Ichigo Daifuku – Icon of Japanese Spring
Daifuku (Great Fortune) is a small mochi cake, with a simple round shape, white, pale pink or light green skin, filled with sweet fillings. There are many types of fillings, usually red bean, matcha, fresh cream or fruit fillings such as kiwi, cantaloupe, and the most popular is strawberry.
Strawberry-filled Daifuku is called Ichigo Daifuku (“strawberry” in Japanese is “Ichigo”).
So why is Ichigo Daifuku the representative cake of spring in the Land of the Rising Sun?
Ichigo Daifuku, also known as “strawberry cake,” has become a symbol of spring in Japan not only because the color reflects the Japanese national flag when the cake is cut in half, but also because of the deep meaning behind the name. “Daifuku” in Japanese means “big belly,” which has been transformed into “great fortune,” signaling luck and happiness. This is why Daifuku has become a precious gift on important occasions such as Lunar New Year, when people share joy and good luck through each small cake.
The white color combined with the red color of Ichigo Daifuku resembles the Japanese national flag. Source: Pinterest
The cake is made from soft and thin glutinous rice powder with sweet red bean filling and a whole strawberry inside. Photo: Moshimoshi-nippon.
Spring is also the season of strawberries in Japan. The Japanese people enjoy this beautiful fresh fruit on the fruit platter at the beginning of the year. The delicious aroma and delicate sweetness of strawberries are also a hope for a sweet new year. Photo: Foodbeast.
Japan possesses special strawberry cultivation technology with many of the world’s most expensive strawberry varieties such as the Kotoka variety, which can cost up to 22 USD per fruit. Photo: Postmissneverfull.
How to make strawberry Daifuku
Ingredients:
400 grams glutinous rice flour
100 grams potato starch
10 sweet and beautiful strawberries
100 grams red beans
100 grams sugar
350 ml water
Steps:
Soak the red beans in water for a few hours to soften, then cook until tender, mash and mix with 50 grams of sugar. Rinse the strawberries and remove the stem.
Put 400 grams of glutinous rice flour + 50 grams of sugar + 350ml water into a pan.
Turn on medium heat. Stir for about 10 minutes until the flour is cooked and becomes sticky.
Sprinkle potato starch on the cutting board. Pour the cooked glutinous rice flour on top and lightly roll it in a layer of potato starch.
Wrap the strawberries with a layer of prepared red beans + a layer of glutinous rice flour + a little more potato starch on the outside. You can shape it into a circle or a strawberry shape as you like.
In Vietnam, strawberry Daifuku is mainly sold in Japanese cake shops such as ChaWagashi, Wagashi House, Hachi Hachi, PanPan…
Due to the high cost (a box of 6 cakes can cost up to nearly 1 million VND depending on the size of the strawberries) and the short storage time of about 2-3 days (because it is fresh cake without preservatives), strawberry Daifuku is not widely available. This type of cake is mainly for middle or high-class customers, used as gifts on important holidays. When enjoying, the cake is often served with hot green tea to fully experience the taste of spring.
However, you can also make it yourself following the reference recipe above. Good luck!
Strawberry Daifuku is sold at a relatively high price, about 600-900,000 VND for a box of 6 cakes, depending on the size of the strawberries
