Red Bean Paste 紅豆沙餡

This is my first red bean paste 高力豆沙 which known as 'hong dou sha' or 'gao li dou sha' in mandarin, which made by red bean /azuki bean.It is my healthy red bean paste cause it is less sweet and contains no lard,butter or magerine but with very little salad oil. Japanese eat it with 2 slices hot cake---Dorayaki,chinese likes to bake biscuits with it or fill it with chinese buns-pau.

Source: Eupho Cafe


Ingredients:
450g red beans
225g sugar
50g maltose/honey
pinch of salt
40g salad oil
Some pandan leaves(screwpine leaves) or some drops of vanilla essence


Preparation:
1. Wash red beans carefully,soak in clear water overnight.
2. Drain red beans,put in a sauce pan.Boil it with knotted pandan leaves in medium heat till red bean turn to very soft.Turn off heat.
3. Remove pandan leaves.Put the soft cooked red beans with its liquids into blender and blend it till smooth.
4. Put the red bean paste into sauce pan again to cook over low heat.Add in sugar,maltose,salt and cook it over medium-low heat and keep stiring all the time till dry.You can add vanilla essence if you don't cooked it with pandan leaves.
5. Add in oil when it is done,mix it till smooth paste.

Notes:
1. There are 2 version---a.dry version which suitable for baking biscuit.
b.wet version which suitable for pau,buns,dorayaki,glutinous rice ball etc.
2. Don't forget stiring when you cook it,boil it to prevent sticking to pan.
3. Adding maltose or honey or maple syrup is optinal,can omit it.