Kirbie's Cravings

Butter Mochi

Hawaiian butter mochi is a soft, chewy cake with a tropical coconut flavor. It’s made with glutinous rice flour (so it’s gluten-free too). It’s a super easy cake to make from scratch.

close-up photo of pieces of butter mochi

Butter mochi is one of my favorite mochi treats. It’s similar to Japanese mochi but in cake form. It recently became popular again because Trader Joe’s introduced a box mix version.

While I was almost tempted to buy the Trader Joe’s mix since I love trying new Trader Joe’s products, I didn’t end up buying it because I know how easy it is to make from scratch, as I make different versions of mochi cake several times a year.

This butter mochi recipe is very easy and I love the chewy texture. The coconut in this recipe gives it a tropical flavor – I can see why this is such a popular treat in Hawaii.

Ingredients

  • Melted unsalted butter
  • Granulated sugar
  • Evaporated milk
  • Coconut milk or coconut cream
  • Vanilla extract
  • Large eggs
  • Glutinous rice flour
  • Baking powder

overhead photo of sliced butter mochi

How to Make Butter Mochi Cake

Making mochi cake is almost as easy as making a cake with a cake mix. You add in all your wet ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix until blended.

Then you add in the dry ingredients and mix until smooth. That’s it! Then it’s ready to go in the oven.

Bake the mochi in a 9×13″ baking pan lined with parchment paper. It will take about an hour to bake at 350°F.

What is glutinous rice flour?

The main ingredient used to make mochi cake is mochiko rice flour, a finely ground glutinous rice flour. Mochiko is sold in many Asian grocery stores, but if you are unable to find it, you can substitute with general glutinous rice flour. The mochi texture won’t be exactly the same but it will be close.

Glutinous rice flour is also known as sweet rice flour. Sweet rice flour is ground from short-grain glutinous rice. It is a sticky flour that is key to the chewy texture for mochi. Despite what its name suggests, glutinous rice flour is naturally gluten-free.

Can you use a different size cake pan?

For this recipe, you will need a 9×13″ baking pan. If you want a smaller cake, you can halve the recipe and bake it in an 8×8″ baking pan but the baking time will need to be adjusted.

How long does mochi cake keep?

I recommend storing it in an airtight container at room temperature. It will keep for two days. You can store it in the refrigerator, but the cake will lose some of its chewy texture.

close-up photo of a stack of butter mochi

Mochi Cake Variations

I’ve made many variations of mochi cake over the years. Some of these variations include:

I’ve also made mochi ice cream which is another fun treat.

Butter Mochi

Servings: 24 pieces
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Japanese
This classic Hawaiian treat is so easy to make from scratch. The cake is soft, chewy, with a tropical coconut flavor.

Ingredients

  • 4 oz unsalted butter melted
  • 2 cups granulated white sugar
  • 1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk
  • 1 (13.5 oz) can coconut milk or coconut cream
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 lb glutinous rice flour also known as mochiko sweet rice flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with parchment paper.
  • In a large bowl of stand mixer, mix butter and sugar until evenly combined. Add in evaporated milk, coconut milk, vanilla, eggs. Mix until evenly combined. Make sure to scrape down sides and bottom of bowl to make sure all ingredients are evenly incorporated.
  • Add in glutinous rice flour and baking powder. Mix on low speed until flour has been incorporated. Increase mixing speed to medium to beat batter until smooth.
  • Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for about 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cake will initially rise quite high but will sink down and flatten once removed from the oven and given some time to cool. The cake may be wobbly when you first take it out of the oven; this is not an indication that the batter isn't cooked like with a traditional cake.
  • Allow cake to cool before cutting with a sharp knife and serving. Cake can be eaten warm or at room temperature. Keep cake at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Notes

  • I used this mochiko sweet rice flour.*
  • Sweet rice flour is key to creating the chewy mochi texture. It can't be substituted with regular rice flour.
  • Cake is best stored at room temperature. When stored in the fridge it will lose some of its chewiness. Cake does need to be consumed within 2 days at room temperature.
  • *Some of the links contained in this post are affiliate links. Much like referral codes, this means I earn a small commission if you purchase a product I referred (at no extra charge to you).

The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.

Did you make this recipe?I'd love to see it! Mention @KirbieCravings and tag #kirbiecravings!

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Recipe Rating




21 comments on “Butter Mochi”

  1. would adding two tsp of matcha work to make this matcha flavored?

    love your recipes!

  2. Can I use an 8×8 baking pan for this?

  3. I have coconut cream and coconut milk but both are unsweetened. Should I purchase regular? If not, which would you suggest out of the unsweetened versions?

  4. Hello! I love this recipe but is it ok to use only 1 cup of sugar instead of 2?

  5. Can you use Bob’s Red Mill white rice flour for this recipe? 

    • As long as it is the sweet rice flour, then yes it should work

    • I always use Bob’s Red Mill products, and Yes, their, “Sweet White Rice Flour” for this Recipe, and it was Fantastic!… I would Highly Recommend it over the Mochiko Brand for 2 reasons:
      1. It’s the same/or Better Quality 
      2. The Price is Much Lower than Mochiko

  6. Your recipe calls for 1 lb. mochi flour. How many cups would that be? Thank you.

    • I dont know the cup equivalent but most mochi flour is sold in 1 lb bags/containers. I would recommend buying one that is 1 lb if you don’t have a scale

  7. Tokyo Central & Main (Marukai) also has a butter mochi mix in their Hawaiian section. Sometimes, buying the mix is convenient, but glad to know making it from scratch isn’t difficult either.

    • Yes the mix can definitely be convenient. I haven’t seen the one sold at Tokyo Central. Will have to check it out sometime!

  8. Looks chewy- delicious!! 🙂 Great videos too.

  9. Gluten free but definitely not low carb. Coumts me out from trting it

    • Right, this recipe is not low carb which is why I didn’t say it was anywhere in the post. I share a mix of recipes on my blog, some are low carb and some are not. If you only wish to see low carb recipes and you are subscribed to my blog via email, simply hit reply to one of the emails and ask to only receive notifications of low carb recipes and I can add you to my low carb email segment.

  10. Looks so tasty! Thanks for sharing!