Sikhye
Malt-fermented rice sweetened with ginger and served cold — a Joseon-dynasty-documented Korean digestif with floating rice grains served at Seollal celebrations.
- 1 cupmalt powder(yeotgireum)
- 10 cupswater(warm)
- 1 cupcooked rice(short grain)
- ¾ cupsugar(to taste)
- 1 tbsppine nuts(for garnish)
- 1Dissolve malt powder in warm water, let settle, use clear liquid.
- 2Combine malt water with cooked rice.
- 3Keep warm about 150F for 4-6 hours until rice floats.
- 4Strain rice, reserve grains.
- 5Bring liquid to boil with sugar.
- 6Cool and refrigerate.
- 7Serve cold with reserved rice and pine nuts.
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Sikhye is a traditional Korean non-alcoholic fermented rice punch that has been consumed on the peninsula for centuries, with documentation in Joseon dynasty (1392-1897) texts describing its preparation and use in royal court cuisine. The drink is made by combining cooked rice with malt water — water in which barley malt has been soaked — and incubating the mixture at a warm temperature to allow the malt's amylase enzymes to convert the rice starches to sugars. The resulting sweet, slightly grainy liquid is boiled with additional sugar and ginger before being served cold, often with a few cooked rice grains and pine nuts floating on the surface. Sikhye is traditionally consumed as a digestif after heavy meals, particularly during Korean New Year (Seollal) and other holiday celebrations, where its light sweetness cleanses the palate.
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