{"id":23438,"date":"2021-08-17T12:04:41","date_gmt":"2021-08-17T19:04:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kimchimari.com\/?p=23438"},"modified":"2023-04-20T14:20:40","modified_gmt":"2023-04-20T21:20:40","slug":"misugaru-korean-multi-grain-powder-drink","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kimchimari.com\/misugaru-korean-multi-grain-powder-drink\/","title":{"rendered":"Misugaru – Korean Multi-Grain Powder Drink"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Misugaru was my absolute favorite summer drink when I was little. An icy bowl (yes, a bowl, not a cup) of this wonderful wholesome goodness cools you down like no other on a hot summer Korean day – while filling you up just perfectly with the nutty and nutritious multigrain powder. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n

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What is Misugaru?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Misugaru \ubbf8\uc22b\uac00\ub8e8 is a multigrain powder that has been eaten by Koreans for over a thousand years. This wonderfully delicious and filling powder was traditionally made simply with either one or a combination of cooked and roasted sweet rice flour, regular white rice flour <\/strong>or barley flour.<\/strong> And this was even had as a meal substitute back in the days when food was scarce in Korea.<\/p>\n\n\n

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But now, as you all know, everyone is trying to eat more healthy and want to eat less carbs.. so.. Misugaru now is mostly made with many different grains and labeled as 5\uace1 (gok = grains), 7, 12 or as many as 17 or even 20\uace1 \ubbf8\uc218\uac00\ub8e8!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

History<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

History books date Koreans consuming this powder all the way back to 800 AD in the Three Kindgom period of Korea<\/a>. Misugaru has also been used as military food during wars because once grain is cooked and dried, it doesn’t spoil easily and will provide most of the essential nutrients for survival. And so it was also a popular snack drink for all Koreans when I was growing up. Now, there are so many other drinks, it has kind of become one of many snack options.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Misugaru is also called Seonsik \uc120\uc2dd<\/strong> \u79aa\u98df in Korean Temple Cuisine and is now often called by this name. Seonsik was typically made with 7 ingredients – Brown Rice, Sweet Rice, Job’s Tears, Black Soy Beans, Barley, Perilla Seeds, Black Sesame Seeds. And Korean monks prepared this before they went into meditation training and believed it helped their minds stay clear and more zen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Korea today, the words Seonshik and Misugaru are used interchangeably but the word Seonshik predominantly is being used to market the powder as a healthy meal substitute, especially as a shake for breakfast more than a simple snack drink.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WAYS to EAT it?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The most popular way to eat this powder is to make a drink <\/strong>with it (as I will show you below) either with honey or sugar water or with milk<\/strong>. It’s a great snack drink because it’s a little more than just a drink. Think smoothie. And It’s also nutritious and easy to digest, so it’s great for kids and the elderly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Misugaru is a favorite topping for Bingsu <\/a><\/strong>which adds a great nutty and savory flavor to it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My favorite memory of Misugaru is of me sitting on the floor – in front of a fan on hot and humid summer days (there were very few air conditioners in Korea back then when I was a kid) – drinking a whole bowl of this absolute goodness, feeling so refreshed!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The other memory regarding Misugaru is how I hated \ud83d\udc7f it when someone mixed all the powder into the water and serve as a thick soup consistency. I guess I was a bit picky when it came to food – even when I was a kid.. lol.. \ud83e\udd23\ud83e\udd23 Some people either don’t seem to mind it or actually even like it when the powder is fully mixed in to make a thick slurpy drink – but to me, mixing all the powder fully into the liquid vs just sprinkling it on top made a HUGE difference in texture <\/em>and taste!! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And so I would be quietly frustrated whenever someone did that…hehehe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And honestly, a big reason why I am sharing this post is because most online recipes seem to just mix everything together and did not show the delicate method of partially mixing and enjoying the drink through different textures!! I even asked my husband and my sisters about how they remembered drinking Misugaru when they were young and they all confirmed it!! So good to know that I’m not the only one remembering this!!! \ud83d\ude02\ud83e\udd23 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, I know… there’s no right or wrong way to make or cook things, if you like the style where the powder is all mixed with the liquid, please don’t hate me for saying it. Everyone has their own taste preference I know.. but I just felt compelled a little bit to share how my husband and family grew up eating it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

!CHOKING HAZARD WARNING<\/strong>!<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you drink my recipe, please be careful!~ Especially when you are drinking from a bowl with the dry powder floating on top, PLEASE DO NOT INHALE as you drink. When you drink and inhale at the same time, you are likely to get the powder tickling your throat or even worse, you can even choke (although that never happened to me I did have to cough a few times..haha). Drink without breathing in<\/strong> or while inhaling.. if you can’t do it, I would recommend that you use a spoon<\/strong> instead<\/strong> of drinking directly from the bowl.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What grains are in Misugaru?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

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Every recipe makes it differently but here are some of the common grains used to make Misugaru (in both Korean and English.<\/p>\n\n\n\n