shikhye

melonpan · September 12, 2004

theres been a mini heat wave of sorts round these here parts and got a hankering for some shikhye. decided to take photos along the way this time.

the two ingredients you need to buy at the korean market are malt powder (yeotgireum, 엿기름 or yeotgireum-garu, 엿기름가루) and sweet rice aka glutinous rice (chapsal, 찹쌀). the barley malt powder comes in two forms at the korean market: 1) as a powder or 2) with the hulls still left in with the powder. both work fine in the recipe, but if a choice is available, i suggest getting the powder; the hulls can be a pain in the ass to strain out later.

<center>malt powder is usually sold in 1 pound bags.</center>

<center>sweet rice is often sold in small 3 pound bags.</center>

ive added about 500 mls of water to a 2 liter container and poured the entire bag (1 lb, about 500 g) of malt powder into the container. using a wooden spoon, i stirred until the powder was completely mixed with the water. then i topped the mixture with more water until the entire container was full.

i placed the container in the refrigerator so that the powder could settle. the left shows the container after 2 hours. the right photo shows the container after more than 12 hours (you dont have to wait that long. i had left that there overnight. 4 hours should be more than enough.). you will note that the mixture has settled into two distinct layers, a clear dark brown layer on top with a cloudy light brown mixture on the bottom. if you had to buy the malt powder with the hulls, you will find another layer of the hulls floating at the very top. spoon the hulls out.

at this point, i used a large ladle to spoon out most of the clear brown liquid into another container. i ended up with about 500 mls of the brown liquid. i actually want at least a liter, so i simply added more water to the first container, mixed it well and let it settle for another couple hours. the photo on the right shows the container after the mixture has settled with more water. i ladled the rest of the malt water into the second container. now i was ready to start the sweet rice!

for 500 g of malt powder, i usually make 3 cups of rice. this is 3 rice maker cups, not regular cups. 3 rice maker cups is about 2 normal cups of rice. (does this make sense?) i rinsed the 3 cups and added enough water for 2.5 rice maker cups of rice.

the photo below and to the left shows that i set the rice maker to make sweet rice. ive made this before with the rice makers without all the computerization (the ones with just the "cook"/"keep warm" lever. you just turn the cooker to "cook" in that case).

the VERY IMPORTANT thing to note is that you do NOT want to cook your rice fully. you want the rice to be somewhat "hard". this is why we use 2.5 cups of water to 3 cups of rice (usually the ratio is 1:1), as an insurance against overcooking. if your rice is soft or overcooks, then the rice will fall apart in the next step and you will end up with porridge and/or glue. the right photo shows a close up of this "hard" rice. it it were pasta, it would be 'al dente'. it is very very chewy with a definite bite to it.

i pour in all of the malt water into the rice cooker. notice that according to the fuzzy logic, i still had about 5 more minutes before the rice was "done". that is my paranoia about overcooking the rice at work. you can cook until it is done, but do not hesitate when adding the malt water.

i had about 1200 ml of malt water. you can use a lot more and a lot less. shoot for around 1.5 liters.

i stirred the rice and malt water mixture well. i shut the lid of the cooker down and left it at "keep warm". you should keep the rice at "keep warm" for the next 3-4 hours.

about 1 hour into the keep warm, i took a peek. the malt water was still rather cloudy and the rice still rather starchy. i continued to leave it at warm until 4 hours had been reached. then i reset the machine and set it to cook, to give it one last boil before ending the cooking.

the above photos dont show it, but after boiling for the last time, all the rice had risen to the top (i forgot to take a photo before i stirred!). but comparing with the photo set above, you will notice that the rice grains have shrunk a little and changed to a darker, more brown color. the malt had converted a lot of the starch in the rice into sugar. note that the malt water is also clearer and darker.

the shikhye is done at this point. the yield was nearly 2 liters, about half of it rice...

put it away in the fridge right away to chill. you can eat it warm, just cooked. delicious! but it is just heaven when you eat it cold from the fridge.

keep in the refrigerator no more than a week.

