Ohagi (Japanese Sweet Rice with Adzuki Paste)

Rinse rice, drain and leave in the strainer for 30 minutes or more. Allowing the rice to drain will help improve the texture of the rice for this recipe.

Make the adzuki paste. Rinse adzuki beans thoroughly and place in a sauce pan with 2 cups of water (not included in the ingredients list). Bring to boil over medium heat then drain water.

Add 2 cups of fresh water to the sauce pan with adzuki beans. Cook over medium low heat for an additional 1 hour and 30 minutes or until the beans become soft enough to break by pressing with your fingertips. Skim the surface scum when it appears. Keep the beans submerged in water while cooking and add water if necessary.

Place rice in the inner cooking pan. Add water to the corresponding water level for "SWEET RICE" and cook the rice using the "SWEET RICE" setting.

When beans are tender, add half amount of sugar to the pan, mix with wooden spatula and cook for 5 minutes. Add remaining half of sugar and keep cooking until a mashed potato like consistency - about 10 minutes. Mix in salt, turn off the heat and set aside.

When rice completes cooking, transfer cooked rice to a large bowl, sprinkle salt over them and mash with potato masher. Mash halfway through to preserve the rice texture.

Place warm mashed rice on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spread and divide the rice into 10 pieces with a wet spatula.

Make rice balls for matcha ohagi. Place a piece of plastic wrap over a small bowl and place one piece of cooked rice and make a dimple in the center with a wet spoon. Place about 1 tablespoon of the adzuki paste in the middle as filling.

Hold the rice over the plastic wrap and make an oval shaped rice ball by squeezing your hands together lightly. Make 5 total.

Make rice balls for red bean ohagi. With the rest of the rice, make 5 oval shaped balls without any filling. Divide the remaining adzuki paste into 5. Place a piece of plastic wrap over a small bowl, place one of the adzuki paste chunk and make a dimple in the center.

Place the rice ball from step 10 in the center, hold the adzuki paste over the plastic wrap and make a flat oval shape by squeezing your hands together lightly, covering the rice with the adzuki paste. Make a total of 5. Place on serving plate(s).

Mix matcha and powdered sugar in a small bowl and sprinkle over matcha ohagi rice balls from step 8 with a tea strainer.