how to make the best cookies with water

ready to bake up some magic at home? let's make my viral vegan and gluten-free mochi cookies

ANNOUNCEMENT

my dear friend, my next cookbook, 108 Asian Cookies, is coming this October, and if you preorder now, you will receive a year-long subscription to my premium substack (worth $70) and access to new recipes all year long! Preorders mean so, so much to underrepresented authors like me and show publishers and retailers that voices like mine deserve prominent spaces on the bookshelves! Thank you!

END OF ANNOUNCEMENT

dear friend,

I recently baked over a hundred cookies (all recipes from my upcoming cookbook, 108 Asian Cookies) for an event, and halfway through, I realized I had not made an allergen-free cookie. After a few minutes of deliberation and raiding my pantry to see what ingredients I had left to work with, I decided to make a few dozen of my viral mochi cookies.

Normally, I’d make them with oat or another plant-based milk, but groceries are getting expensive. So I decided to use water, yes, plain water, to make my mochi cookies, and luckily, they came out GREAT!!!

The cookies were crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside, like the best QQ mochi. They were also not too sweet. Plus, at first glance, they looked like cookies made with wheat flour. My son and mother both loved these cookies and kept coming back for more.

I also love that this is a gluten-free, vegan, and one-bowl recipe that you can customize and personalize. Almost any mix-ins, such as chocolate chips, nuts, and berries, work with these cookies. And let’s say you want ube or matcha-flavored cookies. You can mix either ingredient into the cookie batter and transform the cookies.

These cookies were also not flat like pancakes (or mousepads, as some people have called my mochi cookies in the past). Please note that this recipe is new, and perfected, so it is different from the previous version of my mochi cookies. This one uses no baking powder.

By the way, you don’t need to rest or chill this cookie batter. That’s right—no waiting around. Since no wheat flour or gluten is involved, there’s no need to relax any gluten strands. The dough holds together beautifully and bakes up immediately, which means you can satisfy that mochi cookie craving fast.

My dear friend, I did it. I’ve perfected my mochi cookies recipe and am happy to share it with you—well, with my premium Substack subscribers. Thank you so much for your love and support!!

So, gather your ingredients and let’s bake. But most importantly, let’s celebrate and show the world what Asian cookies can do.

Reel for reference:

Kat Lieu’s One-Bowl Vegan and Gluten-Free Mochi Cookies Recipes

Makes about 12 to 16 large cookies
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 12 to 13 minutes

Ingredients

For the cookies:

• 2 1/3 cups (about 350g) glutinous rice flour (like Mochiko)

• 2 cups (480ml) cold or room temp water (add a cup at a time, and please use less water if the batter is too watery)

• 1 tablespoon neutral oil or olive oil (the oil keeps the cookies from sticking to the parchment paper)

• 1/3 to 1/2 cup (67g to 100g) granulated sugar, to taste (Sugar is the key to the crispness, by the way!)

• 1 1/2 cups (about 200g) mix-ins of your choice (chocolate chips, dried fruit, nuts, etc. or omit)

For changing the cookie flavor

• 1 teaspoon ube or pandan extract

• or 1 tablespoon matcha powder

• or 1 tablespoon of spirulina for blue cookies

• Tips: You can divide the batter into separate bowls and add different extracts or powders to create fun, colorful flavor variations in one batch!

• Also, use dark brown sugar instead of granulated sugar if you want to have brown cookies instead of the plain white version. Also a few drops of brown food coloring for the brown versions

Instructions

1. Gather your ingredients. Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C).

2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. (Never wax paper! Silicone mats work too.)

3. Combine glutinous rice flour, water, maple syrup, oil, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Stir until smooth.

4. If using flavor add-ins like matcha or ube extract, mix them in now, once the batter is fully formed.

5. Fold in your mix-ins last.

6. Drop spoonfuls of batter onto your baking sheet. Use damp fingers or a spoon to round them into cookie shapes. Leave about 1 inch (2.5cm) between each cookie—they don’t spread much.

7. Bake for 12 to 13 minutes, or until tops are firm and slightly crisp, edges golden, and bottoms browned.

8. Immediately transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool. If left on the baking sheet, they may steam up and soften.

Storage: Keep cookies in an airtight container at room temp for up to 2 days.
To refresh the crispiness, pop them in the toaster oven for a few minutes the next day.

Whether you’re baking these cookies to share with loved ones, or just for yourself on a quiet night in, I hope they bring you as much joy, warmth, and comfort as they brought to my kitchen.

xoxoxo, Kat Lieu

“One day, I will be the Asian Julia Child…”- Kat Lieu <3 And you are paving the path for me to achieve this dream, dear friend <3