Patbingsu

Ingredients

Milk ice

• 800 mlwhole milk
• 80 mlcondensed milk
• 2 tbspsugar

Pat, the red beans

• 250 gdried adzuki beans
• 150 gsugar
• 1 tbsphoney
• ½ tspsalt
• water

Toppings

• 8injeolmi or small tteok rice cakes
• 2 tbsproasted soybean powder, injeolmi garu
• condensed milk, to pour
• 1scoop vanilla ice cream
• fresh fruit, optional

Equipment

• a bingsu shaving machine, or a strong blender

Directions

1. Mix the milk, condensed milk and sugar and freeze it overnight in a shallow tray or in the machine’s canister.
2. Freeze it flat and shallow so it freezes evenly and shaves cleanly. Water ice gives hard crystals that crunch; milk ice shaves into soft ribbons that melt on the tongue. Cover with fresh water and simmer 50 minutes to an hour until completely soft.
3. Cook them until a bean crushes to paste between your fingers, because firm beans are unpleasant against soft ice. Now add the sugar, honey and salt and cook 10 minutes more, stirring, until thick.
4. Add the sugar only after the beans are soft. Sugar added early stops them softening properly, which is true of every pulse. Mash about half the beans and leave the rest whole, then cool the mixture completely. That mix of whole beans and paste is the texture Koreans expect, and a smooth purée is not the same.
5. Chill the serving bowls in the freezer for at least an hour. Cold bowls buy you a few extra minutes before it collapses, and metal ones are best. Spoon the cooled red bean paste over the top, in the centre.
6. Add the rice cakes, dust generously with roasted soybean powder, and add a scoop of ice cream if you want. Pour condensed milk over the whole thing at the table.
7. Serve it immediately with long spoons, and eat it fast. It melts within minutes, which is why it arrives at the table already assembled and is eaten straight away.

Technique

• Bingsu means iced dessert and pat means red bean, so patbingsu specifies the classic version.
• Ready-made sweetened adzuki paste is sold in Korean and Japanese shops.
• It is shared from one large bowl rather than served individually.

Substitutions

• Tinned sweetened red bean paste, which is a real shortcut.
• Frozen water with condensed milk poured over, if you have no way to freeze milk.

Variations

• Fruit bingsu, with mango or strawberry.
• Injeolmi bingsu, heavy on roasted soybean powder and rice cake.
• Matcha or coffee bingsu.

History

Shaved ice with sweet red beans arrived from Japanese kakigori in the colonial era; condensed milk and fruit toppings multiplied from the 1980s.

Frequently asked questions

What is Patbingsu?

Patbingsu is a dessert from South Korea: shaved ice heaped with sweet red beans, rice cakes and condensed milk. Shaved ice with sweet red beans arrived from Japanese kakigori in the colonial era; condensed milk and fruit toppings multiplied from the 1980s.

How long does Patbingsu take to make?

Patbingsu takes 20 min plus overnight freezing of preparation and 1 hr of cooking. The recipe makes 2 large bowls. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Patbingsu?

Yes, within limits. Tinned sweetened red bean paste, which is a real shortcut. Frozen water with condensed milk poured over, if you have no way to freeze milk.

What is the most important thing to get right in Patbingsu?

Add the rice cakes, dust generously with roasted soybean powder, and add a scoop of ice cream if you want. Pour condensed milk over the whole thing at the table.