Homemade Chinese Red Bean Paste

This homemade Chinese red bean paste (紅豆沙) is smooth, thick and lightly sweet, and so much better if you prefer your red bean paste less sweet. This recipe uses a pressure cooker to cook the red beans much faster, then blends and cooks them down into a smooth paste that you can use for mooncakes, buns, pastries, rice cakes and so many other classic Chinese desserts.

Table of Contents

• Watch How to Make It
• What is Chinese Red Bean Paste?
• Why I Love This Recipe
• Ingredients for This Dish
• How to Make Chinese Red Bean Paste
• How to Make Red Bean Paste Without a Pressure Cooker
• Karen’s Top Tips
• Frequently Asked Questions

Watch How to Make It

What is Chinese Red Bean Paste?

Chinese red bean paste (紅豆沙) is a sweet paste made from red beans, sugar and water. It’s used in a lot of different kinds of Chinese desserts, from mooncakes and steamed buns to sesame balls, tang yuan and pastries.

The texture can vary depending on how it’s made. For this recipe, we want a smooth, thick paste that’s easy to shape and use as a filling.

I actually prefer making red bean paste at home because I find a lot of the store-bought versions too sweet for my liking. When you make it yourself, you can control exactly how much sugar goes in, and I love how fresh it tastes.

This recipe uses a pressure cooker (Instant Pot), which makes the whole process much faster because the red beans cook until soft in a fraction of the time compared to cooking them on the stove. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, don’t worry! Scroll down to the “How to Make Red Bean Paste Without a Pressure Cooker” section for the stovetop method.

The basic process is pretty simple: cook the red beans until they’re really soft, blend them until smooth, add sugar and then cook the mixture down until it becomes a thick, sticky paste. It does take a little patience, especially when you’re cooking out all that water, but you can make a batch and keep it in the fridge to use for different Chinese desserts throughout the week.

Ingredients for This Dish

You’ll find the full ingredients list and quantities in the recipe card below, but let’s run through a few key ingredients.

Red beans

Make sure you’re using adzuki beans, which are small, dark red, and slightly oval. Make sure not to be confused with kidney beans! They are a totally different bean and won’t break down the same way when cooked!

Adzuki beans have a naturally mild, slightly nutty sweetness, which is exactly why they’re the base for so many Chinese desserts, from red bean paste to red bean soup and red bean ice.

You can very easily find adzuki beans in Asian supermarkets, or online on Amazon.

Dried tangerine peel

Dried tangerine peel (陳皮, chan pei) is a staple in Cantonese cooking, often simmered into soups, teas and desserts for its warm, slightly bitter citrus aroma.

You’ll find it dried and packaged whole at most Asian grocery stores. This is not a must for this recipe, but don’t skip it if you can find it! It’s a small ingredient that brings a lot of flavour.

How to Make Chinese Red Bean Paste

1) Cook the red beans

Rinse the red beans, then add them to a pressure cooker with 300ml water and the dried tangerine peel.

Pressure cook for 30 minutes, then release the pressure. The beans should be very soft, almost like mashed potatoes, and easily crush when pressed.

If there is excess water, strain the beans and let them cool slightly.

2) Blend until smooth

Add the cooked red beans to a food processor with about 2 tbsp water. Blend until completely smooth.

3) Cook down the paste

Heat a non-stick pan over medium-high heat and add the oil, blended red beans, brown sugar and salt.

Cook for 10–15 minutes, stirring continuously, until most of the liquid has evaporated and the mixture starts to thicken.

Lower the heat to medium and continue cooking for another 5–10 minutes, stirring constantly, until you have a thick paste that no longer sticks to your spatula.

4) Cool and store

Transfer the red bean paste to an airtight container and let it cool completely before refrigerating.

It can be stored in the fridge for up to 1 week.

How to Make Chinese Red Bean Paste Without a Pressure Cooker

Don’t have a pressure cooker? No worries! You can cook the red beans on the stovetop instead, it’ll just take quite a bit longer.

You’ll first have to soak the beans overnight as red beans are very firm.

Once soaked, add the beans to a large pot with enough water to cover them by a few centimetres, along with the dried tangerine peel. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer and cook with the lid slightly ajar for 2–3 hours, or until the beans are very soft and easily mash between your fingers. Add more water if needed to keep the beans covered.

Once the beans are soft, follow the rest of the recipe from Step 2 onwards.

More Asian Desserts You’ll Love!

• Air Fryer Crispy Black Sesame Balls
• Chinese Ginger Milk Pudding
• Black Sesame Soup

Frequently Asked Questions

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