These are small, reddish-brown beans, rounded in shape with a point at one end. They have a strong, nutty, sweet flavour. Adzuki beans are easy to digest, when cooked properly, and although they have a distinctive flavor, they taste less “beany” than many other beans. The preferred cooking method is to soak them in cold water for two to three hours and then simmer them on top of the stove for about an hour and a half.
They also cook well in a crockpot or pressure cooker. In Japanese cooking, they are used in desserts in the form of a sweetened paste called an, koshi-an, or tsubushi-an. When adzukis are prepared with rice, the rice takes on a beautiful reddish-purple tint from the beans.
Adzuki beans are a good source of magnesium, proassium, iron, zinc, copper and vitamin B3. As a high potassioum, low sodium food, they may also help reduce blood pressure, and they are useful when trying to loose weight. Adzuki beans offer a high quality protein which provides a healthy alternative to meat or other aniimal protein.
To aid digestion, add a 5cm strip of Kombu to the pot when boiling adzuki beans. This helps to break down the beans and makes the skins less tough. When purchasing tinned beans, look for brands that have been cooked with kombu (kelp), such as Eden brand beans.