An
あん, 餡
Bean Jam or sweet bean paste
You can’t talk about Japanese sweets without this! Be it An Pan (a bun filled with An), Manjū (a sweet made from flour), Ohagi or Bota Mochi, An (also called Anko) is an indispensable ingredient of Japanese dessert. By the way, there are two kinds of An depending on the preparation process. Tsubu An is a lightly mashed version without completely crushing Tsubu (grains) of beans, while Koshi An is entirely mashed and filtered for more creamy texture. OK. So what’s it made of? Azuki is the most popular ingredient, but white beans, sweet potatoes, chestnuts and even lily bulbs are also used. White bean An is called Shiro An (white An) in comparison with Azuki An (Kuro An or black An). The word An also refers to a thick and runny mixture of starch powder and water, often used in An Kake sauce or soup (Kake: to cover, sprinkle or pour).
An filling (Kuro An) in a rice cake.
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Manjū filled with Shiro An.
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An filling (Kuro An) in a rice cake.
Manjū filled with Shiro An.
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