What is Strawberry Mochi Milk?
Have you ever thought of transforming the flavors and textures of strawberry mochi (ichigo daifuku) into a drink? Honestly, the idea had never crossed my mind. That was until I saw a new seasonal item on the menu at Nana’s Green Tea, a popular Japanese cafe chain that brings modern flair to traditional Japanese teas and desserts.
Ichigo Daifuku is a type of wagashi (Japanese sweet) made by wrapping a fresh strawberry in a layer of sweet adzuki bean paste and a soft chewy mochi-like “dough” that we call “gyuhi”.
Ichigo Daifuku Milk? I was too curious not to try!
The “Ichigo Daifuku Miruku” at Nana’s Green Tea consists of a generous layer of strawberry sauce mixed with small mochi balls a similar size to tapioca pearls. It’s then topped with sweetened boiled adzuki beans, milk, and decorated with whipped cream and chopped frozen strawberries.
This combination brings all the flavors of ichigo daifuku together in a drinkable form, it’s so good and perfect for summer!
Key Ingredients & Substitution Ideas
- Boiled adzuki beans: If available, you can use store-bought boiled and sweetened adzuki beans for convenience. Of course, if you prefer to boil them yourself I’ll explain the basic steps in the walkthrough below. Keep in mind that boiling adzuki beans will take about 1 hour so it’s worth making a batch and freezing it in smaller portions for later use. You can also substitute anko (red bean paste), the chunky kind (tsubuan) works best for this recipe.
- Strawberry sauce: Again, store-bought is the more convenient choice, but I also include how to make strawberry sauce in the recipe. You can use either fresh or frozen strawberries if you want to make it out of season.
- Milk: You can use the milk of your choice, but I personally use whole milk. For a plant-based alternative, coconut milk goes well.
- Condensed milk (optional): I add a small amount of condensed milk for some added sweetness and creaminess, but you can omit it or replace it with another liquid sweetener of your choice.
- Glutinous rice flour: You will need mochiko (fine glutinous rice flour) or shiratamako (coarse glutinous rice flour) to make the mini dango that create the “mochi” element of the drink. Regular rice flour won’t work for this recipe.
- Potato starch: Adding a small amount of starch to the rice flour makes the texture slightly softer, especially when using mochiko (it’s not necessary for shiratamako). Potato starch can be replaced with cornstarch or tapioca starch.
I recommend serving this with a boba straw or a long spoon!
Jump to Full Recipe Measurements
Visual Walkthrough & Tips
Here are my step-by-step instructions for how to make Nana’s Green Tea inspired Strawberry Mochi Milk. For ingredient quantities and simplified instructions, scroll down for the Printable Recipe Card below.
If you can’t find store-bought boiled and sweetened adzuki beans, you can prepare them yourself with dry adzuki beans. Keep in mind that this takes at least 1 hour, so it’s better to prepare extra beans for future drinks and other recipes.
- Wash the beans thoroughly to remove any dust and debris.
- Add the washed beans to a cooking pot and add cold water, about 3-4x the volume of the beans (they should be submerged).
- Boil over medium heat for 10-15 minutes.
- Drain and discard the water (this removes astringency), then top up with fresh water, again about 3-4x the volume of the beans, or until submerged.
- Gently boil with a drop lid for about 45 minutes to 1 hour or until soft enough to squash between your fingers. Check occasionally and top up the water if necessary.
- Drain the cooking liquid into a heatproof container.
- Return the pot with the beans back to the stove and add a few tablespoons of the cooking liquid along with sugar. The sugar amount should be equal to the weight of the beans before cooking (100g dry adzuki beans = 100g sugar).
- Heat on low and mix until it’s thickened and the sugar has dissolved. You can lightly crush some of the beans for more of a paste-y texture.
- Mix in a pinch of salt and remove from the heat. Once cooled, store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days, or in portions in the freezer for up to 1 month.
If you prefer to use store-bought strawberry sauce, feel free to skip this step!
Hull the strawberries and cut them into small pieces to help them cook faster, then place them in a pot with sugar and lemon juice.
Heat on medium while stirring, then when they start to soften, lightly crush them with a fork or spatula. You don’t need to be thorough here, it’s nice to have a few larger chunks of strawberry in the drink.
Once the mixture has thickened slightly, transfer it to a heatproof container and leave to cool. If you’re in a rush, you can place the container over an ice bath to speed up the cooling.
If you plan to make this recipe a few times, it pays to make a larger batch. I use about 5 medium strawberries per drink.
Start boiling a pot of water. While you wait, you can prepare the mochi balls.
Add the mochiko (glutinous rice flour) and potato starch to a bowl and add the water about ½ tsp at a time until it forms a ball. It’s important not to add too much water.
If you’re using shiratamako (coarse glutinous rice flour), you can leave out the starch since it’s already soft enough without it. You will also find you need to use a little more water, but add it gradually to avoid adding too much.
Once a dough is formed, knead it in your hands until it’s soft like an earlobe. If it seems to be cracking, lightly wet your hands to incorporate a little more moisture.
If the dough is too soft to shape then it means you added too much water. You can fix it by adding more glutinous rice flour.
Place it on a cutting board and roll it out into a long thin log about 1cm (a little less than ½”) wide, then cut into roughly 1cm pieces. You don’t need to be too exact here, but consider the size of your boba straw.
Once the water is boiling, prepare a bowl of ice-cold water and set it by the stove. Roll the pieces of mochi dough in your hand and drop them straight into the pot.
