Oshiruko, sweet red bean soup with mochi, is so delicious that you will want to keep it away from Big Mom!
Oshiruko has been making it’s way around the internet lately thanks to the popular anime One Piece. Seeing Otama enjoying the dish with happy tears in her eyes to Big Mom fervently chasing after it, it has left people wondering “What the heck is Oshiruko??”
What is Oshiruko?
Oshiruko (also sometimes known as Zenzai), is a traditional Japanese dessert soup made with sweet azuki beans and mochi (rice cake). It’s warm, slightly sweet, earthy, and the chewy mochi adds extra texture. While it’s a wintertime dessert, many people enjoy eating it year round!
About the azuki beans
You can make the sweet azuki beans or anko from scratch if you’d like, but I opted to use prepared anko that you can buy in Japanese markets or online to make it even easier. I recommend using tsubu-an, which is anko (sweet red bean paste) that still has pieces of the bean in it. This will give the soup more texture. Koshi-an is anko that has been strained so it is completely smooth.
About the mochi
There are several kinds of mochi you can put into Oshiruko. One type is Kirimochi, a harder mochi, that is toasted and then put into the soup. This has nice texture from the crunch of the toasted exterior to the super stretchy and chewy interior. As Oshiruko is often made in the winter, it is a perfect time to use old New Year mochi (like mochi from your kagami mochi).
Since I was making the Oshiruko from One Piece, I opted to use Shiratama Dango, which are small, round glutinous rice flour cakes. They are bite-sized, chewy and slightly sweet. They are also extremely easy to make from scratch!
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Oshiruko (Red Bean Soup) / お汁粉
Ingredients
Shiratama Dango (Mochi)
- 1/3 c shiratamako
- 3-5 tbsp water
- 1/2 tsp sugar
Oshiruko Soup
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup tsubu-an (anko – red bean paste)
- pinch salt
Instructions
To make Shiratama Dango
- In a bowl, put in the shiratamako, water, and sugar. Mix and once the mixture starts sticking together, use your hands and knead the mixture into a smooth ball. The amount of water will depend on how dry it is in your kitchen so add water little by little until everything sticks together and the ball holds together smoothly without cracking.
- Roll the ball of dough into a log. Break the log into about 6 equal-sized pieces and roll each piece into small balls (dango). Use your thumb to slightly indent the middles of each dango.
- Boil water in a pot. Once boiling, drop in the dango and carefully push them around to make sure they don't stick to the bottom. Boil for about 2 minutes and the dango are floating.
- Remove the floating dango and put them in an ice bath. Set aside.
To make the soup
- In a pot on medium-high heat, add the water, anko, and salt. Mix well until combined completely. Once the mixture is boiling, reduce the heat slightly and cook until the mixture reduces slightly.
- Put the prepared soup into bowl and place the prepared dango into the soup.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
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For a discount on the sakura lacquer bowl I used (or anything on Musubi Kiln’s website), use code “SW“
Sakura Lacquer Bowl
Tsubuan (Coarse Sweet Red Bean Paste) / つぶあん
Shiratamako / 白玉粉
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