Name: Korean Watermelon Punch (Subak Hwachae) Recipe
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 10 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Korean
Ingredients: 2 cup watermelon; 1 1⁄2 cup honeydew melon; 16 rice cake balls; 2 cup ginger ale; 3 tbsp Korean drinking vinegar; 1 tbsp pine nuts; 1⁄2 cup glutinous rice powder; 2 tsp sugar; 1⁄16 tsp salt; 4 tbsp boiling hot water

Glass with tasty watermelon and melon ball drink on table, closeup

How To Make Korean Watermelon Punch (Subak Hwachae)

Cool yourself down with something different this summer. This hwachae is a Korean fruit punch. This recipe has watermelon but is also customizable.

Prep: 20 mins

Cook: 10 mins

Total: 30 mins

Serves:

Ingredients

2 cup watermelon, balled or cubed
1 1⁄2 cup honeydew melon
16 rice cake balls, (gyeongdan)- optional
2 cup ginger ale
3 tbsp Korean drinking vinegar, or pomegranate or cranberry juice
1 tbsp pine nuts, for garnish - optional

For Optional Rice Cake Balls:

1⁄2 cup glutinous rice powder, aka sweet rice powder
2 tsp sugar
1⁄16 tsp salt
4 tbsp boiling hot water

Instructions

Make optional rice cake balls (recipe below). Scoop out watermelon and honeydew with a melon-baller. (Or, cut into about 1-inch cubes.) Place them in a large bowl along with any juice from the fruits.
Add the ginger ale and the drinking vinegar (or pomegranate or cranberry juice) to the fruits. Stir gently.
Taste the drink and adjust acidity and/or sweetness by adding more drinking vinegar (or juice and/or sugar).

Optional rice cake balls:

Mix the rice powder, sugar and salt in a bowl. Mix in the boiling hot water with a spoon. When cool enough to handle, knead by hand until a dough is formed.
Shape the dough into a ¾-inch thick cylinder. Cut into (or pinch of ¾-inch pieces. Roll each piece between the palms to make a small ball.
Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the rice cake balls. Cook until all the balls float.
Transfer to a large bowl with cold water to cool. Drain.

Nutrition