Recipe Highlights
Zenzai (Candy Purple Bean Soup with Mochi) brings again so many cozy childhood recollections for me. The marginally candy azuki beans and toasted, chewy mochi warmed me from the within out. With trendy shortcuts, it’s faster and simpler than ever to make at dwelling.
- Easy and versatile. Make it from scratch with dried azuki beans on the stovetop or in an On the spot Pot, or use ready-made crimson bean paste (anko) for a time-saving shortcut.
- Good wintertime consolation. Served sizzling, it gently warms each physique and soul.
- A nostalgic Japanese favourite. I crave it and luxuriate in making all of it yr spherical, particularly in my cooler local weather.
For those who love conventional Japanese sweets, strive my Dorayaki, Daifuku, and Shiratama Dango recipes subsequent!
What’s Zenzai?
Zenzai (ぜんざい) is a conventional Japanese dessert soup made with azuki beans. It’s served sizzling and often topped with toasted mochi. This beloved winter deal with is loved throughout Japanese New Yr and yr spherical. It’s additionally a favourite technique to eat mochi on January eleventh for the normal Kagami Biraki (鏡開き) ceremony in Japan.
Some areas or households could name this dish Oshiruko (お汁粉).
Elements for Zenzai (Candy Purple Bean Soup)
- dried azuki beans or candy crimson bean paste (anko) – As my mother is from Osaka, my household makes use of chunky-style anko (tsubuan) for Kansai-style zenzai.
- water
- sugar – skip for store-bought anko
- salt
- kiri mochi (rice cake)
Discover the printable recipe with measurements under.
Tips on how to Make Zenzai (Candy Purple Bean Soup)
- Cook dinner the beans. Wash the dried azuki and prepare dinner in water till tender, utilizing pot on the range (left photograph) or a strain cooker (proper photograph). You’ll be able to bounce to step 3 for retailer purchased.
- Sweeten. Add sugar and a pinch of salt. Stir gently till dissolved.
- Alter the thickness. Add somewhat water to skinny the soup or simmer briefly to cut back, if wanted.
- Toast the mochi and serve. Reduce kirimochi in half or quarters and toast till puffed and flippantly browned. Ladle the new crimson bean soup into bowls and prime with toasted mochi.
Nami’s Recipe Ideas
These easy ideas will assist you to make Zenzai each time.
- Select your methodology. A strain cooker saves time, however the stovetop methodology works simply as effectively. See my recipe under for each strategies!
- Cook dinner the azuki beans till tender, not mushy. They need to be smooth sufficient to softly crush between your fingers, whereas nonetheless holding their form.
- Add sugar solely after the beans are absolutely cooked. Including sugar too early can toughen the skins and decelerate cooking.
- Maintain the sweetness barely gentle. Zenzai tastes sweeter because it cools, so goal for a delicate sweetness on the finish of the cooking course of.
- Add a small pinch of salt. Only a tiny quantity helps steadiness and deepen the sweetness.
- Put together the mochi individually. Grill or toast the mochi and add it simply earlier than serving. This retains the soup clear and provides a pleasant toasty aroma.
Variations and Customizations
Seeking to change issues up? Attempt these simple and attractive concepts!
- Substitute shiratama dango. Some areas serve zenzai with smooth rice flour dumplings as a substitute of mochi.
- Make the azuki beans easy. Mash and pressure the cooked beans or use positive crimson bean paste (koshian) for a easy texture.
- Use recent or boiled mochi. It is a nice choice round Japanese New Yr, when households historically make freshly pounded rice truffles.
- Chill it. Take pleasure in it chilly as hiyashi zenzai within the summertime.
- Add sweetened chestnuts. For extra candy and earthy taste, strive kuri kanroni (chestnuts in heavy syrup).
What to Serve with Zenzai (Candy Purple Bean Soup)
This candy porridge is finest stored easy. Right here’s how I wish to serve it for a snack or dessert:
- With sizzling tea – Japanese inexperienced tea fantastically counterbalances this candy porridge.
- With shio kombu – A small facet of seasoned and dried skinny kelp strips makes a tasty sweet-salty pairing.
Storage and Reheating Ideas
To retailer: Switch the soup to an hermetic container and retailer within the fridge for as much as 4 days and within the freezer for as much as a month. Put together the mochi proper earlier than you serve the zenzai.
To reheat: Heat gently on the stovetop, and skinny with somewhat water if wanted.
FAQs
What’s the distinction between zenzai and oshiruko?
It is dependent upon the area. In Kansai (Osaka space), zenzai is chunky soup with entire beans, whereas Oshiruko is easy. In Kanto (Tokyo space), zenzai is dry mochi served with chunky crimson bean paste whereas oshiruko is any crimson bean soup. Oshiruko is usually served with smooth rice flour dumplings made with shiratamako.
How do you make zenzai with mochi?
Simmer cooked azuki beans with sugar, then serve sizzling with mochi toasted till puffed and crisp, or boil the mochi. The distinction between candy beans and chewy mochi makes zenzai so satisfying.
Can I make zenzai with canned or store-bought crimson beans?
Sure! You’ll be able to simply use canned or packaged candy crimson bean paste (tsubuan or koshian) for zenzai. Merely skinny and heat the beans with somewhat water. It’s a handy shortcut that I take advantage of usually!
I’d love to listen to how yours turned out! 💛 Please go away a star ranking and remark under to share your expertise. Your suggestions not solely helps Simply One Cookbook but additionally helps different dwelling cooks uncover recipes they will belief.
