In Japan, when December approaches, alongside the Christmas-themed decorations and all sorts of ads for Christmas fried chicken and cakes, mochis spring up here and there. Towards the end of November, local neighbourhoods would put up posters for Mochitsuki (餅つき,) an activity involving pounding rice cakes in preparation for the Japanese New Year. Then, from December, a double-layered round mochi called kagamimochi (鏡餅: mochi for Japanese New Year decoration purpose) sometimes made of real mochi and sometimes plastic will appear in almost every supermarket. At the same time, bags of mochi for ozoni (お雑煮: a type of stew eaten on the first day of the New Year with mochi inside) could be spotted too. But wait, these bags of mochi seem to be a bit different depending on where you are in Japan. What are they called exactly?
My first encounter with ozoni was in west Japan, so my impression of ozoni has always consisted of white miso, radish or carrot and round mochi, or marumochi (丸餅.) But upon moving to Tokyo, I noticed that round mochis were a rarity. Instead, I mostly only spotted square-shaped ones, the kirimochi (切り餅.)
I personally prefer the round ones as I like their smooth shape and I think they look quite cute. Turns out this is also why round-shaped mochis are favoured in west Japan and consisted as the most legitimate type of New Year Mochi. According to Weather News JP, the roundness of the shape indicates the word 円満 (harmony, smooth, peace) and is considered to bring good luck for the new year. The shape is also connected with Shintoism praying tools. In Eastern Japan, on the contrary, the square mochi showcased the samurai spirit, suggesting that the enemy will be defeated. Climate is possibly another factor: with Western Japan being warmer in general, the cut of the square mochi may result in the mochi getting mouldy faster, making it difficult to store. (Weather News, 2023)
I personally like the littles differences like this. These days it is convenient to think of japan as an island with a homogeneous culture. Yet these differences remind me how even within such a society, cultural conducts can vary from region to region. Maybe I should try to order the square mochi from my neighbourhood wagashi shop instead of going all the way to Kyoto to get my beloved round mochi in the future.
Lastly, many families in Japan struggle to finish all the mochis before they turn bad, so I thought maybe sharing a few cooking tips can help here in case anyone got a bag of mochis. The conventional way is to put them in miso soup, or to grill them. I like to grill them and dip in kinako (roasted bean powder) sugar mixture, or turn them into cheese toasty but with mochi instead of toast. Chopping them into smaller chunks makes them gnocchi-like. I trust you can let your creativity fly in the kitchen:)
Source referred to: Weather News, 2023, なぜ「東は角餅」「西は丸餅」なのか？ お雑煮の秘密
