Amazake

★ To Cook Amazake with Rice Koji

1. Gather all the ingredients. Rinse and drain ¾ cup uncooked Japanese short-grain white rice and add to the inner pot of a rice cooker. Add water up to the 1 cup porridge water line. If there is no porridge water line, add water to the regular white rice 4 cup line. Select the Porridge menu on your rice cooker and press Start, or cook the porridge according to your rice cooker’s instructions.
2. Once the porridge is cooked, the temperature is around 175ºF (79ºC). Take out the inner pot with the porridge from the rice cooker.
3. Gradually add 1 cup water, ⅛ cup at a time, to the porridge, stirring thoroughly after each addition. Measure the temperature of the porridge with an instant-read thermometer. The temperature must cool down to 140ºF (60ºC) as koji mold cannot live above that temperature.
4. Once the porridge reaches 140ºF (60ºC), crumble and add 1 cup rice koji. Stir thoroughly to incorporate. Make sure there is enough water to cover the porridge and rice koji so they are sufficiently soaked. If not, add warm water so it maintains 140ºF (60ºC).
5. Put the inner pot back into the rice cooker. Turn the rice cooker on to the Keep Warm (or Extended Keep Warm) setting and cover the opening with a cloth towel. Leave the rice cooker lid fully open so it does not get too hot. Allow the mixture to cook for 8–10 hours, stirring occasionally and checking the temperature every hour for the first 2–3 hours. Make sure it stays between 125ºF and 140ºF (50–60ºC) at ALL TIMES.
6. Toward the end of 8 hours, the mixture will start to release a sweet fragrance. Once it’s done cooking, the mixture should smell sweet. Turn off the rice cooker and transfer the inner pot in a large bowl of ice water to let cool and stop the cooking. When cooled, transfer the Amazake to a large sterilized container.

To Serve

1. Take out the portion you need, dilute with either hot or iced water to your preferred consistency (I like mine thicker and undiluted), and serve chilled or warm (reheated). If you heat the Amazake above 140ºF (60ºC), the koji enzyme will die, so reheat it to lukewarm to retain the live enzyme. You can add grated ginger, if you‘d like. My kids love smoothies made with amazake, banana, and soymilk.

★ To Make Amazake with Sake Lees (Sake Kasu)

1. Gather all the ingredients. Tear ½ cup sake lees (sake kasu) into small pieces.
2. Bring 4 cups water to a boil in a large pot. Using a mesh sieve, dissolve the sake lees into the water. This step may take some time, but it‘s best to soften the lees first in the water so they will dissolve more easily. You don‘t want any chunks left in your amazake.
3. Once dissolved, add ¼ cup sugar and 1 pinch Diamond Crystal kosher salt. Let it cook and reduce to your preferred consistency. I like a slightly thicker consistency, so I cook and reduce the amazake for 15 minutes or so. Serve hot/warm and enjoy!

To Store

1. You can keep in the refrigerator up to one week, or in the freezer for up to a month.