First, make Ponyo: Gradually add the water to the shiratamako, dissolving it and creating a watery white liquid.

Then add this liquid to the shiroan paste (which is a sweet, white kidney bean paste) in a small pot, and mix very well with a rubber spatula until the liquid is completely incorporated. Place the pot on the stove, and set it on medium-low heat. Keep kneading the dough with the spatula until most of the water has been absorbed, and it no longer has a shine. It should still have a paste-like consistency and hold together well, but feel and look slightly dryer than before. You don’t want to cook it so long that it begins to brown, and remove it immediately from the heat if you notice it browning. On the other hand, if you do not cook it long enough it will be much too sticky to handle.

Once it has reached this stage, remove it from the heat, and spread the paste evenly along the insides of the pot, for it to cool. Spreading it around ½ to 1 cm thick will allow the paste to cool without drying out too much.

Once the nerikiri has cooled enough to touch and not burn your hands, scrape it off from the pot with a spatula, and roll it into a ball. If it crumbles and cracks when you are trying to shape it, it has been overcooked, and if it sticks to your hands and is very difficult to shape, it has been undercooked. In both of these instances, I would recommend making a new batch. It should feel like a slightly denser version of Play-Doh.

Divide the nerikiri into Ponyo’s dress, head, hair, eyes and white tummy. Knead the nerikiri together with food coloring to dye the dress red, the eyes black and the hair orange. Then shape the nerikiri pieces into Ponyo, and stick them together. Set Ponyo aside.

Pour the water and agar-agar into a pot, and mix together. Set to high, and dissolve the agar-agar as the water heats up. When it reaches a boil, bring the heat down to low and simmer for 3 – 4 minutes. After simmering, add and completely dissolve the sugar.

Remove from heat, and allow it to cool slightly in the pan. Pour a few spoonfuls of the jelly into the bowl and allow it to set. Place Ponyo in a bowl of your choice, and pour the clear jelly over top, until the bowl is almost full. Wait about 10 minutes for the jelly to almost fully set (at room temperature). Dye the remaining jelly blue, and pour into the bowl to fill it up the remainder of the way.

Allow the jelly to fully set (you can place it in the refrigerator if you’re in a rush), and then turn it out onto a plate!