Kuzumochi

Just kudzu starch, water, and sugar. The draw is a heavy, translucent dough with more pull and a firmer body than warabimochi. In Kanto, a different sweet made from fermented wheat starch is sometimes called by the same name, its method said to be entirely unlike the kudzu-based version common in Kansai. Pure kudzu starch, called "honkuzu," commands a higher price and is said to be distinguished from cheaper substitutes blended with other starches.

Kudzu starch is dissolved in water, mixed with sugar, and worked over heat in a pot until translucent, then poured into a mold and chilled until set. The starch itself is known for a refining method called "Yoshino-zarashi," soaked in icy groundwater through the depths of winter to let impurities settle out. The mixture scorches easily partway through cooking, so continuous stirring while judging the degree of translucency is said to require real experience. A strong degree of clarity is said to mark a maker's skill, with the timing of the heating step said to weigh heavily on the result.

One account holds that the technique of extracting starch from kudzu root shares its roots with warabimochi, and that the idea of dissolving refined kudzu starch in water and setting it developed from there. The labor of refining it in cold groundwater is said to have kept it a scarce sweet, made only within a narrow winter window. Chilling it too much causes the starch to turn cloudy and firm up again, so it is often served closer to room temperature.