Minazuki (水無月, Kyoto June Sweet)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Mushiki steamer, or a large pot fitted with a rack
• •Nagashi-kan mold, or a 6-inch square heatproof pan lined with parchment
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Kitchen cloth for wrapping the steamer lid

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the steamer

   Line a small nagashi-kan mold, or a 6-inch square heatproof pan, with parchment, leaving two tabs so you can lift the sweet out cleanly. Bring about 2 inches of water to a steady simmer in a mushiki or a pot fitted with a rack. If using a metal lid, wrap it in a kitchen cloth and tie the ends on top, away from the burner. The cloth catches condensation before it falls onto the batter, because those drops leave pale craters in a sweet that has nowhere to hide.

2. 2

   Make the batter

   Whisk the hakurikiko, jōshinko, kuzu starch, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Add the water little by little, whisking until smooth, then strain the batter through a fine sieve into a pitcher or bowl. Let it rest for 10 minutes. The rest gives the rice flour time to drink, and the straining removes the little dry knots that would show up as chalky spots in the finished uirō.

   The batter should look thin, almost like milk with weight to it. Don't thicken it. The gentle chew comes from steaming the starches, not from making a stiff batter.
3. 3

   Steam the base

   Stir the batter once, then measure out 90ml, about 6 tablespoons, and keep it aside for the top. Pour the rest into the lined mold. Set the mold level in the steamer, cover, and steam over medium heat for 18 to 20 minutes, until the surface has turned opaque and set enough to hold a bean without swallowing it. This first set is the support. Rush the beans in too early and they disappear into the dough.

4. 4

   Set the azuki

   Scatter the blotted azuki beans evenly over the hot base in a single layer. Stir the reserved batter, because the flour settles while it waits, then pour it thinly over and between the beans. Return the mold to the steamer and cook for 10 to 12 minutes more, until the top layer is set and a toothpick pushed into the pale part comes out without milky batter. The second pour is the quiet trick: it fastens the beans to the slab so the cut stays clean.

5. 5

   Cool and cut

   Lift the mold from the steamer and let the Minazuki cool completely in the pan. If the kitchen is hot, chill it for 30 minutes after it reaches room temperature. Loosen the edges, lift it out by the parchment tabs, and cut with a wet knife, wiping the blade between cuts. First make squares, then cut each square diagonally into triangles. Warm uirō tears and drags the beans with it, so the cooling is not waiting around. It is part of the knife work.

6. 6

   Serve simply

   Serve the triangles the day they are made, at room temperature or lightly chilled. The texture should be tender and lightly chewy, never rubbery, with the azuki sitting proud on the surface. Set out only a few pieces at once, with room around them. A crowded plate makes this small June sweet look nervous, and it has no reason to be.

Chef Tips

• •Use whole sweetened azuki beans, not anko paste. Nure amanattō or kanoko-mame give you the glossy red islands this sweet needs. Paste changes the dish into something else, and the top turns muddy.
• •Japanese hakurikiko gives the uirō a soft bite. Cake flour is the closest easy stand-in. All-purpose flour works in the same weight, but it will be a shade firmer.
• •Keep the steamer at a steady simmer, not a hard boil. Rough heat toughens the edges before the center catches up, and it can jostle the mold enough to disturb the clean layers.
• •Save the topping batter. It feels like a small instruction, but it is the first secret here. That last thin pour is what makes Minazuki neat enough to cut.
• •This is a June 30 sweet. You can make it outside Kyoto and outside June, of course, but the date is part of its shun. Sometimes the season is the calendar itself.

Advance Preparation

• •The sweetened azuki beans can be drained and blotted a few hours ahead. Keep them covered so the surfaces do not dry out.
• •The batter is best mixed just before steaming. If it rests longer than 10 minutes, whisk it again before pouring because the rice flour settles quickly.
• •Minazuki can be made the morning of June 30. Cool it completely, wrap it, refrigerate in hot weather, and let it stand 15 minutes before serving so the uirō softens.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 70g)