Chinese Sweet Red Bean Soup

Total Time: 26 hrs 30 mins Preparation Time: 24 hrs Cook Time: 2 hrs 30 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 1/3-1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup red beans (soaked in cold water overnight)
• 1/3 cup dried lotus seeds (at asian grocery stores or health food stores, soaked in cold water overnight)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1/4 cup pearl tapioca (optional)
• 1/4 cup glutten rice balls (can be found at asian grocery stores) (optional)
• 7 cups water

Recipe

• 1 combine water and beans in a large pot, bring to a boil.
• 2 reduce heat to simmer, cook uncovered till beans are tender (about 2 hours?).
• 3 add lotus seed and sugar (plus tapioca and rice balls if you choose to), cook until soup thickens a little and lotus seeds are tender, but not mushy (20 minutes).
• 4 add vanilla, serve hot for a perfect winter dessert, or you can let the soup cool down, then add ice.
• 5 with this basic recipe, you can take out all the beans, increase the amount of lotus seeds and have a lotus seeds sweet soup instead.