Sweet Azuki & Barley Soup

You can use canned sweet Azuki paste. Just loosen it with Water. However, cooking Azuki Beans from scratch is easy.

Place Azuki Beans in a saucepan and cover them with a plenty of water, and cook until the beans are swollen and plump. Darin the water. *Soaking the beans in water overnight saves cooking time.

Return the beans back into the saucepan, cover with plenty of water again, and cook until the beans are tender.

Remove excess water OR add extra water to make the water level just enough to cover the beans. Add Sugar, Salt and Cooked Barley, and simmer, stirring occasionally, for several minutes.

*Note: The amount of Sugar is up to your preference. I like it quite sweet.