Anmitsu (Japanese Agar Jelly Red Bean Fruit Dessert)
Quick answer
- Total time
- 30 min
- Level
- Easy
- Servings
- 2 servings
- Ingredients
- 7
About this dish
Anmitsu is a Japanese dessert with roots in the Meiji era, developed from mitsumame - a simpler preparation of agar cubes and boiled peas - when sweet azuki bean paste was added to create a more fully composed treat.
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The structural foundation is kanten jelly: agar-agar dissolved in water, set into a firm translucent block, and cut into cubes that have a clean, rigid snap distinct from the soft wobble of gelatin. Around the jelly, the bowl holds seasonal fruits - mandarin segments, peach slices, cherries - alongside a mound of tsubuan, which is coarsely mashed sweet red beans that retain some grain and texture, and small balls of shiratama mochi whose sticky, glutinous chew contrasts with everything else in the bowl. A small ceramic pitcher of kuromitsu - dark sugar syrup made from Okinawan black sugar - arrives separately and is poured over at the table, its molasses-deep sweetness acting as a unifying sauce across the disparate elements. No single spoonful of this dessert tastes the same as the last: the ratio of crisp jelly, soft fruit, sticky mochi, and grainy bean paste shifts with every bite.
Ingredients
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Instructions
Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.
- 1Season
Put 350ml water, 5g agar powder, and 25g sugar in a small saucepan before heating.
Stir until the powder is evenly dispersed, scraping the bottom so no dry agar settles and forms lumps.
- 2Control
Set the pan over medium heat and stir constantly until the mixture bubbles.
Lower the heat once it boils, then simmer for 2 minutes until the liquid looks clear and no sandy powder remains.
- 3Prep
Lightly wet a square mold, then pour in the hot agar mixture.
Let the steam fade at room temperature before refrigerating for at least 1 hour, so it sets evenly without a watery surface.
- 4Prep
Unmold the jelly only when a knife cuts it cleanly with firm edges.
Cut it into 1.5cm cubes, then prepare 150g mixed fruits and 6 mochi pieces in bite-size portions for balanced spoonfuls.
- 5Step
Place the jelly cubes in the center of a chilled serving bowl.
Arrange the fruit and mochi around them, then add 120g sweet red bean paste in a generous mound without smearing it into the jelly.
- 6Finish
Drizzle 3 tablespoons brown sugar syrup over everything just before serving.
Serve at once while the jelly is still firm and cold, adding a little extra syrup only after tasting for sweetness.
Practical Cooking Checks
The cues that matter most while cooking.
- Key technique
- Firm agar cubes, sweet red bean paste, mochi, and fresh fruit come together in a bowl for Anmitsu.
- Finish cue
- Drizzle 3 tablespoons brown sugar syrup over everything just before serving.
- Storage and reheating
- Let the steam fade at room temperature before refrigerating for at least 1 hour, so it sets evenly without a watery surface.
Cooking decision evidence
Calculated Charim data and applicable official cooking and food safety guidance.
This recipe
30min, 7 ingredients
Category median
45min, 6 ingredients
Based on 144 recipes
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