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Selfmade: For Dried Azuki Beans (4–6 servings)
Shortcut: For Ready Purple Bean Paste (1 serving)
Selfmade Model Utilizing Dried Azuki Beans (for 4–6 bowls)
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Collect all of the components. Nami’s Tip: With the prime quality of azuki beans nowadays, it’s usually pointless to briefly boil the beans and drain (known as yudekoboshi) earlier than cooking in recent water.
Choice 1: Stress Cooker Technique
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Rinse 1 cup azuki beans rigorously till the water runs clear. Discard any floating (broken) beans. Drain and switch the beans to a strain cooker (I take advantage of an On the spot Pot).
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Add 4 cups water. Cowl and lock the lid. Be sure that the steam launch deal with factors at Sealing and never Venting. Flip in your strain cooker. For an On the spot Pot, choose Guide or Stress Cook dinner mode, select Excessive strain, and set the cooking time to quarter-hour (or 10 minutes for barely firmer beans).For a stovetop strain cooker, prepare dinner on excessive warmth till it reaches excessive strain. Then, cut back the warmth to low and preserve the strain for quarter-hour.
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When it’s carried out cooking, the On the spot Pot will swap routinely to the Maintain Heat mode. (For a stovetop strain cooker, take away the pot from the warmth.) Let the strain launch naturally for half-hour. Then, flip the steam launch deal with to Venting to launch any remaining strain. Rigorously open the lid.Nami’s Tip: Cook dinner till tender, not mushy. The beans ought to be smooth sufficient to softly crush between your fingers, whereas nonetheless holding their form.
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Add ¾–1 cup sugar into the pot. Then, add a small 1 pinch Diamond Crystal kosher salt to steadiness and deepen the sweetness.Nami’s Tip: Add sugar solely after the beans are absolutely cooked. Including it too early can toughen the pores and skin and decelerate the cooking course of. Purpose for a delicate sweetness at this stage, as Zenzai tastes sweeter because it cools.
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Cook dinner on low warmth (utilizing the Sauté operate) for about 5 minutes, stirring sometimes, till the sugar is absolutely dissolved and the soup deepens barely in shade. Maintain it heat whilst you put together the mochi (skip forward for directions).
Choice 2: Stovetop Technique
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Rinse 1 cup azuki beans rigorously till the water is obvious. Discard any floating (broken) beans, then drain.
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Put the beans and 4 cups water in a pot.
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Carry to a boil over medium-high warmth. As soon as boiling, put an otoshibuta (drop lid) on prime of the beans and switch down the warmth to medium low. Simmer with out the pot lid till the beans are tender (however not mushy), about 1–1½ hours.Nami’s Tip: The otoshibuta will hold the beans from dancing round. You need to use aluminum foil to make your personal otoshibuta.
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Some liquid will evaporate, so add water to maintain the beans submerged, as wanted. Examine after 1 hour. If a bean mashes simply between your fingers whereas nonetheless holding its form, it is carried out. In any other case, prepare dinner for one more quarter-hour and test once more. Add ¾–1 cup sugar and 1 pinch Diamond Crystal kosher salt (small pinch, to style) and prepare dinner over low warmth, stirring sometimes, till the sugar dissolves utterly. Maintain it heat whilst you put together the mochi (skip forward for directions).Nami’s Tip: Add sugar solely after the beans are absolutely cooked. Including it too early can toughen the skins and decelerate cooking. Purpose for a delicate sweetness at this stage, as Zenzai tastes sweeter because it cools. Additionally, use only a small pinch of salt to steadiness and deepen the sweetness.
Shortcut Model Utilizing Ready Purple Bean Paste (for 1 bowl)
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To a small saucepan, add ½ cup candy crimson bean paste (anko) that‘s both retailer purchased or home made. Add ½ cup water. Carry it to a boil. Add 1 pinch Diamond Crystal kosher salt to style and blend effectively. To regulate the consistency, add water to skinny the soup or simmer longer to cut back and thicken it. Maintain it heat whilst you put together the mochi (see the following step).Nami’s Tip: I used tsubuan (chunky paste) right here, however you should utilize koshian (positive paste) for those who favor.
To Put together the Mochi
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To make bite-size kirimochi items, lower 4 items Japanese rice cake (kiri mochi) into halves or quarters. Put them on a wire rack set in a baking sheet, then place in a toaster oven or common oven. Toast the dried mochi till overrated and properly brown, about 10–12 minutes. You may also toast it in a dry frying pan. Nami’s Tip: For recent home made mochi or shiratama dango, add it to the soup to heat it up. For frozen mochi, boil it in a pot of water till smooth, then add it to the zenzai.
Seeking to change issues up? Attempt these simple and attractive concepts!
- Substitute shiratama dango. Some areas serve zenzai with smooth rice flour dumplings as a substitute of mochi.
- Make the azuki beans easy. Mash and pressure the cooked beans or use positive crimson bean paste (koshian) for a easy texture.
- Use recent or boiled mochi. It is a nice choice round Japanese New Yr, when households historically make freshly pounded rice truffles.
- Chill it. Take pleasure in it chilly as hiyashi zenzai within the summertime.
- Add sweetened chestnuts. For extra candy and earthy taste, strive kuri kanroni (chestnuts in heavy syrup).
Energy: 438kcal, Carbohydrates: 100g, Protein: 12g, Fats: 1g, Saturated Fats: 1g, Sodium: 40mg, Potassium: 623mg, Fiber: 6g, Sugar: 68g, Vitamin A: 8IU, Calcium: 66mg, Iron: 2mg
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Editor’s Be aware: This put up was initially revealed on Mar 12, 2012. It was up to date with new pictures and extra strain cooking methodology on January 10, 2020 and republished with extra useful data on January 5, 2026.
