Abstract: To investigate the quality characteristics of japonica glutinous rice in Northeast China and identify the key indicators and their threshold ranges of japonica glutinous rice suitable for making glutinous rice, 15 varieties of Northeast japonica glutinous rice were selected as research objects. Their physicochemical properties, processing quality, pasting properties, as well as the texture characteristics and sensory scores of the prepared glutinous rice were determined. Correlation analysis, stepwise regression analysis, and cluster analysis were used to evaluate the processing adaptability of japonica glutinous rice for rice preparation. The results showed that there were significant differences in amylose and ash contents among different varieties of japonica glutinous rice. The coefficient of variation for grain length and length-width ratio of both brown and milled rice were less than 5.00%. Nongzhan No.2 exhibited the lowest broken rice rate, while Longjing 57 had the highest milling yield. Nongzhan No.2 exhibited the highest peak viscosity and breakdown value, and the lowest trough viscosity, final viscosity, and setback value, resulting in the highest sensory score and superior eating quality of cooked glutinous rice. Yongnian No.10 produced glutinous rice with the lowest hardness, whereas Longjing 57 yielded the highest adhesiveness. Significant correlations were observed between protein content, gel consistency, pasting properties of japonica glutinous rice and the eating quality indicators of glutinous rice. The prediction model for glutinous rice quality exhibited a high fitting degree (R² = 0.932) with the total sensory score. Combined with cluster analysis, it was found that when the trough viscosity was in the range of 260.00-401.50 mPa·s and the setback value was less than 283.50 mPa·s, the quality of the prepared glutinous rice was better. Nongnian No.2 performed excellently in terms of processing quality, pasting properties, and eating quality, making it an ideal raw material for high-quality glutinous rice production. The starch pasting parameters determined under high-temperature and high-pressure conditions can more accurately predict the quality of glutinous rice prepared under corresponding processing conditions.