Japanese Sweet Red Bean Paste (Yude azuki)
This is a classic recipe for Japanese sweet red bean paste. It is very soft and delicious, and you can use it as a filling for cakes or other desserts.
Ingredients
- 9 oz aduki beans or red soy beans
- bicarbonate of soda
- 10 oz sugar
- 5 floz peanut oil
- 2 tbsp vanilla sugar or 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
decorate with:
- small mint leaves
serve with:
- vanilla ice cream
- peeled sliced kiwi fruit or fruit salad
Instructions
- Soak the beans overnight or for at least 12 hours in plenty of cold water; when they have finished soaking, rinse in a sieve under running cold water.
- Place in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan or flameproof casserole dish with 2 3/4 pints (1 1/2 litres) cold water. Bring quickly to the boil over a high heat, turn down the heat to low, add a pinch of bicarbonate of soda, stir and cover, leaving a chink for the steam to escape.
- Simmer gently for 1 1/2 - 2 hours, until the beans are very tender. Add a small pinch of salt when they are nearly done. Remove from the heat and put the beans and any remaining liquid through the vegetable mill with a fine-gauge disc fitted. Return the puree to the saucepan or casserole dish and stir in the sugar and oil.
- When these have been added to the puree, stir in the vanilla sugar or vanilla essence. Cook the puree over a low heat, stirring continuously, until it thickens to a paste.
- Leave to cool at room temperature before packing into sterilized glass preserving or jam jars with airtight seals or lids.
- This red bean paste goes very well with vanilla ice cream with kiwi fruit or a mixed fruit salad; use a small scoop to add 1 or 2 portions of the paste to each ice cream serving.
Calories: 730 kcal
Carbohydrates: 78 g
Protein: 11 g
Fat: 43g
Saturated Fat: 7 g
Sodium: 152 mg
Potassium: 340 mg
Fiber: 4 g
Sugar: 73 g
Vitamin A: 6 IU
Vitamin C: 1 mg
Calcium: 66 mg
Iron: 3 mg