Mitarashi dango is the perfect sweet, savory, and super chewy snack!
ABOUT MITARASHI DANGO みたらし団子
Mitarashi dango (みたらし団子) is a very popular snack in Japan that was invented 100 years ago this year. Mitarashi dango is said to have originated from the Kamo Mitarashi Chaya in Kyoto in 1922. The round shape of dango was inspired by the bubbles in the Mitarashi Pond, a pond of purifying water, in Shimogamo Shrine which is across from the Kamo Mitarashi Chaya. These days, you can find mitarashi dango just about anywhere. You can get it from convenience stores and supermarkets. In fact, even here in California, you can find mitarashi dango in Japanese markets. That’s how popular this treat is! It is an icon. No matter who you ask, it’ll be difficult to find someone who doesn’t like mitarashi dango. I think mitarashi dango tastes best fresh, so let’s make it together!
Side note: If you would like to make the dango that look like this 🍡, then please see my sanshoku dango recipe!
COMPONENTS OF MITARASHI DANGO
- ☆ Dango: Sweet rice dumplings made from a dough combining glutinous rice flour and rice flour which is then shaped and boiled.
- ☆ Sauce: Sweet and savory shoyu based sauce. Like many sauces in Japanese cuisine, the base of this sauce is soy sauce, sugar, and mirin.
MATERIALS
- ☆ Skewers
- This is technically optional depending on how you want to eat it in your own home. You can also use toothpicks to make mini ones hehe.
INGREDIENTS (+ SUBSTITUTIONS)
This is a basic list and explanation of the key ingredients. For full list and measurements, please scroll down to the recipe below!
DANGO INGREDIENTS
- ☆ Shiratamako
- Glutinous rice flour or sweet rice flour. This makes mochi chewy and stretchy. If you can’t find shiratamako, you can use mochiko, but keep in mind that its flavor and texture are different from shiratamako.
- ☆ Water
- You will need to prepare water to be added to the flours twice. The water for shiratamako should be room temperature, and the water for joshinko should be hot. This makes the flours easier to work with.
- ☆ Joshinko
- Japanese rice flour. Joshinko is made from ground Japanese short-grain rice. I have never made dango with other kinds of rice flour, so I can’t guarantee that if you use other Asian rice flours the results will be the same.
- ☆ Sugar
MITARASHI DANGO SAUCE INGREDIENTS
- ☆ Sugar
- Sweet component of the sweet and salty sauce.
- ☆ Soy sauce
- Salty and savory component of the sauce. Soy sauce is one of the base flavors of this sauce.
- ☆ Mirin
- Adds a sweet umami flavor that ties the sauce together. If you do not consume alcohol, there are some alcohol-free mirin that you can buy.
- ☆ Water
- ☆ Potato starch
- Potato starch is the thickening agent for the sauce. If you don’t have any, you can use cornstarch instead.
METHOD FOR MAKING MITARASHI DANGO
I explained this more in detail in my sanshoku dango recipe, but for your convenience, I will summarize it here as well. Please take a look if you would like to experiment with the texture of the dango.
A typical dango recipe generally uses shiratamako and joshinko in a 1:1 ratio. However, you can adjust this to make your dango as chewy or as soft as you like! Joshinko makes dango more chewy and firm, while shiratamako makes dango more soft. If you make dango with a ratio of 2:1 joshinko to shiratamako, your dango will be more firm and chewy. If you use 1:2 or even 1:3 ratio joshinko to shiratamako, then the dango will be more stretchy and soft but may not hold its shape as well. Try it out and see which ratio you like best! No matter what ratio you do, you want to use about a 0.8-0.9:1 ratio of water to flour. The dough should have a texture similar to an earlobe and that’s how you know you made the dough correctly.
WHY ICE BATH?
After boiling the dango, we quickly transfer it to an ice bath. This stops the cooking and allows the dango to cool completely enough for us to handle. Additionally, allowing the dango to cool completely brings back the bouncy, chewy texture of the dango.
TIPS FOR MAKING MITARASHI DANGO
- ☆ When cooking the dango, we want the water to be boiling strongly. This makes sure the dango cooks evenly and can help prevent the dango from sticking to the bottom of the pot. If it does stick, you should be able to easily detach it, but some parts may break off, so be careful.
- ☆ For extra flavor and texture variety, you can lightly grill the dango to char it a little after you skewer them. This adds some smoky taste and crispy texture. I didn’t do it when making the dango this time because I made them shaped like Marshal from Animal Crossing and didn’t want to grill his head lol, but I highly recommend it!
☆ You can color and shape the dango however you like, so feel free to get creative with it!
MORE WAGASHI RECIPES! ♡
If you recreate this Mitarashi Dango recipe, please let me know by tagging me or leaving a comment on Instagram @maruryouri or TikTok @atsuryouri. I’d love to see your creations and hear your feedback!
Mitarashi Dango
Equipment
- Skewers
Ingredients
Dango
- 70 g shiratamako
- 60 ml water
- 75 g joshinko
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 60 ml hot water
Mitarashi Dango Sauce
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce 15ml
- 1 tablespoon mirin 15ml
- 5 tablespoons water 75ml
- 1 tablespoon potato starch
Instructions
- In a bowl, mix together the shiratamako and 60ml water until it comes together. It’s okay if the dough is not smooth at this point.
- In a separate bowl, mix the joshinko and sugar. Add the hot water and mix until it has formed a smooth, soft dough.
- Combine the two doughs and knead together until fully incorporated and evenly smooth. It should have a texture similar to an ear lobe. You can adjust with more water or more joshinko as needed, being careful not to add too much of either.
- Roll the dough into one large log, then cut into three equal pieces. We will be working with one log for now, so place the remaining ones under plastic wrap or a damp towel so they do not dry out.
- Cut the one piece you’re working with into three equal pieces and roll into balls. You should have three pieces now about the size of a golf ball. Alternatively, you can make the pieces smaller by dividing the section you have now into five, giving you pieces about the size of a large marble or gumball. You can also color and design the dough freely like I did and customize it however you want! Repeat the shaping process with the remaining dough.
- In a large pot, heat water to a rolling boil. Carefully place the dango in the water. They may sink, so be careful that they do not stick to the pot or each other. Once the dango float, carefully scoop them out using a slotted spoon or spider and immediately place them in an ice bath. Allow the dango to cool completely.
- While the dango cool, prepare the sauce. In a small pan, mix together the sugar, soy sauce, mirin, water, and potato starch. Fully mix together then turn on the heat. Using a whisk or silicone spatula, consistently stir the sauce while it cooks over medium heat. Once thickened, remove from the heat and pour in a separate container for now.
- Dry off the dango and skewer them onto your wooden skewers. Typically there are 3 to 5 dango on each skewer. Pour some of the glaze sauce over the dango and serve immediately, and the mitarashi dango is done! 完成です！