When looking up how to make these, I learned that it’s the food that Doraemon, the squat blue anime cat, is always trying to eat. I used to ask my mom to buy these all of the time. Both recipes from justonecookbook.com (dorayaki, anko).
They’re so prototypically Japanese (fluffy castella plus red bean!) and self-contained portable snacks. I made them as party favors for the doctors who are helping on my research project.
Dorayaki
- Whisk 4 eggs, 2/3 (140g) cup sugar, ~1.5 tbsp honey until fluffy.
- Sift in 1.25 (160g) cup AP flour, 1 tsp baking powder. Rest for 15 minutes covered in refrigerator.
- Stir in 1/4 cup milk. (increased to make less viscous)
- In lightly oiled non-stick pans on low heat, pour 3 tbsp batter to make 3” pancakes. Flip when it starts to bubble, about 2 minutes. Remove when sides aren’t runny, about 1 minute.
- Make sandwiches with ~2 tbsp chunky red bean paste (anko), making middle thicker.
- Batter makes 12-14 pancakes and needs ~16 oz (1 can) of anko. While working, adjust pan so pancake is straight above the fire; periodically wipe spatula with oil; cover done pancakes with damp towel. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 1-7 days.
Anko
- Soak 1 cup adzuki beans overnight (8-12 hours).
- Drain. In big pot, add water to 1-2 inches above beans. Bring to boil, then take off heat and let sit covered for 5 minutes.
- Drain. Add water to just above beans. Simmer for 1+ hour, periodically skimming and replacing evaporated water. Done when beans burst easily when squeezed.
- Drain. On medium heat, add 3/4 cup sugar in 3 batches while stirring/mashing. 5 minutes before end, add 1/4 tsp salt. About 20-30 minutes total. Add water to reach desired consistency.
- Let cool in container.