About Red beans and Anko (red bean paste)

What kind of food is Azuki? ?

Azuki is a small red bean that is rarely used outside of Asia.

In Japan, the color red has long been believed to ward off evil spirits.

There are many types of azuki beans, but the large varieties grown in the Tamba region are known as Tamba Dainagon and are highly prized.

Soybeans and peanuts are mainly composed of lipids, but adzuki beans are mainly composed of carbohydrates.

You can also ingest various nutrients such as dietary fiber, protein, vitamin B group, iron and potassium, saponin and polyphenols.

In Chinese medicine, adzuki beans are said to have the effect of draining excess water, purifying the blood, and eliminating swelling. It is scientifically recognized that the saponin contained in adzuki bean skin has a diuretic action and an action to excrete excess lipids in the blood.

Rice with adzuki beans is believed to have become popular as a treatment for beriberi (vitamin B1 deficiency) that was prevalent in the Edo period.

Even now, dishes using adzuki beans are often served for celebratory occasions.

Sekihan is a dish made by cooking a mixture of glutinous rice and red beans. While the traditional method of cooking rice is in a steamer, this recipe uses a rice cooker, making it easy and foolproof. 👉　Easy Sekihan (red beans rice)

What kind of food is Anko? ?

It is a food made by boiling Azuki(red beans) softly and then seasoning it with sugar.

Anko(餡子) is an essential ingredient in Japanese sweets.

There are also variations that use peas, kidney beans, sweet potatoes, chestnuts, pumpkins, etc. instead of adzuki beans.

Ingredients for anko

anko : red azuki beans and sugar
sakura an : shiro-an(white bean paste) and salted cherry blossoms
shiro-an : white kidney beans and white azuki beans

Dango topped with Sakura Cherry Blossom An Paste — Topped with beautiful pink sakura an (white bean paste filled with salted cherry blossoms), dango is the perfect spring snack. 👉　Dango with Sakura an (Sweet dumplings)

Anko can be classified into tsubuan (coarse paste) and koshian (smooth paste).

Tsubuan leaves the shape of the beans intact, while koshian is made by crushing the beans and straining them into a smooth paste.

Use sugar in an amount that is 100% of the weight of the azuki beans when they are in their original dried state. Adding salt at 0.5% of the sugar at the final stage of cooking creates a synergistic flavor effect, bringing out the sweetness of the azuki beans.

It is said that 100g of azuki beans will produce 170g of koshian. Sarashian (powdered bean paste) is kneaded with water to make koshian. The resulting koshian is twice the amount of powder.

Oshiruko is a Japanese dessert made of sweet red bean soup topped with roasted mochi rice cakes, also known as zenzai. Make sure to try this traditional dessert 👉　Oshiruko (Sweet red bean mochi soup)

Here are some points to keep in mind when making anko.

It is said that the skin of red beans is very hard and there is no point in soaking them in water, but I soak them for a few hours before cooking just to be safe.
Shibukiri is the process of boiling azuki beans once and then discarding the water. This is done to remove the bitterness, but it is important not to overdo it so as not to damage the flavor and color.
When cooking beans in a pressure cooker, check the cooking capacity of the pressure cooker you are using. If you cook too many beans, they will boil over and cause a big problem.
- Place a weight (a colander that comes with the pressure cooker) on top of the beans to prevent the bean skins from blocking the steam vent or safety valve of the pressure cooker.
If you don’t have a pressure cooker, boil the red beans for 1 to 2 hours. If you add the sugar too early, the beans will not be soft enough, so be sure to add the sugar only after you have confirmed that the beans are soft.

**Goma dango(Sesame balls, 芝麻球）are sweets made from shiratama flour, Anko(red bean paste), and goma(sesame seeds).** 👉　Goma Dango (Sweet Fried Sesame Balls)

Anko is an essential ingredient in Japanese sweets such as yokan, manju, taiyaki, dorayaki, and ohagi.

But it’s very easy to make, so it’s worth a try. If you have any left over, freeze it.