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Monaka (最中, rice wafers with azuki bean paste)
Rice wafers with sweet bean paste
Crisp rice-flour wafer shells sandwiched with chunky sweet azuki
Monaka is sold in wagashi shops all over Japan, from Tokyo's old districts to temple towns, often pressed into the shape of a flower, a fish or a local landmark. It is a year-round tea sweet and a favourite souvenir. Two crisp, paper-light wafers made of glutinous rice flour and water are filled with tsubuan, a chunky azuki paste cooked with sugar. The wafer is dry and toasty, the filling dense, sweet and earthy, and the pleasure is in eating it before the shell softens. Serve with matcha or sencha. Making the shells needs a special iron mould, so we use bought monaka shells; they are normally just rice flour and water, but check the pack to be sure they are eggless. The bean paste is naturally egg-free, set by the azuki's own starch and the sugar. Chef's tip: the common mistake is filling them in advance; sandwich them just before serving, or the wafers go limp.
- Total time
- 120 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the tsubuan
- 7 oz dried azuki beans
- 6 ¼ cups waterin total, for boiling
- 6 ½ oz sugar
- 1 pinch salt
To assemble
- 24 monaka wafer shells12 pairs, bought; rice flour and water only, check the pack says eggless
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Rinse 7 oz dried azuki beans and put in a pan with 600 ml of the 6 ¼ cups water. Bring to the boil for 3 minutes, then drain and discard the water; this takes away bitterness.
5 minStep 2: Return the beans to the pan with the remaining water. Simmer gently, partly covered, for 60–75 minutes until a bean crushes easily between thumb and finger, topping up with water so they stay just covered.
70 minStep 4: Cook over a medium-low heat, stirring and scraping the base, for 15–20 minutes, until the paste is thick and a spoon dragged across the pan leaves a trail that stays open. It firms more as it cools.
18 minStep 5: Spread the paste on a tray, cover and cool completely. It keeps 5 days in the fridge.
Step 6: Just before serving, fill one half of each pair of 24 monaka wafer shells generously with the paste and press the second half on top. Eat within an hour.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 150 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbs
- 33 g
- Fat
- 0 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does monaka (最中, rice wafers with azuki bean paste) take?
- About 120 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 105 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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