Coarse-Sugar Senbei (ざらめせんべい, Zarame Senbei)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Steamer basket or bamboo seiro
• •Wire cooling rack
• •Pastry brush
• •Small saucepan
• •Parchment paper

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the dough

   Put the jōshinko and salt in a heatproof bowl. Pour in the boiling water and stir with chopsticks or a spoon until the flour gathers into rough clumps. Boiling water partly gelatinizes the rice starch, which lets the dough hold together without turning chewy. When it is cool enough to touch, knead it into a smooth, firm dough, adding only a teaspoon or two of water if dry flour remains.

   Use jōshinko, not mochiko. Senbei wants ordinary rice flour for a clean snap, while glutinous rice flour brings chew.
2. 2

   Steam the dough

   Break the dough into walnut-size pieces and set them on lightly oiled parchment in a steamer. Steam over steady heat for 18 to 20 minutes, until the pieces look slightly translucent and feel springy. Steaming cooks the starch evenly before shaping, so the finished cracker dries and bakes without a raw, chalky center.

3. 3

   Knead and shape

   Tip the hot pieces into a bowl and pound or knead them together while still warm, oiling your hands lightly if they stick. Work the dough for 3 to 4 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Divide into 16 pieces and press each into a thin round about 7cm across. Thin is important: thick rounds dry slowly and bake tough before they crisp.

4. 4

   Dry the rounds

   Lay the rounds on a rack and let them dry at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours, turning once, until the surfaces are matte and the edges feel firm. They should bend only a little. This is the quiet step people rush, and it is the one that gives senbei its crack instead of a leathery middle.

   In damp weather, dry them in a 95°C oven for 35 to 45 minutes, turning once. You're drying, not browning.
5. 5

   Bake until crisp

   Heat the oven to 180°C. Bake the dried rounds on a rack or parchment-lined tray for 16 to 20 minutes, turning once, until pale golden and crisp at the edges. Lower the heat to 150°C and bake 8 to 10 minutes more if the centers still feel firm rather than crisp. The slower finish drives off the last moisture without scorching the rice.

6. 6

   Make the tare

   While the crackers bake, combine the soy sauce, mirin, and sugar in a small pan. Warm just until the sugar dissolves, then take it off the heat. This tare should be salty first and only lightly sweet, because the zarame will bring the real sweetness at the end.

7. 7

   Glaze and sugar

   Brush one side of each hot senbei lightly with the tare, then immediately press that wet side into the zarame. Use a light hand. Too much glaze dissolves the sugar and softens the cracker, while a thin coat gives the crystals just enough grip.

8. 8

   Set and store

   Return the sugared senbei to the turned-off oven with the door slightly open for 5 minutes, just to set the glaze. Cool completely on a rack before storing. They will crisp as they cool, and packing them warm traps moisture, the small enemy in a tin of crackers.

Chef Tips

• •Look for zarame in a Japanese market. If you must stand in for it, choose large-crystal decorating sugar, but say what it is. Granulated sugar melts too quickly and loses the bright crunch that names the dish.
• •Brush only one side with tare. A senbei needs contrast: dry rice beneath, glossy soy on top, coarse sugar caught in the surface.
• •If the crackers soften after a day, warm them in a 140°C oven for 5 to 7 minutes and cool them fully. Rice crackers forgive you once, provided you don't drown them in glaze.

Advance Preparation

• •The shaped rounds can be dried a day ahead and kept uncovered in a dry place before baking.
• •Finished senbei keep 5 to 7 days in an airtight tin once completely cool. Add a food-safe desiccant packet if your kitchen is humid.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 18g)