On a certain weekday, I happened to come across a specialty store in Chitose City, located at Nissho 1, that is famous for selling "beko mochi," a type of rice cake popular in Hokkaido. The store has a simple interior with a glass display case showcasing various types of beko mochi. I decided to try something different from the usual white and black sugar flavored ones, and ordered a few items from the menu. Surprisingly, all the items were given to me frozen, with instructions to heat them up before eating. I was even given two ice packs to keep them cold on my way home. After heating them up, I tried the "Soy Sauce Walnut" flavor, which had a nice crunchy texture with a subtle soy sauce flavor and bits of walnut adding a nice touch. The "Yomogi" flavor had a soft and chewy texture with a good balance of sweetness and a natural yomogi flavor. Lastly, the "Cheese" flavor, which I couldn't quite imagine with beko mochi, turned out to be a pleasant surprise with a unique texture and a milky cheese flavor that surprisingly matched well with the rice cake. Overall, I enjoyed the different textures and flavors of the beko mochi variations.

As someone from Fukuoka, I was not familiar with beko mochi. I first encountered it at Chinaya Chitose store, which came from Shiriuchi Town, where my wife said, "It's nostalgic, my aunt used to make it often." It's a lightly sweet rice cake snack, and I was impressed by the fact that it is eaten regularly as part of the food culture. Chinaya was featured on the popular radio show hosted by Goro Hidak, who decided to transfer the rights to sell beko mochi. The condition for the transfer was not to change the recipe, and the recipient turned out to be a vocational support organization. Despite the high hurdle of being closed on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, I suddenly remembered and visited the store. The interior of the store has only a counter, and the products are not displayed. I called the staff using the intercom and ordered while looking at the photos. I bought four types, including those I had tried at Chinaya Chitose store. Back at home, I referred to a delicious way to eat them and steamed them in the microwave using a simple steamer. When I took a bite of the black and white beko mochi, my wife said, "It's somehow different." The taste is the same, but the texture is different. It has a rough texture, like an unfinished pounded rice cake. Whether it turned out this way due to the way it was heated or if this is how it's made. It's common for the recipe to stay the same but for the product to be different when the maker changes. However, the lightly sweet flavor remains unchanged, making it delicious and not tiring to eat. Thank you for the meal.

On the way back from seeing off a friend at New Chitose Airport (*^^*), I stopped by a shop that I had checked out through Miyu-chan's review. It's a specialty shop for "bekomochi," a traditional Hokkaido rice cake. Yuzuki-san's bekomochi is made from 100% rice flour, with no preservatives or additives. It hardens when cold, so I toasted it in a toaster oven before eating. I purchased three items from the menu of over 10 varieties: "Cheese" (excluding tax 180 yen), which was the softest and had a delicious cheese flavor; "Soy Sauce Walnut" (excluding tax 180 yen), with a savory walnut aroma and good combination with soy sauce; and "White" (excluding tax 150 yen), a classic bekomochi with a cute rabbit shape. All of them had a firm texture, not too sweet, and were delicious ＼(^_^)／ I'm curious about the mugwort and pumpkin flavors, so I'll definitely go buy them again!! Thank you, "Yuzuki"さん♪

I found out about this place from Blue Hawaii's review. It used to be located inside Beer Works, but it has since moved. As part of a vocational support program, they sell "bekomochi": white cat for 162 yen, black cat for 162 yen, and white rabbit for 162 yen. When I entered the store, no one was there, and a sign said to ring the intercom. While I was taking a picture, a male customer behind me pressed the intercom, probably thinking I looked suspicious. I had never tried their "bekomochi" before, but this time I decided to. They used to sell bread and sweets before the move. The "bekomochi" is sold frozen. After placing my order, they brought the items from the back. When I got home and opened the package, I realized I had received a Daruma instead of a black cat. The taste was subtly sweet and simple, like a delicious "uirou" or a mildly sweet "yokan." It seemed like it would harden quickly once cooled. I recommend warming it up in a toaster, but I just used a microwave. They say steaming it in a steamer will make it taste like it's freshly made. The white cat and rabbit had the same taste, just different designs. It would have been nice to have flavors like pumpkin, sesame, or walnut. I would like to try other flavors in the future. Thank you for the meal.

I found this place by chance and decided to stop by. They had a set of Chitose vouchers, so I bought it. There were flavors like mugwort, black and white, and white. The mugwort one was especially delicious! Sometimes you just crave for some rice cakes, right? The pumpkin flavor also looked good. The parking lot was small, so I parked at the hospital next door.

Black and White and Yomogi

At a event at Daisanko Plaza, I bought soy sauce walnut and cheese. When I took the first bite, it was hard. I looked up how to eat it on the Yubuki website. I thought "bekomochi" would be soft and chewy, but this one was hard. I didn't know there were different types of "bekomochi" because I'm from outside the region. When I toasted it in the toaster, it became chewy and had a simple taste that made me want to eat it again.