Doubanjiang | Broad Bean Paste

Method9 steps

1. 1

   Step 1: Firstly soak the beans overnight with enough water and then drain.Then transfer the beans to a steamer and steam the board beans for 20-45 minutes based on the hight of the layer until just well cooked (when you break it in halves in hand, there is no raw part inside, but the beans should not be too fragile to smash easily). You can taste the beans. They should be slightly stiff but well cooked already.

   Steam fava beans · 45 minUses 150 g dried board beans (peeled) · Water as needed for soaking and steaming broad beans

2. 2

   Step 2: Spread the steamed beans out and cool completely. Separately mix the 0.3 g food-grade koji mold spores with 3 g flour.

   Uses Steamed broad beans · 0.3 g food-grade koji mold spores (Aspergillus oryzae) · 3 g flour for mixing with koji starter

3. 3

   Step 3: Sprinkle the koji-spore/flour mixture over the cooled beans and gently massage to distribute it over every bean.

   Uses Completely cooled cooked broad beans · Koji-spore and flour mixture

4. 4

   Step 4: Spread the inoculated beans in a single layer on a rack with airflow underneath. Cover with a clean cloth dampened with cooled boiled water, keeping the cloth from touching the beans. Keep in shade at 30–36°C and 70–80%humidity for 24–48 hours, until the white koji growth turns yellow. Then dry in sunshine for 1 day, as the source article specifies.

   Grow koji 24–48 hours, then sun-dry 1 day · 4320 minUses Koji-inoculated broad beans · Cooled boiled water to dampen clean covering cloth

5. 5

   Step 5: Gently rinse the dried fermented beans under running water and drain. Mix with 30 ml food-grade baijiu or other drinking liquor,250 ml cooled boiled water and 50 g salt. Cover and ferment 30–40 hours.

   Covered bean fermentation 30–40 hours · 2400 minUses Sun-dried koji-fermented broad beans · 30 ml Chinese baijiu or other food-grade drinking liquor · 250 ml cooled boiled water · 50 g salt for beans

6. 6

   Step 6: Wash the pepper and air dry for 5-10 hours. And then cut into small pieces (I chop ginger (3 tbsp.) along with peppers). Add around 40g salt and set aside for 1 hour before mixing with the beans.

   Air-dry chilies 5–10 hours, then salt 1 hour · 660 minUses 800–1000 g fresh red chili peppers · 3 tbsp. minced ginger (optional) · 40 g salt for fresh peppers

7. 7

   Step 7: Lift the salted chopped chilies and optional ginger out of their released liquid and mix them with the fermented beans. Discard the excess chili liquid. Mix in the whole spices,50 ml cooking oil and optional 2 tablespoons fermented sticky rice. Transfer to the clean fermentation jar.

   Uses Brined fermented broad beans · Lift chilies out of their released liquid; discard that liquid · 50 ml cooking oil mixed into paste · 2 tbsp. fermented sticky rice · 2 star anises · 3-4 bay leaves · 1 tablespoon red Sichuan peppercorn · 1 small piece of Chinese cinnamon

8. 8

   Step 8: This is optional! In the first 7 days, place in warm place (under sunshine ) and uncover by day and half covered by night.

   Optional warm fermentation 7 days · 10080 minUses Mixed doubanjiang in fermentation jar

9. 9

   Step 9: Add oil to cover the doubanjiang (3-4 cm higher), cover the lid and place in warm place. Them we pass everything to time. Let it ferments for at least 3 months before enjoying.

   Mature at least 3 calendar monthsUses Doubanjiang ready for covered maturation · Additional cooking oil to cover finished paste by 3–4 cm (quantity unspecified)