Anko Recipes

SWEET RED BEAN PASTE (TSUBUAN AND KOSHIAN)

Steps:

• Gather all the ingredients.
• Rinse the azuki beans and discard any broken beans.
• Transfer the drained azuki beans to a large pot. Add enough water to the pot so the beans are covered by 1-2 inches.
• Place the pot on the stove and bring the water to a boil over medium-high heat.
• Once boiling, drain the beans in a fine-mesh sieve. Return the beans to the same pot.
• Next, add more water to the pot so the beans are covered by 1-2 inches.
• Bring the water to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, put an otoshibuta (drop lid) over the beans. (The otoshibuta will prevent the beans from dancing around too much.) Turn down the heat to medium low and keep it simmering for the next 1 to 1½ hours.
• Some of the water will evaporate, so add more water to keep the beans submerged, as needed. After 1 hour, check if the beans are cooked. Pick up a bean and mash it with your fingers. When it mashes easily, it's done.

ANKO (SWEET RED BEAN PASTE)

Steps:

• Place beans in a saucepan and cover with 2 cups water; bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. Drain and discard water.
• Place drained beans in a clean saucepan and cover with 2 to 3 cups water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover the saucepan, and simmer, adding more water as needed, until beans are soft and can be crushed between your fingers, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Drain beans and discard water.
• Stir beans and sugar together in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until sugar melts and beans form a loose, shiny paste, about 10 minutes. Immediately transfer the paste to a container to cool. Store, covered, in the refrigerator.

ANKO RECIPE - JAPANESE SWEET RED BEAN PASTE

Steps:

• Wash azuki beans. Pop in a saucepan and cover about 1cm / ½in above the beans with boiling water to allow them to soften for 30 mins.
• Next place the soaked beans and water on high heat and bring to the boil. Boil down until all the liquid has evaporated (around 15 minutes). Drain any excess water which should look a murky brown red.
• Add 2 cups of cold water and bring back to boil. Boil for another 15 minutes or until the water level goes below the beans. Stir occasionally to check no beans are sticking. Add another 2 cups of cold water and boil down again for another 15 minutes.
• Once the water dips below the beans again, it's time to add your sugar and pinch of salt and put the heat down to low-medium. This will allow the sugar to dissolve in the last of the water and be absorbed by the beans. At this stage the liquid should be dark and gently bubbling amongst the beans.
• After 10 minutes the liquid should start to thicken. Do a 'smoosh' test first and squeeze an azuki bean to see if it squishes. If your beans aren't soft enough, add another ½ - 1 cup of water and cook them for one last round (around 10 minutes).
• Now it's time to mash, mash, mash! You want a nice consistency where it has a nice balance of smooth and texture.
• Your sweet red bean paste is now ready to use on your favourite Japanese desserts like mochi and dango!

ANKO

Steps:

• 1. Put the soaked beans in a medium- size, heavy pot, cover them with water to a depth of 2 inches, and bring to a boil. Boil the beans for 5 minutes, then drain them through a colander and rinse. Repeat. After the second boil-drain-rinse cycle, cover the beans a third time, this time with 3 cups cold water. Let the beans simmer, uncovered, skimming off any foam that accumulates, until they're tender, 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• 2. At this point, there should still be plenty of liquid along with the beans in the pot. They need not be covered completely, but they should be, as I say, swimming. If not, add another cup or so of hot water. Stir in the brown sugar and salt and keep simmering the beans gently, stirring them often.
• 3. Using a potato masher, begin breaking up the cooking beans into a chunky, thick, pastelike mash, stirring more and more often after this point to prevent sticking. Continue simmering until most, but not all, of the liquid has evaporated; the beans will continue to thicken, absorbing water as they cool. Remove the mashed beans from the heat and set aside. If you want a smooth puree, let the anko cool slightly, then run it through a food processor. Store it, tightly covered, in the fridge for up to a week.

ANKO

Steps:

• Place the beans in a medium bowl and add enough cold water to cover by about 2 inches. Cover and refrigerate until the beans have swelled, about 8 hours or up to 24 hours.
• Drain the beans and transfer to a 5-quart Dutch oven or medium saucepan. Add 4 cups cold water and bring to a boil over high heat. Drain the beans, then combine them with the baking soda in the same pot. Fill the pot with another 4 cups cold water, cover, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
• Remove the lid, reduce the heat to low and gently simmer, stirring occasionally, until the beans are very soft, about 45 minutes. Add warm water as needed to keep the beans covered.
• Drain the beans, reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid. Clean the pot and set aside. Transfer the beans to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until most of them are broken down, about 10 to 15 pulses. If the beans aren't moving much in the food processor, add some of the reserved cooking liquid.
• Return the beans to the cleaned pot and add the sugar, oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the paste is thick enough for you to see the bottom of the pot when you run a spatula across it, 10 to 20 minutes.
• Transfer the paste to a baking sheet or wide shallow bowl, spread it out evenly and let cool completely. It will thicken as it cools. The cooled bean paste can be used immediately or stored in airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week or in a resealable plastic freezer bag in the freezer for up to 3 months.