to serve, dole out shik-hye into small rice bowls or drinking cups in half cup increments. top with 3 or 4 pine nuts.

options

option one. while still warm, you may add sugar to taste. 'to taste' is such a vague term, i know, but ive had all sorts of shikhye and it really is a personal preference. the shikhye itself is sweet, without any added sugar whatsoever, because the malt converts a lot of the starch in the rice to sugar during the cooking. some people prefer shikhye just the way it is, with just a teensy bit of sweetness, others prefer it to be sugar water with tiny bits of rice floating around. anywhere in between is fine. but undersweet (no sugar) is always a safe bet, because then guests can always sweeten to their own tastes with more sugar.

option two. after you have added the malt water to the steamed rice, you can add a peeled knob of fresh ginger or a stick or two of cinnamon.

melonpan · September 12, 2004

text recipe

shikhye: malted glutinous rice beverage

ingredients

500 g (about 1 pound) malt powder (yeotgireum 엿기름)

2 liters water for the malt powder

3 cups glutinous rice (chapsal 찹쌀)

2 and a half cups water for the rice

optional ingredients

pinenuts

sugar

knobs of fresh ginger

cinnamon sticks

special equipment

large water pitcher, capacity of at least 2 liters. larger if possible

large rice cooker, able to make at least 8 cups rice

method

pour all the malt powder into a large pitcher. pour water water into the pitcher and mix well, making sure all the powder has been mixed. set aside (in a cool place -- the fridge is ideal) to let the mixture settle for at least 2 hours.

next, if you have barley hulls, spoon or strain the hulls out. pour the top clearish layer into another container and set aside. you should have about 1.5 liters of the malt water.

rinse 3 cups of glutinous rice and cook it in a large rice cooker with 2 and a half cups of water. right after the rice has cooked, proceed IMMEDIATELY to the next step. DO NOT, under any circumstances, hold the rice for any amount of time. slightly undercooked rice is prefered. if your rice is too soft or overcooks, then the rice will fall apart in the next step and you will end up with porridge and or glue.

take the malt water you reserved and pour it all into the steamed glutinous rice. stir to mix thoroughly.

leave the rice cooker on 'warm' for 3 to 4 hours.

mix again and bring the mixture to a boil. now you are done!

makes about 25 half cup servings. keep in the refrigerator no more than a week. shikhye can be served warm right away, but it is usually served very well chilled.

to serve: dole out shik-hye into small rice bowls in half cup increments. top with 3 or 4 pine nuts.

options

option one. while still warm, you may add sugar to taste. 'to taste' is such a vague term, i know, but ive had all sorts of shikhye and it really is a personal preference. the shikhye itself is sweet, without any added sugar whatsoever, because the malt converts a lot of the starch in the rice to sugar during the cooking. some people prefer shikhye just the way it is, with just a teensy bit of sweetness, others prefer it to be sugar water with tiny bits of rice floating around. anywhere in between is fine. but undersweet (no sugar) is always a safe bet, because then guests can always sweeten to their own tastes with more sugar.

option two. after you have added the malt water to the steamed rice, you can add a peeled knob of fresh ginger or a stick or two of cinnamon.

other notes

recipe can easily be halved or doubled depending on the size of your rice cooker.

one summer i had kept a pitcher of the malt water out (not in the fridge) for a couple hours and it was sooooo hot that day that the mixture just bubbled up and turned sour on me. too bad i dont know how to make beer, or i might have saved the batch!

melonpan · September 12, 2004

howondang, a ddeok (rice cake) house sells some drinks on the side. from left to right, shikhye (식혜) for $1.99, omija tea (오미자차) for $3.99 and sujeonggwa (수정과) for $1.99. i was happy to see these for sale, but wished that more places sold korean flavoured drinks in this manner. :sad: that omija cha had better be some awesome tea for $4!

torakris · September 12, 2004

melonpan,

thanks for all that info and pictures!!

