Red Bean Paste
Red bean paste (in simplified Chinese: 红豆沙, in traditional Chinese: 紅豆沙, Pinyin: hóngdòushā, meaning "red bean sand", due to its texture) is a sweet paste used for many things in Chinese, Japanese and Korean cuisine. It is made from mashed adzuki beans (known as red beans in Chinese), mixed with sugar. A range of texture from coarse and gritty to fine and smooth is possible. For a coarse paste, boil the beans for less time and mash by hand. For a fine paste, boil for longer and use a blender to mash the beans.
Total Time
4 hours
Servings
500 ml
200 ml dried adzuki beans
Water as needed for soaking and boiling
150 ml sugar
75 ml vegetable or peanut oil for frying
Wash the beans, checking for and removing any that are damaged or diseased. Soak the beans in cold water for at least 4 hours or, preferably, overnight. This softens the beans slightly and reduces the cooking time greatly.
4 hours
Drain the beans and rinse once soaked.
Place into a small saucepan and cover with water. Bring to the boil.
Simmer the beans for 1½–2 hours, until soft and disintegrating slightly. Longer boiling will result in a smoother paste. Remember to top up the water occasionally so the beans don't boil dry and burn.
2 hours
Drain away the water.
Depending on the desired texture, mash the beans by hand (coarse) or in a blender (fine) until they are as you want. Note that the paste is very thick, so if using a blender, it is easier to do it a bit at a time.
Stir in the sugar. You should now have a thick but damp paste.
Preheat the oil in a frying pan or wok, and fry the bean paste, using a spatula or spoon to stir, until the water has been driven off. The bean paste will now be quite dry, with a slightly grainy texture.
Cool, and store in an airtight container until needed. This paste will keep for at least a week in the fridge.
- •75 ml sounds like a lot of oil, but it is required to drive out the water properly.