Monthly Mingle : Zenzai - Sweet Red Bean Soup with Rice Cakes

At the new year party, a Japanese friend of mine prepared a traditional dessert, called Zenzai. It is read beans soup and usually served in a small bowl with mochi or rice cakes. Actually, zenzai is pretty much similar with one of Indonesian popular dessert, mung bean porridge. The only difference is that the mung bean porridge is served with coconut milk.

From the japanese recipe book given by my host family, I then tried to prepared the zenzai by myself. It is very easy.

This traditional dessert is my entry for Monthly Mingle hosted by Mansi and Meeta in which this month theme is Appetizers & Hors'Doeuvres

Shiruko (汁粉, Shiruko^?), or oshiruko (お汁粉, oshiruko^?) with the honorific "o" (お), is a traditional Japanese dessert.^[1] It is a sweet porridge of azuki beans boiled and crushed, served in a bowl with mochi.^[1][2] There are different styles of shiruko, such as shiruko with chestnuts, or with glutinous rice flour dumplings instead of mochi.

Zenzai - Sweet Red Bean Soup with Rice Cakes
Source : Recipes of Japanese Cooking book

Ingredients (serve 4) :
11 1/6 oz chunky sweet red bean paste
1 2/3 U.S. cps azuki beans simmering liquid
Cut rice cakes

Directions :

1. Place the sweet red bean paste and the azuki beans simmering liquid in a pot (one serving : 3 1/3 oz liquid per 2 4/5 oz paste). Boil briefly
2. Cut the rice cakes into small pieces, and toast until thoroughly softened in a toaster or on a grid.
3. Place the rice cakes in a pot, and mix with the sweet red bean paste lightly. Arrange in individual bowls.

Azuki An - Sweet Read Bean Paste
Source : Recipes of Japanese Cooking book

Ingredients :
10 1/2 oz azuki beans
10 1/2 to 12 2/3 oz sugar
water

Directions :

1. Leave the azuki beans in plentey of cold water over night. Place both the beans and the water in which they were soaked in a pot, and bring to the boil over a high heat. When it comes to the boil, add some cold water. When the water starts to boil again, drain the beans on a sieve.
2. Fill a pot with plenty of water and add the azuki beans. SImmer over a low heat for about 2 hours while skimming off foam. When the beans are so soft that they can be crushed with your fingertips, remove from the heat.
3. Cover the pot partially with the lid, and pour only the simmering liquid into a bowl while holding back the beans with the lid.
4. Plasce the pot over the heat again. Add sugar, and simmer while stirring until all the liquid is gone. The quantity of the sugar to be added depends on how sweet you want the paste to be. If you intend to preserve the paste, spread it on tray after boiling and let stand until cool.