Hwachae (Korean: 화채; Hanja: 花菜) is a general term for traditional Korean punches, made with various fruits or edible flower petals. The fruits and flowers are soaked in honeyed water or honeyed magnolia berry juice. In modern South Korea, carbonated drinks and fruit juices are also commonly added to hwachae. Hwachae is often garnished with pine nuts before it is served.
Subak hwachae has recently gone viral on TikTok because of this cute video of TikToker Amy Flamy’s mukbang hwachae video. She made the punch bowl look so refreshing and fun to eat I knew I had to try it! We’ve made it five times since then, and it’s so good.
This Korean fruit punch is a popular summer drink in South Korea in the summer months. The watermelon is the one non-negotiable in the dish, but the rest is quite customizable – use your favorite fruit, whatever type of milk you’d like, and top it off with carbonated water or soda of your choice.
Ingredients
- 2-3 cups seedless watermelon, cubed
- 1 cup grapes, halved
- 1 cup strawberry, halved
- 500ml strawberry milk
- 600ml 7-up/sprite
- 1 cup ice cubes
Instructions
- In a bowl, add fruits.
- Add cold milk, 7-up.
- Top with ice, mix well and enjoy!
Variations
- Watermelon – Feel free to cube the watermelon or get fancy with a melon baller and make watermelon balls.
- Fruit – Blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, pineapple, cantaloupe, honeydew, pomegranate seeds, banana, dragon fruit, or any other types of fruit will work in this recipe.
- Fizzy Drink – I used sugar-free 7Up, but you can use Sprite, Lemon Lime Lacroix, ginger ale, or any sparkling lemon juice.
- Toppings – If you want to add some garnish, serve with a lemon slice or edible flowers.