Chinese Coconut Red Bean Soup with Tapioca Pearls
Ingredients
- 10 cups water divided
- 1/4 cup tapioca pearls
- 2 cups small red beans or Japanese azuki beans, soaked overnight, rinsed, and drained
- Rock sugar to taste (depending on your preferred level of sweetness)
- 1 13.5- oz can coconut milk
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Add tapioca pearls and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Cover with a lid and remove from heat. The tapioca pearls should plump up and turn translucent in about 10 minutes (if not, let it reboil for 5 minutes and keep it covered again for 10 minutes). Drain the liquid through a sieve and rinse with cold water until water runs clear. Set aside.
- In a large pot, bring the beans and 8 cups of water to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and let simmer, covered, stirring occasionally. Make sure there is enough water covering the beans at all time; add more boiling water if necessary. Cook for about 1.5 hours, or until the beans are tender and the liquid reduces to a thick consistency.
- Stir in rock sugar and allow to dissolve completely. Stir in tapioca pearls and coconut milk before serving. Serve hot or chilled.
Notes
*Once the beans are cooked and the soup has thickened up, do not add more water. Add the coconut milk (which thins out the soup) and then add more water if necessary.
*If you can't find rock sugar, you can substitute with white granulated sugar or light brown sugar.
*Leftovers can be turned into popsicles!
