The traditional dessert sujeonggwa, which is made with dried persimmons and brewed liquid, is strictly speaking a variety of jeonggwa, honey-dried fruit, not a beverage. The traditional dessert is made by adding dried persimmons to ginger-and-cinnamon-brewed water, and used to be prepared as a refreshment served for guests. Persimmons, mainly produced in the southern regions, were a common autumn fruit. It was a must-serve fruit for ancestral memorial rites and feasts. In order to preserve the fruit for a long period, locals found ways to store the freshly-yielded persimmons by peeling and drying them. Sujeonggwa was d in the course of developing various ways to consume dried persimmons.

Main Ingredients :
10 dried persimmons, 100 g whole ginger, 100 g cinnamon stick, 2 l water, 10 walnuts, 1 tbsp pine nuts, 1.5 cups yellow sugar

Spices :
Dasik ingredients: 50 g yellow bean powder, 50 g green bean powder, 50 g black sesame seed powder, 1 tbsp of honey for each respective powder, 3 tbsp sesame oil



☑ Ginger should be sliced thinly so that the aroma of the spice can be infused well in the brewed water.
☑ In order to preserve the original flavor and aroma of each spice, ginger and cinnamon should be simmered separately and combined later.
☑ Prepare the walnut-filled dried persimmons beforehand and wrap them tightly with some plastic wrap. Keep them in the freezer and take them out one at a time when you’re enjoying sujeonggwa.
☑ Dried persimmons can be replaced with a variety of dried fruits including dried figs or apricots.
☑ Dasik, a traditional pressed cookie, can be made with various powdered grains.
☑ You’ll know the dasik dough is mixed well when you can form it easily in your hand.


Kim Su-jin: Hansik Researcher

- Director of Association for Research on Taste of Korea
- Head Director of Food & Culture Korea Academy
- Nation’s First Film Food Director
(Major works: “Ssanghwajeom”, “The Painter of Wind”, “King and the Clown”, “Best Chef”)