Adzuki beans are very often used in Japanese, Chinese, and Korean dishes, but you can also use them in Asian dishes and as a substitute for other beans on your favorite American menu. These beans are rich in protein and low in calories compared to other beans, including black beans, kidney beans, pinto beans, white beans, and chickpeas. Keep reading to learn more about how to cook these beans.
Ingredients
Basic Cooking Ingredients
For 8 to 10 servings
- 4 cups (1 liter) dried adzuki beans
- 4 slices bacon/smoked (optional)
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) salt (optional)
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) black pepper (optional)
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) garlic powder (optional)
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) chili powder (optional)
- Water
Steaming
For 4 to 5 servings
- 2 cups (500 ml) dried adzuki beans
- Water
Azuki Bean Paste (Anko)
Makes 600 grams of Anko
- 200 grams of dried adzuki beans
- Water
- 200 grams of white sugar
- A pinch of salt
Step
Method 1 of 3: Basic Stove Cooking Steps
Step 1. Soak the beans
Place the beans in a large saucepan and fill the pot with water. Soak the beans in water at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours.
- Since the beans are mostly dry, it is highly recommended that you soak the beans before cooking the beans. Because by doing this, the beans will become softer and also remove the water-soluble components of the beans that can interfere with digestion.
- If you use adzuki beans, however, you can still go through the soaking process without experiencing any adverse reactions after you eat the adzuki beans. The soaking process will make the beans a little easier to digest, but this process is not very important.
- You can soak the beans for an hour to one night.
Step 2. Change the water
Drain the water by pouring the contents of the pot through a colander. Rinse the adzuki beans several times under running water before returning the beans to the pot and adding new water.
- The water required should be as high as 5 cm to soak the beans.
- Fill the pot with cold water so the beans cook more evenly.
Step 3. Add bacon, if you wish
If you want to add bacon to the beans, you can do this now. Cut the bacon into 2.5 cm pieces and place the bacon in a pot of water and beans.
Bacon gives the adzuki beans a smoky, salty aroma. Bacon can be a great addition if you tend to eat nuts straight or add them to savory dishes, such as chili. Bacon might not work if you tend to use nuts in sweet dishes or snacks
Step 4. Boil the pot containing the beans
Cover the pot and bring the water to a boil on high.
Step 5. Let the beans boil until soft
Once the water boils, reduce the heat to medium and let the beans simmer until the beans are soft enough to pierce with a fork.
- If you soak the adzuki beans before boiling the beans, the boiling process will only take about 60 minutes. If you don't soak the beans or soak the beans for under an hour, the boiling process will take up to 90 minutes.
- Tilt the lid slightly to allow steam from the beans to escape from the pan, thus avoiding pressure buildup inside the pan.
- Periodically remove any excess foam that has formed on the surface of the water while cooking the beans.
- If necessary, add more water if you see a lot of foam developing during the cooking process.
Step 6. Add the desired seasonings
Adzuki beans can be served or added to a recipe directly, but if you want the beans to have a bit of flavor, you can add salt, black pepper, garlic powder, chili powder, or your favorite seasoning and can be added after the beans are removed from the stove and dried.
You'll need to dry the beans before adding the seasonings to make sure the spices soak into the beans and the spices don't lose or dissolve in the water
Step 7. Serve
Dry the beans, if you haven't already done this process in the seasoning stage, and serve the beans while the beans are hot.
- You can serve the adzuki beans in tortilla shells, in a bowl with a cornbread edge, or rice. Beans can also be added to casseroles (French dishes), bakes (oven cooking), chiles (spicy foods)¸and stews.
- Alternatively, you can refrigerate the beans and add them to a fresh salad.
- You can store cooked adzuki beans in an airtight container that can last up to five days in the refrigerator or six months in the freezer (a refrigerator that cools below the freezing point of water).
Method 2 of 3: Steaming
Step 1. Soak the beans
Place the adzuki beans in a medium-large saucepan or bowl and fill with enough water to cover the beans. Soak the beans overnight at room temperature.
- Actually, it is not necessary to soak the adzuki beans. You can cook the beans in the steamer without pre-soaking the beans, but soaking the beans before cooking will reduce the time it takes to cook the beans and remove the water-soluble components of the beans that can interfere with digestion.
- If you want to preserve the color, shape, and aroma of the beans, don't soak the beans before cooking.
Step 2. Drain the water
Pour the beans and water through a sieve to remove the water. Rinse the beans under running water several times.
