Mister Donut is already famous for their Pon de Ring donut which already supposed to be mochi-like, so I was curious about the Mocchurin range when it launched in Singapore. I tried the Mocchurin Kinako and Mocchurin Double Sesame flavours.
First, a quick note on the name of this donut. Mocchurin comes from the Japanese words "mochi" (referring to the stringy rice flour cake), "mocchiri" (meaning springy and puffy), "mocchuri" (a blend of mochi and mocchiri to mean chewy, moist, puffy) and the suffix "-rin" which is attached to names and nouns to indicate cuteness and endearment, such as for pop idols or mascots. So Mocchurin means something like "little cute puffy and chewy one". The cute prints on the packaging illustrate this perfectly.
Mocchurin Kinako Donut
I tried this first. And the most obvious thing about it was the really puffy, soft and yet moist texture. Online descriptions say it is less dense than the Pon de Ring, but I beg to differ. This is a lot airier and puffy, a bit like a chiffon cake compared to a tea cake or pound cake. The Pon de Ring is a bit bouncier, firmer and drier. This one is more moist, and even stringy when you pull it apart, as I try to capture in the photo below. Look at the stretchy thick strands of mochi being pulled apart on the right side.
The taste was also interesting. Although online, they say that the Pon de Ring tastes more like a normal donut, I also beg to differ. Although mocchurin had the texture of a mochi, the taste was strangely very prominently like a fried dough and donut taste. Like the typical egg, wheat, sugar and butter combination in the normal donut (not Pon de Ring) that produces the typical malty, toasty and nutty aroma upon deep frying in oil due to Maillard compounds. I think this is the special thing about this donut and differentiates it from yet another fried mochi such as the butter tteok or the Brazilian pan de queso.
The kinako powder had a rich nutty taste that enhanced the nuttiness of the Mocchurin donut. It seemed to be applied via this coating of what I think is white chocolate icing, as you can see coated on the top half of the donut in the photo below.
Overall, it was a very comforting and warm flavour on a very comforting and soft texture. An absolute delight.
Mocchurin Double Sesame Donut
This one was a lot more reminiscent of a more traditional Japanese confectionary.
The first thing that hit me was the rich fragrance of the perfectly toasted white sesame coating it. It was not there just for show, but the perfection of the toasting process brought out the rich, bright notes of clove and fermented grain like in high quality sesame oil or pastes.
The black sesame filling had the consistency and appearance of a bean paste base, probably white bean, and was milder on the sesame fragrance but featured more of the black sesame earthy notes overlaying some nutty bean notes. It was a bit sweet on its own, but wasn't so cloying when paired with the Maillard nutty and malty notes from the donut.
The white sesame seeds also appear stuck on via a white chocolate coating like in the photo below.
Because of the bean paste texture of the filling, the earthiness of the black sesame and the natural toasted fragrance and grainy texture of the white sesame seeds, it was vaguely reminiscent of the traditional Japanese sesame and bean paste mochi sweets, but because of the donut's malty and savoury notes, the balance was much nicer compared to the sometimes cloyingly sweet Japanese desserts.
Packaging
They come in very pretty individual packaging and boxes like in the pictures. Great for gifts or events.
Discover interesting donuts, fried snacks, mochi and sesame/kinako treats
- (donut) Sata Andagi Okinawan Donuts in Purple Sweet Potato and Okinawan Brown Sugar (Kokuto) Flavours by Karii
- (donut) Yuzu Karinto and Sesame Karinto from Provence
- (fried dough) Greek Sarikopita Pie with Feta Cheese Filling by Alani at Kada, Singapore
- (fried dough) Curry Cheese Bread by Giraffa Curry Bread Specialist from Japan
- (sesame) White Sesame Seaweed Chocolate by Fossa
- (sesame) Black Sesame Walnut Bagel & other flavours by Pawa Bakery
- (sesame/mochi) Black Sesame Daifuku and other interesting flavours by Luckin Coffee
- (mochi) Butter Tteok (Crispy Butter Mochi)and other bakes by Noci Bakehouse
- (mochi) Sakura Warabimochi and other traditional sakura treats from Japan
- (mochi) Sweet Potato Chocolates with Mochi and Bean Fillings from Japan
- (mochi) Hainanese Muah Chee (Southern Chinese version of mochi) by All Things Hainanese
- (kinako) Kinako Anko Dango (Bun) by Kamome Bakery
- (kinako) WowButter - Toasted Soy Butter and Supposed "Peanut Butter Substitute" for Those with Allergies
- (kinako) Kuromitsu Kinako Soy Ice Cream by Chateraise
- (kinako) Kokutou Kinako Bun by Gokoku Japanese Bakery
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