Tip: Speed things up by rolling 5-6 at once! You can space them apart on your palm before rolling.
When adding them to the pot, they tend to sink and stick to the bottom. Give them a light nudge with chopsticks or a spoon to unstick them.
When they start to float, that means they’re almost ready. Let them float at the top of the water for about 30 seconds, then use a slotted spoon to transfer them to the bowl of ice water.
Add 3 tbsp of cooled strawberry sauce to each serving cup, then add a generous helping of drained mochi balls and mix them in. Top with 1 tbsp of adzuki beans and a few ice cubes.
I like to sweeten the milk with a little bit of condensed milk, but this is optional.
Pour the milk over the ice, then add toppings of your choice. Whipped cream and a strawberry will offer the full Nana’s Green Tea experience!
You will need to serve this recipe with a long dessert spoon or boba tea straw.
Mix well and enjoy!
Jump to Full Recipe MeasurementsPrep & Storage
This recipe can be time-consuming to make from scratch. Luckily, each element can be prepared in advance and stored!
- Boiled adzuki beans can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or stored in individual portions in the freezer for up to 1 month.
- Homemade strawberry sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or frozen for 3 months.
- Mini mochi balls should be stored in a bowl of cold water and eaten as soon as possible (within 12 hours). If you want to make a batch, you can drain them and freeze them in batches. To thaw quickly, place them in a bowl of hot water until soft, then to cold water to cool.
Once assembled, consume as soon as possible.
Variations
If you’re looking to mix up this recipe, why not try some of these flavor variations:
- Matcha: Whisk 1 tsp of matcha powder with 1 tbsp of hot water and mix it into the milk for a matcha version!
- Different fruit: Try other berries like blueberries or raspberries. Kiwi or mango sauce makes a delicious tropical twist!
I hope you enjoy this Strawberry Mochi Milk recipe! If you try it out, I’d really appreciate it if you could spare a moment to let me know what you thought by giving a review and star rating in the comments below. It’s also helpful to share any adjustments you made to the recipe with our other readers. Thank you!
Refreshing Japanese Drink Recipes
- Ichigo Milk (Japanese Strawberry Milk)
- Iced Matcha Latte
- Iced Hojicha Latte
- Ume Syrup (Japanese plum syrup)
Hungry for more? Explore my udon recipe collection to find your next favorite dishes!
Strawberry Mochi Milk (Nana’s Green Tea Copycat Recipe)
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp glutinous rice flour mochiko or shiratamako
- ¼ tsp potato starch or cornstarch/tapioca starch (if using mochiko)
- 1 ½ tsp water approx – you might use more or less
- 3 tbsp strawberry sauce to make it, check "homemade strawberry sauce" section
- 1 tbsp boiled adzuki beans or red bean paste, see my tsubuan recipe for how to boil adzuki beans
- 150 ml milk whole milk or coconut milk for plant-based version
- 1 ½ tsp condensed milk optional
Homemade Strawberry Sauce
- 80 g strawberries approx 5 medium strawberries
- 2 tsp granulated sugar
- ½ tsp lemon juice
Optional Toppings
- whipped cream
- strawberries
- boiled adzuki beans
Instructions
Homemade Strawberry Sauce (optional)
- Cut off the stems of 80 g strawberries and cut them into small pieces. Place them in a pan and add 2 tsp granulated sugar and ½ tsp lemon juice.
- Heat on medium while stirring. Once they start to soften, crush them with a fork to your desired consistency.
- Once the strawberries are crushed and the sauce has thickened slightly, transfer the sauce to a heatproof bowl and leave to cool.
Strawberry Mochi Milk
- Start boiling a pot of water. While you wait, add 1 tbsp glutinous rice flour and ¼ tsp potato starch to a bowl (skip the starch if using shiratamako). Add ½ tsp of water at a time and mix well between each addition. Continue to add water until it forms a stable ball, then knead it in your hand until it reaches the softness of an earlobe. I find 1 ½ tsp water is enough, but you might need more or less.
- Roll the dough into a thin log about 1cm thick (a little less than ½"). Roughly cut into 1cm pieces and prepare a bowl of ice cold water.
- Once your pot of water is at a rolling boil, roll the dough pieces into balls and drop them straight into the water. Rolling 5-6 at once will speed up the process. Use a chopstick or spoon to gently roll them to prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
- Once they start floating, set a timer for 30 seconds.
- Use a mesh spoon to scoop them out and into the bowl of ice-cold water and cool for a few minutes.
- Take your serving cup and add 3 tbsp strawberry sauce. Drain the mochi balls and shake off any excess water, then add them to the strawberry sauce and mix (save a few for the top if you like). Top with 1 tbsp boiled adzuki beans and a few ice cubes (optional). In a small jug, mix 150 ml milk and 1 ½ tsp condensed milk (optional) and pour it into the glass.
- Optionally, decorate with whipped cream, strawberries, boiled adzuki beans and leftover mochi balls. Mix well before drinking and enjoy!
Notes
- This recipe makes 1 serving, but you can multiply the recipe and store each part separately to make it quickly next time.
- If using shiratamako, you will probably need to add more water to make the dough (up to double).
- If the dough is cracking while you roll it, lightly wet your hands to incorporate a little more moisture.
- If the dough is too soft to shape then too much water was added. You can fix it by adding more glutinous rice flour.
- Make a large batch of mochi balls and freeze them in portions – you can thaw them in hot water for convenience next time!
- Use frozen strawberries or store-bought strawberry sauce to enjoy this drink all year round!
- Serve with a boba straw for easy drinking.
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