Rinsing the beans after drying the beans will remove more of the water-soluble components of the beans that are still adhering to the outer shell of the beans
Step 3. Put the beans in the steamer
Transfer the drained beans to the steamer and add 2 cups (500 ml) of cold water. Cover the steamer and cook on high pressure.
Step 4. Cook until soft
If you soak the beans, this process only takes about 5 to 9 minutes. If you don't soak the beans, this process can take 15 to 20 minutes.
- Remove excess water when cooked by pouring the contents of the steamer through a sieve. Note that there won't be too much water after the beans have finished cooking.
- When the beans are cooked through, they should be soft enough to pierce with a fork.
Step 5. Serve
Serve the adzuki beans straight while they're still hot or add them to your favorite bean dish recipe.
- If serving the beans warm, you can serve them with tortilla shells, cornbread, or rice. You can also add them to casseroles, bakes, chili, and stew.
- If serving the beans while they are warm, you can serve the adzuki beans in tortilla shells, cornbread, or rice. You can also add peanuts in casseroles (French dishes), bakes (oven-cooked foods), chiles (spicy foods)¸and stews.
- If you decide to refrigerate the beans, you can enjoy the beans mixed with the salad.
- If you have leftover beans, you can store cooked beans in an airtight container that can last up to five days in the refrigerator or six months in the freezer.
Method 3 of 3: Adzuki Bean Paste (Anko)
Step 1. Soak the beans
Place the adzuki beans in a medium-sized saucepan or glass bowl and fill with water. Let the beans soak at room temperature for one night.
In many applications, it is not necessary to soak the adzuki beans. For bean paste, however, you'll need to soak the beans to soften the beans and remove the water-soluble components of the beans that can interfere with digestion
Step 2. Drain and replace the water
Drain the beans by pouring the contents of the pan through a sieve. Rinse several times under running water and put the beans back in the pot with fresh water.
- Rinsing the beans after soaking the beans will help remove dirt or any water-soluble components of the beans that are still adhering to the beans' outer shells.
- Make sure the water is at least 2 inches (5 to 5 cm) above the beans when you return the beans to the pot.
- Keep in mind that the beans will double in size by the end of the cooking process, so make sure the pot is big enough to hold all the beans.
Step 3. Boil the water
Transfer the pot to the stove and turn on high heat. Boil the beans until the water boils, without covering the pot with a lid.
Turn off the heat when the water starts to boil. Cover the pot and let the beans remain on the stove for 5 minutes over low heat
Step 4. Discard and replace the water again
Pour the contents of the pot through a sieve to remove the water used for cooking.
This time there is no need to rinse the beans
Step 5. Boil until boiling
Put the adzuki beans back in the pot and pour in enough water to cover the beans. Turn on the heat until the water in the pot boils.
Step 6. Boil the beans until they are very soft
Once the water boils, reduce the heat to medium-low and let the beans continue to cook slowly. You should do this for 60 to 90 minutes.
- Cooking adzuki beans in a saucepan without a lid.
- Periodically use a slotted spoon to press down on the nuts that are floating on the surface of the water.
- Add water as needed during the cooking process. The water will evaporate, and as a result, the water will decrease as the beans cook. You must ensure that the beans remain submerged in the water throughout the cooking process.
- On the other hand, adding too much water can cause the beans to crumble.
- To check the level of doneness of the beans, take one bean and squeeze the nut with your finger. You should be able to easily press the nuts with your fingers.
Step 7. Add sugar and mix
Add sugar in three separate steps, and stir each time you add sugar. Increase the heat and cook until the beans reach a very soft texture until the beans can be made into a paste.
- Stir the nuts constantly after you add the sugar.
- Let the beans continue to cook on high heat even after the water boils.
- Turn off the heat when the beans reach a very soft texture until the beans can be made into a paste, but do not remove the pan from the stove.
Step 8. Add salt
Once the adzuki bean paste has cooled slightly, sprinkle in some salt and stir the final bean mixture with a wooden or plastic mixing spoon.
- The bean paste remains hot, but not so hot that you could scald your hands when you touch the pasta.
- The pasta will thicken and become denser as the pasta cools.
Step 9. Transfer the pasta to a separate storage area and refrigerate the pasta
Pour or use a spoon and transfer the paste to a separate storage area. Cover the storage compartment and allow some air to enter and allow the pasta to cool to room temperature.
Do not leave the anko (bean paste) in the pan after the pasta has cooled
Step 10. Use or store pasta as needed
You can use adzuki bean paste on your favorite Asian desserts and as a snack, including mochi cake, anpan bread, daifuku, dango, dorayaki, manju, taiyaki, mooncake and chalboribbang.
