Sweet Red Bean Porridge (Danpatjuk) for Winter

Danpatjuk is a thick, sweet porridge of mashed red beans. The app reads it as Fire and Earth with a warm nature, for winter and autumn, and it takes about 50 minutes.

Elements	Fire · Earth
Good in	winter, autumn
Suits	a cold-running constitution
Serves	2 · 50 min

Red for Fire, sweet for Earth

Red beans are the Fire (火) of this bowl. Red is the colour of Fire, and the app says the beans warm the body quietly. A pinch of cinnamon adds a warm smell that the app also counts as Fire.

Glutinous rice flour and sugar make up the Earth (土) side. Sweet is the taste of Earth, and the rice flour gives the porridge its thick, comforting body. As with other Fire and Earth dishes, the tradition reads the pair through the generating cycle, Fire gives birth to Earth (火生土), so the red beans are seen as supporting the sweet, grainy base.

Ingredients of Sweet Red Bean Porridge (Danpatjuk) and the element the app gives each
Ingredient	Amount	Element
Red beans (pat)	1 cup	Fire
Glutinous rice flour	3 tbsp	Earth
Sugar	2 tbsp	Earth
Ground cinnamon	1 pinch	Fire

Season and body type

The app lists it for winter first, then autumn. In Korea red bean porridge is closely tied to the winter solstice, when families traditionally eat patjuk, and red is read in folk custom as a warm, protective colour for the longest night. Its nature is warm, and the tradition says warm dishes suit a cold constitution, someone who tends to feel chilly.

This dish at a glance (haru app data)
Item	Value
Elements	Fire (火) + Earth (土)
Nature	warm
Suits (tradition)	cold constitution
Seasons	winter, autumn
Time	50 minutes
Serves	2

Ingredients

Red beans (pat) 1 cup (Fire)
Red beans are Fire; they warm the body gently.
Glutinous rice flour 3 tbsp (Earth)
Earth that thickens the porridge.
Sugar 2 tbsp (Earth)
Sweet is the taste of Earth.
Ground cinnamon 1 pinch (Fire)
A warm aroma that adds Fire.

How to make it

Boil the red beans once and discard the water, then simmer them in 6 cups of fresh water for 40 minutes until very soft.
Mash the beans, and stir in the glutinous rice flour mixed with a little water.
Cook, stirring, until thick, and flavour with the sugar and cinnamon.

Questions

Why throw away the first water?

The first boil removes some bitterness from the bean skins, so the finished porridge tastes cleaner.

How is it different from dongji patjuk?

The solstice version is usually less sweet and has small rice balls. Danpatjuk is the sweeter, dessert-like style.

Can I use less sugar?

Yes. The app amount is 2 tbsp for 2 servings, and you can adjust to taste.

Solar terms in this season

Liqiu Chushu Bailu Qiufen Cold Dew Frost Descent Start of Winter Minor Snow Major Snow Winter Solstice Minor Cold Major Cold

Winter Solstice (冬至, Dongzhi): Red Bean Porridge DayThe winter solstice (冬至) falls on 22 December 2026 at 05:50 KST, the longest night. Learn why yang is said to return and why Koreans eat red bean porridge.Yin-Yang and the Five Elements: The FoundationWhat yin-yang and the five elements mean in the East Asian calendar, how ten stems and twelve branches are sorted by them, and how a chart is counted.The Generating and Controlling Cycles of the Five ElementsHow the five elements feed one another in the generating cycle and keep one another in check in the controlling cycle, with two real days worked out.Ginger and Jujube Chicken Soup for Cold MonthsChicken soup with ginger, 6 jujubes and 5 garlic cloves, simmered 45 minutes. A warm Fire and Earth dish the tradition sets for autumn and winter.Black Sesame Porridge: a Black, Water-Element BowlBlack sesame porridge in 20 minutes with 4 tbsp black sesame and glutinous rice. Why black foods are read as Water, for autumn and winter tables.

See it for your chart → Open Haru

Traditional Four Pillars (myeongni) and yin-yang five-element interpretation. Not a medical diagnosis or advice.