” although it’s not exactly flour.