These soft and chewy mochi donuts are made from just 7 ingredients! Tapioca flour makes them easy to shape, while coconut milk adds a rich flavor. The batter is piped into rings and baked, so you don't need to mess with splattering hot oil!
What are Mochi Donuts?
Mochi is a popular Japanese ingredient made from glutinous rice flour. But even though these look & taste like classic "mochi donuts", I prefer using tapioca flour instead of rice flour. It's just as starchy, but a little sweeter and easier to work with since it's less sticky. The batter is piped in a ring of 8 bubbles to form the classic pon-de-ring shape. Then I bake mine (instead of frying) which I've found keeps them soft & fresh for several extra days.
Plus mochi donuts are far less sweet than American fried donuts, which makes me want to eat even more of them!
I first fell in love with mochi donuts on the island of Oahu, where my parents were living. And Liliha Bakery makes the BEST mochi donuts EVER! Their poi mochi donuts are covered in a sticky glaze, and once you take a bite, the inside is bright purple!
My Baking Tips!
- Use culinary grade matcha, which is usually made from tea leaves picked from lower on the tea bush, with a stronger flavor. You don't need to get the more expensive ceremonial grade matcha, which is usually reserved for tea.
- I use a piping bag with a large round nozzle to create the little bubbles of dough in rings. The batter is stiff enough that you could roll it into balls in your hands, but I've found piping to be a lot faster.
- If you don't have a piping bag, fill a large Ziplock bag with the donut mixture and cut one of the bottom corners off.
Baked Mochi Donuts
Equipment
- Piping bag and large round nozzle
Ingredients
- ¼ cup coconut milk (or any milk of your choice)
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- ¾ cup tapioca flour (also called tapioca starch)
- 1 Tablespoon matcha powder (use culinary grade matcha)
- 1 large egg
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a small saucepan on medium heat, gently stir the milk, sugar and vegetable oil until it is steaming but not boiling.
- Whisk in the flour until there are no clumps of dry flour remaining.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat. Use a whisk or a spatula to mix in the tapioca flour and the matcha powder.
- Crack in the egg and continue mixing until the batter is completely smooth.
- Add the batter into a piping bag with a large round nozzle, and pipe 8 blobs of batter in a circle on your prepared baking sheet for each donut. Make sure the bubbles are touching slightly, otherwise you'll just end up with little blobs of donuts, instead of connected rings.
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the donuts are dry and solid on the outside. Let cool and enjoy plain. Or decorate with melted chocolate and sprinkles, glaze, or icing.
Notes
- If the dough balls aren't sticking together, just wet the sides with a little water, which will help glue them together.
- Dip your finger in cold water and gently press down on the dough bubbles to make them perfectly round and smooth.
- Allow your baked mochi donuts to cool completely, then store them at room temperature in an airtight container for a few days.
Yum-number1 says
These are sooo jolly!!
strawberryandcream says
Haha thank you! I'm really happy with the color and how festive it turned out! 🎄
popsiclesociety says
Wow! So nice!
strawberryandcream says
Thank you!! 💚