The Japanese sweet dessert made with agar jelly, red bean paste, and fruit is anmitsu.
Anmitsu is a wagashi dessert associated with Japan’s Meiji era. Its main components are small cubes of translucent agar jelly, sweet azuki-bean paste called anko, boiled peas, fruit, and a small pot of dark syrup called kuromitsu. Diners pour the syrup over the ingredients just before eating.
The jelly is made from agar, a setting agent obtained from red algae. Unlike gelatin, agar sets firmly and remains stable at warmer temperatures, giving anmitsu its characteristic clean, springy cubes. Common fruit additions include peaches, mikan, pineapple, and cherries; some versions also include gyūhi or shiratama dumplings.
A frequent source of confusion is mitsumame. Mitsumame contains the agar jelly, peas, fruit, and syrup but traditionally omits the red-bean paste. Adding ice cream creates cream anmitsu. Zenzai, by contrast, is a sweet azuki-bean dish usually served as a soup or soft dessert rather than this mixed bowl of jelly, fruit, and syrup.