Red Bean Filling

Filling for Butsi and Hopia

Red Bean filling typically found in Butsi or Sesame Seed Balls, Hopia, Mooncakes and Diced Hopia.

It is actually Azuki bean (or Adzuki), grown in East Asia and available in most Asian markets. It's the size of a mung bean (mongo bean) but has a deep red color.

The red bean filling is quite tedious to prepare from scratch, so if you can find the canned paste, you save a lot of time from soaking and boiling to soften the beans.

Nevertheless, we will make it here from scratch.

You can also make a batch of the filling and freeze part of it for later use.

YOUR SHOPPING LIST:

• Red Beans
• Unsalted Butter

IN THE PANTRY:

• Sugar
• Salt
• Water

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cup Red Beans
• Sugar
• pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
• Water

SOAKING TIME : 4 -8 hours

COOKING TIME : 60 - 80 minutes

1 Wash the beans and soak in enough water for 4 hours, drain.

2 Start with 2 cups water per cup of soaked bean, boil the water/bean mixture, then simmer until soft, about an hour for stovetop cookware or 10-15 minutes on Pressure Cooker.

3 Add enough water during simmering making sure the mix does not dry out and burn.

4 Drain any excess liquid and mash the beans using a fork or use a food processor if available.

5 On a separate pan, measure a cup of sugar for every 2 cups of mashed beans, and add 2 tablespoons butter and a pinch of salt.

6 Cook on low heat right until the sugar are dissolved. Cool before using as filling.

BENG'S TIPS

• When using canned Red Bean Paste, start with Step #4 on the procedure.
• Substitute mung bean (mongo bean) for the filling. It's easier, no need to soak, just boil the beans for 20-30 minutes or until soft, then follow the procedure from Step #4.
• Salt is an important ingredient for any sweet dessert, cakes or pastries as it brings out the sweetness and enhances the flavor of the dessert.

Go to Butsi Recipe page