Amazake, Apple, and Pineapple SmoothieA tangy-sweet Japanese fermented rice drink serves as the base for this creamy, fruity smoothie.

When warm weather arrives, Osamu Yoshikawa—the sixth-generation owner of bean-to-bottle soy sauce company Inoue Honten in Nara, Japan—likes to whip up this amazake, apple, and pineapple smoothie recipe. Made by combining cooked rice with either rice koji (rice inoculated with the microorganism Aspergillus oryzae) or sake kasu (solids left over from sake production), amazake has a thick, porridge-like texture and lends creaminess and tang to this fruity shake. Look for the ingredient in a Japanese grocer, or online.

Featured in “Meet the Makers Preserving the Past in Nara” by Megan Zhang.

  • Serves

    1

  • Time

    2 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 cup frozen pineapple chunks
  • ½ cup apple, cut into 2-in. pieces
  • ¼ cup amazake
  • Fresh pineapple slice, for garnish

Instructions

Step 1

To a blender, add the pineapple, apple, amazake, and 1/4¼ cup of water and blend until smooth. Pour into a glass, garnish with a pineapple slice, and serve immediately.
  1. To a blender, add the pineapple, apple, amazake, and 1/4¼ cup of water and blend until smooth. Pour into a glass, garnish with a pineapple slice, and serve immediately.
Recipes

Amazake, Apple, and Pineapple Smoothie

A tangy-sweet Japanese fermented rice drink serves as the base for this creamy, fruity smoothie.

  • Serves

    1

  • Time

    2 minutes

Pineapple Amazake Smoothie
PHOTO: ANDREW BUI • FOOD STYLING: JESSIE YUCHEN

By Osamu Yoshikawa


Published on May 9, 2024

When warm weather arrives, Osamu Yoshikawa—the sixth-generation owner of bean-to-bottle soy sauce company Inoue Honten in Nara, Japan—likes to whip up this amazake, apple, and pineapple smoothie recipe. Made by combining cooked rice with either rice koji (rice inoculated with the microorganism Aspergillus oryzae) or sake kasu (solids left over from sake production), amazake has a thick, porridge-like texture and lends creaminess and tang to this fruity shake. Look for the ingredient in a Japanese grocer, or online.

Featured in “Meet the Makers Preserving the Past in Nara” by Megan Zhang.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup frozen pineapple chunks
  • ½ cup apple, cut into 2-in. pieces
  • ¼ cup amazake
  • Fresh pineapple slice, for garnish

Instructions

Step 1

To a blender, add the pineapple, apple, amazake, and 1/4¼ cup of water and blend until smooth. Pour into a glass, garnish with a pineapple slice, and serve immediately.
  1. To a blender, add the pineapple, apple, amazake, and 1/4¼ cup of water and blend until smooth. Pour into a glass, garnish with a pineapple slice, and serve immediately.

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