How to Make a Simple Snack at Home: An-Butter Toast

Anyone who loves bread has probably heard the term “bread pilgrimage” at least once. A bread pilgrimage means visiting famous bakeries to sample their specialties, and tours of bakeries known for simple yet appetizing “an-butter” treats have recently become especially popular. Sampling bread made with each bakery’s distinctive recipe is worthwhile, but if that is not practical, an-butter bread is also easy to make at home. As the combination can readily be found at neighborhood bakeries, let’s explore a recipe that can bring it to our own tables.

An-butter is a compound name combining sweet red bean paste, known as “anko” in Japanese, with butter, and refers to the flavor created by pairing the two. Its rich, sweet and slightly salty taste has made it a popular combination. It is easy to make with just sweet red bean paste and butter, so it is well worth trying as a brunch dish.

Making An-Butter

Making an-butter is simpler than you might think. Just buy prepared sweet red bean paste and place butter on top. If you want to make the paste yourself at home, however, try the following method. You will need 2 cups of red beans, 1 cup of sugar, 1 L of water and 1 tablespoon of salt. First, discard any poor-quality beans and wash the rest thoroughly under running water. The beans then need to be boiled, but because cooking them without soaking takes a long time, it is best to soak them the day before. Put the beans in water and boil them well. Once they are fully cooked, discard the cooking water and rinse the beans under running water. Add 1 L of fresh water and boil them once more. Reusing the water from the first boil may produce an astringent taste, so be sure to discard it. Thoroughly mash the cooked beans with a mashing tool. Add 1 cup of sugar and 1 tablespoon of salt to the mashed beans. Finally, thinly slice the butter, layer it with the homemade red bean paste, and place the layers between slices of bread.

There are many ways to enjoy an-butter. It can be added to coconut-flavored cookies or served with ordinary white bread or croissants. These preparations are commonly found at bakeries, but for an even simpler an-butter brunch at home, try making an-butter toast. You will need 1 slice of white bread, sweet red bean paste and butter. First, toast the bread in a toaster, then spoon sweet red bean paste or red bean spread on top and spread it evenly. Finish by placing thin slices of butter over the paste. It pairs well with an Americano or matcha latte.

As an-butter has grown more famous, increasing numbers of people have been making bread pilgrimages to bakeries known for it. Bread lovers tend to be fairly consistent in the places they recommend. Among the most famous is Kim Rok-hun Bakery near Sinsa Station in Seoul. The bakery became known for an-butter, and its popular an-butter bread features the filling tucked inside ciabatta. The exceptionally crisp an-butter ciabatta is even better with milk. Butter Bakery is located in Yeonnam-dong, where whole-wheat campagne and an-cheese are popular menu items. If plain butter feels too rich, try an-cheese, which combines salty cheese with sweet red bean paste. Other famous an-butter destinations include Sim Se-jeong Bakery near Sindang Station and Follow the Bread Road Bakery in Yeonnam-dong.

[Fam Times = Reporter Kim Ji-su]