I can remember the first time I had butter mochi. Growing up in Hawaii, it seemed like someone’s aunty was always bringing a freshly baked tray to every birthday and graduation party. Being a somewhat picky eater, it took me awhile to try it. But once I did, there was no turning back. In fact, you might get hooked if you give it a try, too.

In spite of my enduring love for Hawaiian butter mochi, I can’t give you a detailed description of its history or origin. I do know that mochi is a Japanese cake primarily consisting of rice and water. During Hawaii’s sugar cane era, many people migrated there to work, and with them they brought foods from home. Therefore, you’ll find that Hawaii is a unique hybrid of many other culture’s cuisines. If you’re familiar with mochi ice cream, the texture of butter mochi is similar to the mochi portion of that.

You may not have many opportunities to sample it when you visit Hawaii, because it’s primarily made at home. At Kahuku Farms, located on Oahu’s North Shore, you can order their wildly popular Lilikoi Butter Mochi, as well as tour their working farm. Although it’s not on the menu, you can usually find it at Diamond Head Market & Grill too.

Hawaiian Butter Mochi Recipe

So, what is butter mochi? Surprisingly, it’s super simple to make! The texture is sort of chewy and squishy, like a moist brownie, just chewier. The key ingredient that gives it this luscious texture, which you cannot substitute, is mochiko rice flour. It’s a sweet, glutinous rice flour, and is the backbone of this recipe. You can usually find it at your local Asian supermarket, otherwise online retailers like Amazon sell it. Koda Farms is a popular brand, and the one I use. This recipe takes an entire box of flour, however, another to die for local recipe also calls for it: mochiko chicken. Stay tuned for that recipe coming soon.

Hawaiian Butter Mochi Ingredients:

• 16oz box of mochiko sweet rice flour
• 2 – 2 ½ cups of white sugar (you decide how sweet you want it, I use 2 ½)
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 1 stick butter, melted (I use salted, but unsalted is fine too)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 can unsweetened coconut milk
• 1 can evaporated milk
• Pinch of salt (you can omit if using salted butter)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350°
• Grease a 9×13 baking dish
• In a medium size bowl, whisk wet ingredients together, set aside.
• In a separate large bowl, mix dry ingredients, then add wet ingredients. Stir to combine.
• Pour into prepared baking dish, and bake 50 – 60 minutes.
• Let cool, cut into squares and enjoy!

Tip: If you use a plastic knife to cut your butter mochi, you’ll have much cleaner cuts. 

I hope you’ll give this classic Hawaiian dessert a try! If you liked this recipe, check out our other recipes:

Fried Saimin

Garlic Shrimp

Kalua Pig

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