Sweet adzuki bean soup with mochi

Ingredients for 5 servings:

• 250 g adzuki beans
• 1.8 liters of water
• 50 g cane sugar
• 1 pinch of salt
• 120 g glutinous rice flour
• 30 g sugar (granulated sugar)
• 100 ml milk or coconut milk

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour 45 minutes; Total time approx. 2 hours 5 minutes

Japanese dumpling soup – slightly sweet

The beans are small red beans, which can be purchased at Asian stores. The glutinous rice flour is also called mochiko or “glutinous rice flour.” Wash and rinse the uncooked adzuki beans in a sieve. Heat the beans with water in a pressure cooker and cook under pressure for 30 minutes. Then turn off the heat and wait until the pressure release valve drops. This takes about 20 to 30 minutes. Remove the lid, add the cane sugar and salt, and let the beans cook uncovered over medium heat for 30 minutes. Mix the glutinous rice flour and caster sugar in a bowl, then add the milk and use a silicone spatula to knead into a smooth and pliable dough. Form the dough into a ball with your hands. The dough should not be sticky and should not contain any dry bits; if necessary, adjust with a little more glutinous rice flour or milk. Form the dough into small balls the size of a chestnut, or from approximately 13 g of dough. Place the balls on a plate and press down lightly with your index finger. Bring a sufficient amount of water to a boil in a pot—about 1 liter for every 10 balls. Cook the balls in the water. As soon as they float to the top, boil for another 1 minute, then remove the balls with a slotted spoon and place them in ice water. Place the balls in bowls on top of the hot soup and serve. Tip: To thicken the soup, stir with a spoon toward the end of the cooking time, crushing a few adzuki beans.