One Ingredient Mochi Waffles (Moffles)

Looking for the absolute easiest mochi waffle recipe? Ohoho, then I present to you these ONE INGREDIENT MOCHI WAFFLES! That’s right, folks, only one ingredient and six minutes to perfect, VEGAN, and GLUTEN FREE mochi waffles.

So What’s the One Ingredient in These Mochi Waffles?

The secret to these one ingredient mochi waffles: kirimochi.

For those who are unfamiliar with it, kirimochi is shelf stable mochi. It comes wrapped in plastic in little bricks, and they’re super hard. In order to eat it, you have to heat it up, either by boiling, toasting, or microwaving. Kirimochi is really common in Japanese cooking whenever mochi is involved. I buy mine at my local Japanese market, but you can also find it on Amazon.

For more information on kirimochi and other recipe ideas on how to use it, check out my Ultimate Guide to Kirimochi post!

What are the Typical Ingredients in Mochi Waffles?

Kirimochi itself is made from only one ingredient: mochi rice. So these truly are one ingredient mochi waffles, the absolute mochi-est waffle you can get.

But other mochi waffles typically look more like… regular waffles. They have eggs, maybe some milk, butter, and sugar.

Are Mochi Waffles Vegan?

These one-ingredient mochi waffles are definitely vegan (and gluten free), as the only ingredient is mochi rice. Just remember to keep your toppings vegan as well, obviously.

Other mochi waffle recipes may or may not be vegan. If you’re looking for a vegan mochi waffle recipe that has a more typical waffle-y texture, you can check out my matcha mochi waffles or strawberry mochi waffles, both which have options to keep them vegan.

What is the Texture of Mochi Waffles?

When using just kirimochi to make mochi waffles, the texture is very light, airy, and crispy. If you wait until the kirimochi is just softened and slightly spread, you can still get a chewy interior. If you wait longer, it’ll spread more in the waffle maker and become more crispy. The photos on this post show the kirimochi when spread to fill the entire waffle maker; they were very airy and slightly crispy on the outside. If I had taken them out a few minutes earlier, they would’ve been smaller but had chewier centers.

Other mochi waffles that use a more standard batter recipe are still crispy on the outside, with an inside that can be more chewy and dense. They have more similarities in texture to regular waffles, with a somewhat cakey interior. You can adjust how cakey vs. how chewy you want your mochi waffles by adding or omitting eggs in your recipe.

Are Mochi Waffles from Japan?

This is a very interesting question! Yes, moffles are from Japan. But also no, some mochi waffles are not from Japan. I know, that’s confusing. The invention of these one-ingredient mochi waffles, also known as moffles, are credited to the Sanyei company in Japan, who trademarked their moffle maker in 2000.

However, mochi waffles made from a mochiko batter are served in many cafes in Hawaii. Although I cannot find an official report, my guess is that those kinds of mochi waffles originated in Hawaii, similar to mochi donuts.

What Toppings go with Mochi Waffles?

When you make moffles, because the only ingredient is mochi, there’s really not much flavor to them. You can go sweet, savory, or however wild you want to make your moffle toppings. In these photos, I used a homemade a black sugar syrup (kuromitsu) and dusted my moffles with kinako. Red bean paste would be another great topping. If you want to go savory, you could consider treating your moffle like a yakimochi, with soy sauce and seaweed.

But of course, you could also go with standard Western waffle toppings like maple syrup and fruit.

Do Moffles Keep Well?

Alas, mochi hardens as it cools, so you’ll need to eat these moffles immediately. If you’re looking for a mochi waffle recipe that can be made a little ahead of time, you’ll want to try my other recipes, like the matcha or strawberry mochi waffles that I listed above.

Anyway, that’s all there is to it! Let me know which mochi waffle you prefer: the one ingredient moffle or the mochiko batter version.