Sekihan (赤飯) — Japanese Red Bean Celebration Rice

• 450 gshort-grain glutinous rice (also sold as sweet rice or mochigome)
• 80 gdried azuki beans
• 1500 mlwater (500 ml for blanching and 1000 ml for simmering)
• 500 mlcooled azuki cooking liquid (reserved from simmering the beans)
• 1 tspfine sea salt (0.25 tsp for the rice, 0.75 tsp for the sesame salt)
• 2 tbspblack sesame seeds

Instructions

1. 1

   Rinse the azuki beans in a fine-mesh sieve and place them in a saucepan with 500 ml water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, boil for 5 minutes, then drain and discard this first cooking water to soften any harsh bean flavor.

2. 2

   Return the drained beans to the saucepan with 1000 ml fresh water. Simmer gently for 25 to 30 minutes, until the beans are tender enough to bite but still intact, then drain them over a bowl and reserve the red cooking liquid.

3. 3

   Spread the cooked beans on a plate so they cool quickly, and let the cooking liquid cool to room temperature. Measure 500 ml of the cooled liquid for soaking the rice, using the deepest red portion from the bowl for the best color.

4. 4

   Rinse the glutinous rice in several changes of cold water until the water runs mostly clear. Drain well, transfer the rice to a bowl, cover it with the 500 ml cooled azuki cooking liquid, and soak for 3 hours to hydrate the grains and tint them evenly.

5. 5

   Drain the soaked rice through a sieve set over a bowl, reserving the soaking liquid. Mix the drained rice with the cooked azuki beans and 0.25 tsp fine sea salt, folding gently so the beans stay whole.

6. 6

   Line a steamer basket with a damp cotton cloth or a sheet of perforated parchment paper. Spread the rice and bean mixture in an even layer, set it over vigorously simmering water, cover tightly, and steam for 20 minutes.

7. 7

   Open the steamer carefully and sprinkle 120 ml of the reserved soaking liquid evenly over the rice. Turn the rice gently with a wet rice paddle, cover again, and steam for another 15 minutes.

8. 8

   Sprinkle another 120 ml reserved soaking liquid over the rice and turn it once more. Cover and steam for 15 to 20 minutes, until the grains are glossy, chewy, and fully tender with no chalky center.

9. 9

   While the rice finishes steaming, toast the black sesame seeds in a dry skillet over medium-low heat for 2 to 3 minutes, shaking the pan often. Cool them briefly, then mix with 0.75 tsp fine sea salt to make the sesame salt garnish.

10. 10

    Transfer the sekihan to a serving bowl or individual rice bowls while hot. Sprinkle with the sesame salt just before serving so the aroma stays fresh and the garnish remains pleasantly crisp.