Mizu-Yôkan

Ingredient	1 Batch	1 Batch
agar powder	1½ tsp.	4g
water	½ + ⅓ cup	200 ml
sugar	4 Tbsp.	50g
salt	pinch	pinch
koshian	7 oz.	200g

Yōkan is a simple Japanese dessert made from adzuki beans. Usually formed in bricks and served as chilled slices, the flavor and texture are not unlike a dried fruit paste.

Preparation

Prepare a batch of koshian. If you don’t intend to use the remaining anko soon, you can freeze it.

Directions

Prepare agar.
Add the agar powder to room-temperature water in a small pan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly to keep the powder from settling to the bottom. Reduce heat and simmer for about 2 minutes, continuing to stir, until powder has blended completely.
Mix ingredients.
Add sugar to the pan and continue stirring. Once sugar has dissolved completely and it has returned to a boil, add koshian and salt. Stir until it is completely mixed and returns to a boil. Remove from heat.
Cool, mold, and chill.
Immerse the bottom of the pan in cold water and stir until the mixture has reached about 50°C (120°F). Rinse out the container you’ll be using for a mold with water to wet the inside, then transfer the mixture into it. Chill in the refrigerator.

Notes

You can use just about anything for a pan depending on the shape you want the finished block of yōkan to be; a cake pan, a plastic container, even individual serving-sized cups.
If you like tsubuan, you can use it instead of koshian; the result won’t be as smooth.