noun
roasted millet or rice cake used to make okoshi
Specifically the puffed grain cake that serves as the base ingredient for the traditional Japanese sweet okoshi.
See also: おこし
おこし種を水あめで固めておこしを作ります。
We make okoshi by binding roasted millet cakes with starch syrup.
おこし is the finished sweet made from おこし種; おこし種 refers specifically to the puffed grain cakes used as the base ingredient.
Compound of おこし (okoshi, a traditional Japanese sweet) and 種 (たね, 'seed' or 'base ingredient'). The exact origin of おこし is uncertain.