KOREA FOUNDATION

No sooner has the nation let out a collective sigh of relief—“This summer isn’t so bad, not nearly as hot as the last!”—than a strong heat wave comes down upon us and life is once again unbearable without air conditioning and electric fans. At a time like this, the only thing to do is to fill ourselves up with frozen treats and forget the stifling weather, even if just for a moment. In Korea, this is the season of the icy dessert called bingsu. With its ever-diversifying fusion styles and creative toppings, there’s a bingsu to pique anyone’s palate.

   Purists say the classic patbingsu made with ice, milk, and fully cooked red beans offers the most genuine taste, but these days, bingsu variations that include a variety of toppings on a hill of snowy, finely shaved ice are more popular than ever. Choices range from watermelon, mango, and other fruits to little bits of rice cakes, colorful jellies, and cookies. As the options have become more diverse, the prices have gone up, and some bowls of bingsu are now too costly to be eaten as the carefree dessert they once were.

   In Japan, kakigori enjoys a time-tested popularity, dating back about a thousand years to the Heian period. The dessert is made by shaving ice into a small bowl and drizzling fruit syrup over it. As the syrup permeates the ice, the fresh flavor spreads from the top down. Some may say this offers a clean and simple taste compared to the Korean bingsu and its many ingredients.

   The icy Italian dessert granita is purported to take its name from granite because its semi-frozen texture resembles the shiny, crystalline components in the rock. Granita is coarser than sorbet and thus the taste is also less soft.

   The Filipino halo-halo, meaning “mixed” in Tagalog, is a layered summer dessert. Ice and sugar are alternated with fruits, sweetened beans, and roasted rice, and ice cream and jellies are added on top.

   Meanwhile, in Brazil, the healthy acai bowl is ever popular. It’s made by mashing acai berries from the Amazon rainforest to produce something of a sorbet, then topping with nuts, banana, and condensed milk. As acai berries draw greater worldwide attention, some may overlook the acai bowl’s origins as a traditional Brazilian dessert, but the dish, called açaí na tigela back home, represents Brazil and the Amazon.

   It isn’t easy to celebrate the hot and humid summer weather, but we can enjoy refreshing moments from time to time thanks to bingsu and its cousins around the world.

Written by Kim Shinyoung
Illustrated by Jeong Hyoju

patbingsu kakigori granita acai_bowl