Sweetened White Bean Paste (백앙금)

Although sweetened white bean paste (백앙금 baek ahng geum) doesn't capture as much attention as red bean paste, it is still a popular, common ingredient in many Korean desserts. It is sold in ready-made packages in Korea, but it's hard to find in the U.S. But where is the fun in that anyway? Besides, I like that I can adjust the level of sweetness of homemade paste, as I often find store-bought pastries and fillings cloyingly sweet for my taste.

White kidney beans, also known as cannellini beans, are used to make white bean paste. You can use other white beans, but I find the white kidney beans, just like its red counterpart, incredibly creamy when cooked without leaving any beany aftertaste. The traditional method requires removing the skin of each bean after it's cooked, but even I can't put that much effort. Once you blend soft beans, you won't notice any fiberous bean skin anyway. It just becomes sweet, creamy, thick, white (okay, off-white) paste that's ready to be used in many delicious Korean and Asian desserts.

It can be used as a filling for desserts that usually require sweet red bean paste. But certain desserts do require white or red bean filling as an ingredient. I'll come back with desserts that specifically call for white bean paste next week. Hopefully you can see why it's worthwhile to make this at home.

Sweetened White Bean Paste
YIeld: About 5 cups

INGREDIENTS:
1 package (16 oz.) White kidney beans (aka cannellini beans)
1/2 teaspoon Salt
5~6 cups Water plus more to soak beans
1 1/2 cup Sugar

DIRECTIONS:
1. Rinse white kidney beans in cold water. Pour cold water, at least double the amount of beans, to completely immerse the beans. Soak until the beans double in size, for a couple of hours to overnight in the refrigerator. I usually do this at night and leave it in the refrigerator to cook the next day.

2. Drain water. Bring soaked beans, 5 cups of water and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in a pot over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and cook beans until completely soft. Skim off foams that come up to the surface. If necessary, add more water.

3. Once the beans become soft, continue to boil while constantly stirring so that the remaining liquid is reduced to the bottom. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

4. Blend soft beans to a smooth consistency in 2~3 batches. The blender top should always be only half-full. Transfer to a clean pot.

5. Heat smooth white bean paste in a clean pot over medium heat. Add 1 1/2 cup of sugar and stir to mix. As the paste is heated and sugar is dissolved, the paste will become loose. Stir with a wooden spoon all around so that steam gets out and the paste thickens again.

6. After enough water has evaporated, you will feel the paste getting thicker again when you stir. Test its doness by cutting through the paste with a wooden spoon. The streak should hold for a few seconds if not longer before it comes back to a thick sauce, almost to a paste consistency. See the picture on top.

7. Turn off heat. Taste and adjust sweetness by adding more sugar. It should be sweeter than your usual preference. If you add more sugar, stir again to completely dissolve in the paste. As it cools, it will thicken slightly. Divide the paste in 1~2 cups and keep in airtight containers. If using within 3 days, keep it refrigerated. Otherwise, keep it frozen. You can defrost the paste by moving it to the refrigerator the night before you need it.

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