Rice cake punch (Tteok-sudan)
Tteok-sudan is a traditional Korean summer punch made with pearly white rice cakes in cold honey water. It’s easy to make and very refreshing. In the past, it was enjoyed by royal and noble families, traditionally made for one of the Korean festival days, called Yudujeol, to stay cool and healthy during hot summer days. The recipe includes two versions: a traditional bowl version and a modern mocktail.
Ingredients
- 0.25 cup dried omija (shisandra)
- 0.5 cup thin cylinder-shaped rice cake
- 3 tablespoons potato starch
- 1 cup honey
- to taste pine nuts
- to taste ice cubes
- to taste sparkling water
Instructions
- Rinse and drain omija and transfer it to a bowl. Add 1 cup water and cover. Let it sit for 24 hours at room temperature until it turns red and the omija release their 5 flavors into the water.
- Strain the omija over a bowl. Discard the soaked omija. Add the honey and mix well until totally dissolved.
- Transfer the omija-cheong to a 2 1/2 cup glass jar. Cover and refrigerate.
- Slice the rice cake crosswise very thinly, about ⅛ inch thick, and put them into a strainer.
- Rinse the rice cake under running water to wet. Drain them.
- Add the wet rice cake to the starch in a bowl. Coat each piece of the rice cake well by hand.
- Bring a large pot of water into a boil. Add the coated rice cakes to the boiling water and stir them with a wooden spoon a few times to keep them from sticking to the bottom.
- 1 minute later the rice cake will float. Then cook it another minute.
- Remove from the heat and take out all the rice cakes with a slotted spoon. Transfer them to a bowl. Rinse the rice cakes in cold running water until the rice cake cools down. Drain well and transfer them to the starch bowl.
- Add the rest of the starch and coat the rice cakes again. Set aside.
- Reheat the water in the pot. When the water is boiling, cook the rice cakes for another 2 minutes until soft.
- Rinse them in cold running water and transfer them to a bowl. Set aside.
- Add about 5-7 ice cubes to a bowl. Add about ¼ cup omija-cheong and ¼ cup cooked rice cake. Add about 1 cup cold water and mix well. Sprinkle with several pine nuts and serve with a spoon.
- Add 7-8 ice cubes to a long 2 cup glass. Add ⅓ cup omija-cheong and ¼ cup rice cake. Add 1 cup sparkling water. Mix it gently and sprinkle with some pine nuts and serve right away with a long spoon or a bar spoon.