Winter Solstice Red Bean Porridge (동지 팥죽)
Why this food?
Korea's winter solstice porridge — thick, sweet red bean soup with chewy rice dumplings. Made on the longest night of the year to ward off evil and welcome the returning sun. Earthy, warming, and ancient.
🇰🇷 K-Culture Tip
동지 팥죽 is one of Korea's most ancient food traditions — records of eating red bean porridge on the winter solstice date back over 1,600 years. The red color of the beans was believed to ward off evil spirits and disease, which is why it was eaten on the year's darkest night. Sharing it with neighbors on 동지 was a community ritual — the porridge was ladled over doorways and thresholds as protection.
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Substitute Ingredients
All available at Walmart
| Original | Substitute |
|---|---|
Red beans (adzuki) 팥 | Canned red kidney beans or adzuki beans Bush's Canned beans save 2 hours of soaking/cooking Shop at Walmart |
Glutinous rice flour (for dumplings) 찹쌀가루 | Mochiko sweet rice flour Koda Farms For the small rice dumplings that float in the porridge Shop at Walmart |
Sugar 설탕 | Granulated white sugar C&H Adjust to taste — the sweetness should be gentle, not dessert-level Shop at Walmart |
🛒 Can't find it at Walmart? Try a Korean grocery store
Your Shopping List
Walmart edition
- 1 can (15 oz) Canned red kidney beans or adzuki beans
- 1/2 cup Mochiko sweet rice flour
- 3 tablespoons Granulated white sugar
Instructions
- 1
Drain and rinse 1 can (15 oz) red kidney beans or adzuki beans
- 2
Mash half the beans, leave half whole
- 3
Combine beans with 3 cups water in a pot, bring to gentle simmer
- 4
Mix 1/2 cup mochiko with 3 tbsp warm water to form a soft dough, roll into marble-sized balls (these are the rice dumplings)
- 5
Add dough balls to the simmering soup — they float when cooked through (5-7 minutes)
- 6
Sweeten with 3 tbsp sugar + pinch of salt — adjust to taste
- 7
Serve warm in bowls with a sprinkle of salt on top (traditional finishing touch)
