Rich Patjuk (Red Bean Porridge) with Rice Dumplings
A traditional grain porridge made with freshly boiled and blended red beans, soft glutinous rice porridge, and chewy glutinous rice dumplings.
Translated from Korean by AI and not yet checked by a native speaker. Amounts and numbers are taken directly from the original recipe. Read the Korean original →
Boil and blend red beans smoothly, then stir them into freshly cooked glutinous rice porridge for an easy preparation that does not scorch. The chewy glutinous rice dumplings are boiled separately so they keep their great texture without becoming mushy. Enjoy this hearty dish for the winter solstice (Dongji), as a satisfying meal, or make simple sweet snacks with the prepared red bean puree.
- Servings
- 5–6 servings
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spiciness
- Not spicy
Ingredients
Ingredients
- Red beans2 cups
- Glutinous rice1 cup
- Salt
- Sugar
Rice dumplings
- Glutinous rice flour2 cups
- Salt1 tsp
- Hot water12 tbsp (1 cup, approx.)
- Soak the glutinous rice for about 30 minutes so it cooks easily into porridge.
- Adding nuts like chestnuts or walnuts adds a pleasant bite and savory nutty flavor, though you can skip them.
- Boiling plenty of red beans and blending them into a smooth puree makes it very convenient to prepare patjuk, sweet red bean porridge, or red bean noodle soup whenever you want.
Steps
Prepare the ingredients
Prepare 2 cups red beans and 1 cup glutinous rice.
I also prepared some chestnuts to boil and add at the end (you can omit these).
Adding nuts like chestnuts or walnuts to patjuk gives it a nice chew and makes it much more savory and delicious.
Boil the red beans
First, sort through the red beans to remove any spoiled, misshapen beans or foreign matter.
Rinse them in water, pour in enough water to submerge them, and parboil for at least 3 minutes.
The tannin in red beans can cause bitterness and stomach upset, which is why they are boiled briefly like this first.
Some say you don't need to parboil freshly harvested beans, but I have always boiled red beans this way.
Discard the initial boiling water, pour in plenty of fresh water, and simmer for about 1 hour until the red beans are completely soft and mashed.
They need to be thoroughly tender so they blend smoothly, so replenish the water as needed while they simmer.
Blend the red beans
Add the boiled red beans to a blender along with an appropriate amount of water...
Blend until very smooth.
If you enjoy patjuk, sweet red bean porridge, or red bean noodle soup, it is very convenient to boil a generous batch of red beans and store them as this smooth red bean puree.
Soak the glutinous rice
Soak the glutinous rice for about 30 minutes so it cooks easily into porridge.
Make the rice dumplings
Combine 2 cups glutinous rice flour with 1 tsp salt...
We will make hot-water dough (ikbanjuk) for the rice dumplings.
Bring water to a rolling boil, then gradually stir in 12 tbsp hot water into the glutinous rice flour.
It is very hot, so start by stirring with a spoon, and once it cools down a bit, knead it by hand.
Once the dough becomes smooth, roll it into a long cylinder like garaetteok and slice it to make evenly sized rice dumplings.
It will vary depending on size, but I got 64 dumplings.
Roll them two at a time between your palms, and you will have all the rice dumplings shaped in no time even on your own.
You could cook the dumplings directly in the simmering porridge, but boiling them separately and adding them at the end keeps them from getting too soft and makes the whole process much easier.
Drop the rice dumplings into briskly boiling water, and once they float to the surface, scoop them out and chill them in cold water.
Drain the dumplings well. I also sliced and boiled the chestnuts I prepared.
Cook the glutinous rice porridge
Cook the glutinous rice into porridge separately.
Pour plenty of water over the soaked glutinous rice...
I kept adding water as it simmered, using around 4 to 5 cups in total.
Simmer until the rice is tender to the bite and becomes thick.
Finish the red bean porridge
Now that the porridge is cooked, pour in the blended red bean puree and stir thoroughly over low heat so it does not scorch.
For the portion you plan to eat right away, season to taste with an appropriate amount of salt and sugar.
Finally, add the cooked rice dumplings and chestnuts, simmer gently just until warmed through, and finish.
By making the red bean puree separately and adding it to the cooked glutinous rice porridge at the end, you can make patjuk easily without worrying about it scorching.
As long as you have boiled and blended red beans ready, you can whip up patjuk anytime.
Simply simmer the red bean puree with water and thicken it with glutinous rice flour to make super-simple sweet red bean porridge.
Ppunwife's tips
- The tannin in red beans can cause bitterness and stomach upset, so submerge them in water, parboil for at least 3 minutes, and discard the first boiling water.
- Roll the dumpling dough into a long log like garaetteok and slice it to make evenly sized rice dumplings easily.
- Boiling the rice dumplings separately, cooling them in cold water, and adding them at the end keeps them from becoming overly soft and makes cooking much easier.
- Making the red bean puree separately and stirring it into the cooked rice porridge at the end prevents scorching and keeps the process smooth and easy.
FAQ
Why do you have to discard the first batch of water when boiling red beans?
To prevent the bitterness and stomach ache caused by the tannin present in red beans, parboil them for at least 3 minutes and discard that water.
Why boil the rice dumplings separately instead of adding them straight into the porridge?
Cooking them separately in boiling water and rinsing them in cold water before stirring them in at the end prevents them from becoming overly mushy and keeps the porridge neat.
How can I use leftover red bean puree?
Simmer the blended red bean puree with water, then thicken it with glutinous rice flour to easily enjoy simple sweet red bean porridge.
