Jequirity

Abrus precatorius, known commonly as Jequirity or Red Bean in Chinese, Crab's Eye, Rosary Pea, 'John Crow' Bead, Precatory bean, Indian Licorice, Saga Tree or Giddee Giddee (Abrus precatorius), is a legume with long, pinnate-leafleted leaves. Their seeds are often used as beads and in percussion instruments and jewelry.

The seed contains the toxic poison abrin. Jewelry-making with jequirity seeds is dangerous, and there have been cases of death by a finger-prick while boring the seeds for beadwork. However, it has long been a symbol of love in China, and its name in Chinese means "Deep Longing of Lovers" (Chinese: 相思豆). Maybe this is because it is toxic, it becomes best to describe love.

There is a lyric to describe Red Bean as love, written some 200 years ago in “Red Chamber Dream,” a famous novel.

滴不盡相思血淚　拋紅豆
開不完春柳春花　滿畫樓
睡不穩紗窗風雨　黃昏後
忘不了新愁與舊愁
咽不下玉粒金波　噎滿喉
照不見菱花鏡裡　形容瘦
展不開的眉頭
捱不明的更漏
呀。恰便似遮不住的青山隱隱
流不斷的綠水悠悠

摘自『曹雪芹：紅豆詞』

Red bean paste is used in many Chinese foods, such as tangyuan, zongzi, mooncakes, baozi, and red bean ice. It is also used as a filling for Japanese sweets such as anmitsu, taiyaki and daifuku. A more liquid version, using azuki beans boiled with sugar, lotus seeds, and orange peel, produces a sweet dish called red bean soup. Azuki beans are also commonly eaten sprouted, or boiled in a hot, tea-like drink. Some Asian cultures enjoy red bean paste as a filling or topping for various kinds of waffles, pastries, baked buns or biscuits.