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Homemade Sake (Japanese Rice Wine)

A step-by-step guide to making authentic sake (rice wine) at home, using koji, polished rice, and wine yeast. This recipe yields about 1 gallon of sake and is designed for beginners, with clear instructions for each stage of fermentation, filtering, and bottling.

HardJapaneseServes 12

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Source Video
56h 30m
Prep
4h 50m
Cook
7h 22m
Cleanup
68h 42m
Total

Cost Breakdown

$23.00
Total cost
$1.92
Per serving

Critical Success Points

  • Thoroughly washing and correctly steaming rice for both koji and main batch.
  • Cooling rice to the correct temperature before adding koji kin or yeast.
  • Maintaining proper temperature and moisture during koji incubation.
  • Sanitizing all equipment and utensils.
  • Stirring during early fermentation to prevent mold and ensure even fermentation.
  • Filtering and pressing sake gently to avoid excess cloudiness.

Safety Warnings

  • Always sanitize all equipment and utensils to prevent contamination.
  • Discard any rice that develops green or black mold during koji incubation.
  • Alcohol content is high; consume responsibly.
  • Do not bottle if fermentation is still active (risk of explosion).

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