What is natto mochi that is so delicious that Miyagi residents mistake it for being from the whole country?

Speaking of Miyagi Prefecture's bean dishes, `` Zunda Mochi '' is famous.
The taste of eating rice cake with zunda bean paste made from edamame is simply exquisite.

Recently, a Zunda-themed character called Tohoku Zunko `Zunda Horizun '' was created using funds raised through crowdfunding, which has become a hot topic.

In the story ``Zunda Horizon'', natto appears as Zunda's rival.
You may be wondering why Zunda's rival is natto, but in fact, natto is also a food that is very familiar to Miyagi Prefecture.

This is because in Miyagi Prefecture, not only "Zunda Mochi" but also " Natto Mochi " is popular!
This time, I would like to introduce natto mochi, a rice cake dish that Miyagi Prefecture people think is famous nationwide!

Areas where natto mochi is eaten

I had a misunderstanding until recently, but most people from Miyagi Prefecture seem to think that natto mochi is a national way to eat it.

However, natto mochi is not only eaten in Miyagi Prefecture. It seems to be eaten in Yamagata Prefecture, Iwate Prefecture, parts of Akita Prefecture, and even Hokkaido.

Miyagi and Yamagata share the same zunda mochi ( but they don't approve of imoni! ), Yokote City in Akita Prefecture is said to be the birthplace of natto , and Yamagata is also eaten there since it's next door. No wonder. However, I was surprised to find that it was also eaten in Hokkaido.

When I researched it, I discovered that Date City, Hokkaido, has a history of people migrating from Miyagi Prefecture in large numbers to develop the area during the Meiji era. The way of eating natto mochi may have been introduced at that time.

In Hokkaido, the dialect spoken in Miyagi, Yamagata, and Iwate, called ``Izui'', is commonly understood, so the culture of Miyagi Prefecture may have had a strong influence on Hokkaido.

How to make natto mochi

Making natto mochi is easy!
What to prepare

• Natto
• rice cake

That's all!

First, toast the mochi in a toaster oven.
1000KW for 3 to 5 minutes , but there is no problem in serving it when it looks delicious.
When using cut mochi, make a cross-shaped cut on the surface and apply water to it before placing it in the toaster oven, so it will rise beautifully!

The cut mochi I used this time had a cross-shaped cut in it from the beginning, so I baked it as is.
Then...?

Look, this way ...I got the top and bottom wrong!
! It puffed up nicely, but I ended up with the cross notch facing down so it stuck to the aluminum foil!
Well, that may be the case.

I took it easy and stirred the natto while it was baking in the oven.
We recommend
using small natto rather than hikiwari Hikiwari tends to have a strong odor, so it is not suitable for hot rice cakes.

Once the mochi is baked, soak it in hot water, place the natto on top and it's done!
This is natto mochi, a way to eat it that is more popular than Isobeyaki in Miyagi and Yamagata!

Variations of natto mochi

So far, I have introduced how to make natto mochi, but from now on, I will introduce a secret ingredient that can be added to make it even more delicious!

In addition to the ones introduced here, there are endless ways to eat natto mochi, such as chopped nori, green onions, and mentaiko!
It's good to eat orthodoxly, but it's also fun to try and develop original ways to eat with a little creativity!