I had never heard of this before, now I am finding myself desperately wanting it....

jrufusj · September 12, 2004

melonpan,
thanks for all that info and pictures!!
I had never heard of this before, now I am finding myself desperately wanting it....
←

First off...I second the thanks to melonpan...who always covers her explorations with breadth, with depth, and with cool pictures.

Kristin, as you set out to indulge your craving for shikhye, do make sure either to find a Korean restaurant that serves homemade or make your own. I love homemade, but the stuff they sell in the small soda cans (about the size of the baby Bud cans that came out when I was in high school) is just plain nasty.

Jim

Edited September 13, 2004 by jrufusj (log)

jschyun · September 14, 2004

howondang, a ddeok (rice cake) house sells some drinks on the side. from left to right, shikhye (식혜) for $1.99, omija tea (오미자차) for $3.99 and sujeonggwa (수정과) for $1.99. i was happy to see these for sale, but wished that more places sold korean flavoured drinks in this manner. that omija cha had better be some awesome tea for $4!

Hmm, I would think it would be the other way around, that omija tea was cheaper, but now that you mention it, it usually is a little more expensive than other teas, though sujonghwa and shikhye, being labor intensiveish, at least more than omijah where you just stick a bunch of the berries into your cup or whatever and then pour water over them, I would think would be more expensive than omija. Weird.

The only other reason why omija would be that much more expensive is because they're from Cheju Island, that Mt Halla omija tea. I know about this because when we were on Cheju Island a couple of years back, I had to endure a sales pitch for the stuff during our tour.

In L.A., you can get the dried omija berries for about $5 for a big bag at at least some Chinese apothecaries. Unfortunately, I don't know the Chinese name.

jschyun · September 14, 2004

First off...I second the thanks to melonpan...who always covers her explorations with breadth, with depth, and with cool pictures.
Kristin, as you set out to indulge your craving for shikhye, do make sure either to find a Korean restaurant that serves homemade or make your own. I love homemade, but the stuff they sell in the small soda cans (about the size of the baby Bud cans that came out when I was in high school) is just plain nasty.
Jim

Yeah, melonpan is doing a great job of documenting all this stuff!

So I guess I third the thanks. hehe

However, I hate to admit this but despite the fact that I've had the homemade stuff, and from restaurants, I still like the canned variety. It is on the light, sweet side and doesn't have enough rice in it, but it's very convenient. Also, I find it sold in big bottles here and that can be pretty good. But those little cans are definitely a waste of metal when you can make better stuff yourself.

eunny jang · September 14, 2004

Melonpan - I'm so glad you put up that great tutorial with such excellent pictures.

My sister is a shik-hye fiend, but I vastly prefer sujongwa myself. Unfortunately, I haven't figured out how to delicately drink either one, and end up feeling sticky when I'm done.

melonpan · September 14, 2004

In L.A., you can get the dried omija berries for about $5 for a big bag at at least some Chinese apothecaries. Unfortunately, I don't know the Chinese name.
←

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<tr><td align=center>오<td align=center>미<td align=center>자<td align=center>차

<tr><td align=center>o<td align=center>mi<td align=center>ja<td align=center>cha

<tr><td align=center>five<td align=center>taste<td align=center>fruit<td align=center>tea</table></center>

torakris · September 14, 2004

you have me very intrigued.....

I am going to look for these omija berries in Japan but how does it taste when made with the stuff in the jar?

http://www.rakuten.co.jp/hiroba/429858/429882/474953/

Is is worth searching out the berries?

jschyun · September 15, 2004

quote removed due to formatting issues. look above.

hehe thanks melonpan. But how do you say it?

Edited September 15, 2004 by jschyun (log)

melonpan · September 15, 2004

hehe thanks melonpan. But how do you say it?

