Adzuka, grain and coconut swirls....

Upon just coming back to the US from Asia, I felt inspired to post this.

Typically, “beans” don’t sound like a great dessert. But in Asia, it’s very common that beans are the main component of the after-meal sweet and in Chinese, they call it “Tang Shui”. Some of the most common beans used are red beans (“azuki” in Japanese, “hong do” in Mandarin – originating from China and a common filler in “mochi”) and green beans (mung beans – originating from India). A lot of desserts are a mix of different grains as well, like rice and sesame seeds, simply mixed in with a sweet soup, with a base like coconut. The coconut flavoring is most popular in southern Asia regions.

Growing up half my life in Asia, our buns had sugared pureed, red beans in them (“Do Sha” in Mandarin). Delicious…
Other pureed filled buns would use lotus, taro and sweet potato in them. These are especially more common during certain holidays in Asia.

I wanted to share one very easy, healthy and delicious recipe for those not afraid to try beans for dessert. Try to keep an open-mind, I hope you enjoy this healthy treat. :)

Ingredients (makes 2 servings):


3 Cups Water for boiling
1 Can of Coconut Milk
1.5 Cups of Adzuka (red) beans
Agave – whatever your amount for taste/sweetness level

First, soak the beans overnight in water so they soften a bit before cooking.

Boil water and add the soaked beans…let them simmer for about half an hour. They’ll need to soften for best texture.

Next, drain them of the water and throw the coconut milk in, along with a few squirts of agave (or just use sugar); however sweet you would like to make it. You can get creative and add other flavors; this time, I added in some cinnamon. But you may add orange peel for a citrusy flavor.

Enjoy!

Here are adzuka beans (red) along with a pack of organic grains (rice and seeds) I use for the dessert.

In this case, for the grains, I soaked them for a good 45 minutes and soaked the beans too (but you don't have to - boiling them is fine).

Stirring in the coconut milk; I threw both the grains and red beans in there.

Final product. I added cinnamon for something different.