Red bean and longan sweet soup (红豆桂圆糖水)
hong dou gui yuan tang shui (红豆桂圆糖水)
A warming confinement dessert: adzuki red beans simmered soft with dried longan and red dates into a sweet, blood-nourishing, gently restorative soup.
When the confinement table wants something sweet and settling, a bowl of red bean soup is often the answer. Adzuki beans simmered soft with dried longan and red dates make a warm, honeyed, gently nourishing dessert that asks for almost no sugar.
Why this dessert
The tradition ties red beans to nourishing blood and clearing damp, both in keeping with the month, and pairs them here with two of the confinement kitchen’s warming sweeteners. Dried longan brings a honeyed depth and is valued for settling the spirit, while red dates add their familiar blood-nourishing sweetness. Together they make a soothing counterpoint to the savoury tonics.
Soft beans, little sugar
The only patience it asks is in cooking the beans down soft, which a soak or a pressure cooker makes quick. Because the longan and dates already sweeten it, only a little rock sugar is needed, if any. Serve it warm, as the tradition prefers, and see the other recipes for the savoury side of the kitchen and the framework behind these ingredients.
The recipe
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 1 hr 30 min
- Total
- 1 hr 40 min
- Serves
- 4 bowls
Why this ingredient
Adzuki red beans (红豆)
Small red adzuki beans are a staple of the sweet soup pot, and the tradition associates them with nourishing blood and clearing damp, both of which sit well with the aims of the confinement month. Cooked soft, they give the soup a gentle, creamy body.
Why this ingredient
Dried longan (桂圆)
Dried longan is valued in the tradition as a warming, blood-nourishing fruit that also calms the spirit, which is why it turns up in the settling, restorative sweet soups. Its honeyed depth means the soup needs little added sugar.
Ingredients
- 200 g adzuki red beans (hong dou), soaked a few hours or overnight The small red beans, not kidney beans. Soaking shortens the cook.
- 3 tablespoons dried longan For a warm, honeyed depth and natural sweetness.
- 6 red dates (jujubes), pitted Blood-nourishing and lightly sweet.
- Rock sugar to taste Add sparingly; the dried fruit sweetens it already.
- 1.8 litres water Enough to keep the beans soupy as they cook down.
- A small piece of dried tangerine peel (optional) Adds fragrance and, in the tradition, helps digestion.
Method
- 1 Soak the red beans for a few hours or overnight, then drain.
- 2 Put the beans, longan, red dates, tangerine peel if using, and water in a large pot.
- 3 Bring to the boil, then lower to a simmer and cook, partly covered, for about 1 to 1.5 hours, until the beans are soft and beginning to break down.
- 4 Sweeten with a little rock sugar to taste, simmer a few minutes more, and serve warm.
Notes and substitutions
- A pressure cooker or instant pot cooks the beans in a fraction of the time.
- For a thicker, creamier soup, mash some of the beans against the side of the pot.
- It keeps for two to three days; reheat gently and eat warm.
Before you cook this
- Keep the sugar modest, particularly if you are watching blood sugar.
Sources
- The Zuo Yuezi Guide
- Zuo Yuezi: An American Mother's Guide to Chinese Postpartum Recovery (Guang Ming Whitley)
Common questions
Which red beans do I use?
Small adzuki red beans (hong dou), not the large red kidney beans. They cook down soft and slightly creamy and are the ones the tradition reaches for. A short soak, ideally a few hours or overnight, shortens the cooking.
Can I make it without much sugar?
Yes, easily. The dried longan and red dates bring a natural honeyed sweetness, so many families add only a little rock sugar or none at all. Keep it modest, especially if you are managing blood sugar.
Is it warming enough for confinement?
Served warm, yes. Red beans, longan and red dates are all on the warming, nourishing side, which suits the month, and eating it warm rather than chilled keeps it in the confinement spirit.