Korean Injeolmi-Style Sweet Rice Pudding

About This Recipe

Injeolmi is a beloved Korean rice cake coated in toasted soybean powder (injeolmi-garu), prized for its nutty, slightly sweet flavor and soft, chewy texture. This pudding takes that same soybean-powder flavor and applies it to a creamy rice pudding, made by slowly simmering short-grain rice in milk until it turns thick and porridge-like, then finishing with a generous dusting of the toasted soybean powder just like you'd see on the rice cake itself.\n\nThe technique that matters most is patience with the simmer — the rice needs to cook low and slow, stirred often, so the starch releases gradually and thickens the milk into a silky pudding rather than a grainy one. Toasting the soybean powder briefly in a dry pan before serving (if it isn't already roasted) brings out its nuttiness the same way toasting nuts does.\n\nServe warm or chilled with an extra dusting of soybean powder and a drizzle of honey — it's a comforting, not-too-sweet dessert that leans on toasted, nutty flavor rather than sugar.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 0.75 cupshort-grain rice(rinsed)
• 4 cupswhole milk
• 0.33 cupsugar
• 1 pinchfine sea salt
• 1 tspvanilla extract
• 4 tbspinjeolmi-garu (toasted soybean powder)
• 2 tbsphoney(for drizzling)

Instructions

1. 1

   Start the simmer

   Combine rinsed rice, milk, sugar and salt in a heavy-bottomed pot. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally.

2. 2

   Cook low and slow

   Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring every few minutes, for 30-35 minutes until the rice is tender and the mixture has thickened to a loose porridge consistency.

   Keep the heat low enough that the milk barely bubbles — a hard simmer will scald the milk on the bottom of the pot and give the pudding a burnt taste.

3. 3

   Finish

   Stir in vanilla extract and cook 2 more minutes. The pudding will continue to thicken slightly as it cools, so remove it from heat while it's still a bit looser than you want the final texture.

4. 4

   Serve

   Spoon into bowls warm, or chill for at least 2 hours for a firmer, custard-like texture. Dust generously with soybean powder and drizzle with honey right before serving.

Variations

• •

  Add a few pieces of chestnut or jujube while simmering for a more traditional Korean dessert flavor.

• •

  Use coconut milk instead of half the dairy milk for a dairy-light, slightly sweeter version.

• •

  Serve cold with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and extra soybean powder for a modern dessert plate.

Storage

Refrigerate covered for up to 4 days; the pudding will thicken further as it chills. Loosen with a splash of milk when reheating gently on the stove or in the microwave.

Frequently Asked Questions