<center><table cellpadding = 5><tr><th>chinese<td align = center>五<td align=center>味<td align=center>子<td align=center>茶

<tr><th>english<td align=center>five<td align=center>taste<td align=center>fruit<td align=center>tea

<tr><th>mandarin<td align=center>wu3<td align=center>wei4<td align=center>zi<td align=center>cha2

<tr><th>cantonese<td align=center>ng<td align=center>mei<td align=center>ji<td align=center>cha

<tr><th>korean<td align=center>o<td align=center>mi<td align=center>ja<td align=center>cha

</table></center>

below, some pics of gohyang (hometown) brand instant omijacha. usd$3.99 for 20 servings. pouring powder into mugs is always a let down compared to brewing fruits and leaves, but at 20 cents a cup, you get over it. :biggrin: white cup for reference. the color in the photo is pretty close to what i see in real life (that cup in the box must be of cranberry juice, or of omija concentrate!). ive only ever had instant omijacha. from the box, this tea tastes overwhelmingly sweet with some tartness to it. what happened to the other three flavours, i do not know... :raz:

</center>

jschyun · September 15, 2004

Thanks melonpan! You rock!

melonpan · May 22, 2006

has anyone ever malted barley without the husks? i mean has anyone ever malted pearled barley?

is it possible to germinate without the husk or is it vital?

i am not sure anyone who can answer this will find this question in this thread, but ill put it out there anyways....

ZenKimchi · May 23, 2006

My guess is no, but I'm no expert. I just got through watching Alton Brown's episode on barley, so I'm feeling arrogant.

mukki · August 4, 2006

Thanks so much for this informative and thorough post!

I made your recipe today and it turned out great. I was surprised how sweet the unsweetend shikhye was; I didn't need to add any sugar at all. I added two cinnamon sticks during the "warm" phase, as you suggested as an alternative. I also skimmed some of the dark grey stuff/rice that had floated to the top afterwards.

I love learning how to make things like this that, in my experience, are hard to find instructions for; I wish food magazines would cover these topics more.

lorea · July 11, 2008

Hey y'all!

I've been looking and looking for the method of making shike, the Korean dessert with rice?

Does anybody have a method? It would be great to make some to beat the summer heat!

Domestic Goddess · July 11, 2008

Here you go Lorea... it's a bit time-consuming that's why a lot of people buy it in a can. LOL

Ingredients:

2 cups Rice oil, called yut ghee reum in Korean

1600 cc water

1 cup Uncooked rice

50 cc water

180 grams Sugar

1600 cc water

A few pine nuts

dried dates (optional)

Preparations:

1. Add the 2 cups of rice oil to the 1600cc of water and let it sit for about an hour. Then, squeeze out the excess water and then place the water in a separate bowl. Repeat the process with the same water until you have an opaque form of the water.

2. Leave the water made from step 1 in a cold place for about 3-4 hours.

3. Cook the uncooked rice, using a little less water than you would normally use.

4. Take the water from step 2 and add the cooked rice from step 3 and keep it warm in a rice cooker (at a temperature around 40 degress C) for about 5-6 hours.

5. When the rice starts to float in step 4, add the water from part C (1600cc) and the sugar to the mixture and let it boil.

6. Remove the rice and wash them in cold water. After they have cooled off, add it to the water from step 5 and place it in the refrigerator.

7. When you serve it, add a few pine nuts or thinly sliced dates and you're ready to drink shikkhe.

JasonTrue · July 14, 2008

I think the English word for rice oil is "malted rice flour" (or something similar, sometimes malted barley). It's readily available in Korean markets in the US, usually in 1kg+ bags.

If you don't have a rice cooker, you can ferment the mixture with a heating pad strategically placed in a big covered bucket, Alton Brown style.

I've attempted using a slow cooker, but the temperature gets a little too high (65C/150F) and the results aren't quite right. Actually the rice cooker "warmer" mode is usually closer to 60c/140F, which is slightly higher than ideal, but produces a better result than the cans

lorea · August 13, 2009

Thank you so much!

I never realized my initial post was answered, so when I decided to make shike again (a year later!), I found my initial post, complete with answers. I'll try this!

Thank you!! I love this site. :wub:

jkim · August 24, 2009

umm... that's weird. the shik hye my mom and grandma makes is always cloudy white, not brown.

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