Asian Recipe − Anko (Sweet Red Bean Paste)

The paste is used to hold together pastries, cakes, and other dishes that come from Japan, most commonly desserts.

Ingredients

• 1 cup dried red beans
• 4 cups water, divided, or as needed
• 1 ½ cups white sugar

Cooking Directions

1. Place beans in a saucepan and cover with 2 cups water; bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. Drain and discard water.
2. 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.
3. 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.

Nutrition Facts

• calories221.7
• carbohydrateContent51.3 g
• fatContent0.2 g
• fiberContent5.7 g
• proteinContent5.4 g
• sodiumContent9.1 mg
• sugarContent38 g