'- 500 gram kabocha pumpkin meat- 250 ml (1 cup) water- 1 teaspoon agar-agar powder- 100 gram (1/2 cup) sugar- 1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Kabocha puree. First, steam kabocha meat until soft enough to be mashed. Use a fork, or a food processor, to turn the steamed kabocha into kabocha puree.2. Prepare agar-agar. Boil together water and agar-agar in a small pot, then add sugar and salt and boil until sugar is completely dissolved.3. Mix kabocha with agar. Remove the pot from heat, then stir in kabocha puree into the agar-agar mixture until smooth.4. Let the yokan set. Pour the mixture into a loaf pan (I use an 8”x4” loaf pan), use a spatula to smooth the mixture, and then chill in the fridge until set. About 1 hour.5. Serving. Gently run a thin blade around the loaf pan to loosen the yokan, then cover the pan with a plate and flip. The yokan become loose and drop on the plate.6. Storing. Any leftover yokan can be stored in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.