Hotteok
Maangchi’s eight-piece hotteok wraps a brown-sugar, cinnamon and walnut filling in yeast dough, then fries and presses the parcels in a pan.
Sulppang (makgeolli bread)
술빵 · Makgeolli bread · Soolbbang · Sulbbang · Soolppang
A soft Korean steamed wheat bread leavened with dry yeast and raw makgeolli, with apple pieces and fresh beans folded through the surface.
Makgeolli and yeast
Maangchi’s version uses both makgeolli and added active dry yeast. She specifies raw makgeolli marked 생 (saeng), since heat-treated bottled makgeolli may no longer supply active enzymes. The added yeast makes the batter rise faster in her tests. This recipe does not work on the assumption that any bottle of makgeolli will leaven flour by itself.
The first rise is about two hours at an unspecified room temperature and is checked for many small bubbles at the surface; Maangchi says to wait longer if they have not appeared. The source does not give a maximum wait or exact ambient temperature, so neither is invented here.
A Korean market snack
Sulppang is a soft, steamed wheat bread with makgeolli’s tangy aroma. Maangchi describes it as a filling snack sold in Korean markets and highway rest stops. Her modern home formula adds apple and fresh cranberry beans. It is made with wheat flour, not rice flour; makgeolli is the fermented rice drink in the dough.
Maangchi says the alcohol evaporates during steaming, but gives no measured residual-alcohol result. This recipe therefore does not promise that the finished bread is alcohol-free.
History
Maangchi identifies sulppang as Korean steamed makgeolli bread and describes its sale as a snack in markets and highway rest stops in Korea. The source documents a current home method, not a first date or origin locality.
Ingredients
Yield 4 servings · Scaling: source batch only
MakgeolliUse raw, unpasteurized makgeolli labelled 생 (saeng) if relying on its active fermentation; Maangchi’s formula also includes dry yeast.
473 mL2 cup as recorded
Sugar
79 mL⅓ cup as recorded
Active dry yeast
7 g
2 teaspoons in the source.Kosher salt
2.5 mL½ tsp as recorded
All-purpose wheat flour
591 mL2½ cup as recorded
AppleCut into small cubes.
118 mL½ cup as recorded
The source specifies this volume, not a weight.Fresh cranberry beansUse fresh shelled beans; other fresh beans may be used.
118 mL½ cup as recorded
Method
Risks and precautions · Standard risk
Raw flour and batter
Uncooked flour may carry harmful germs; the batter must be steamed before eating.
Hazard sourceMakgeolli contains alcohol
This recipe uses alcoholic rice drink; the source’s claim that steaming removes all alcohol is not established by a measured endpoint.
Hazard sourceDo not taste the raw batter. Steam it as directed and wash hands, utensils, bowls and work surfaces after handling raw flour or batter.
Control sourceThis recipe contains makgeolli. Do not rely on steaming to remove all alcohol; choose another recipe if avoiding alcohol. Keep the cloth liner away from the flame or heating element, and open the steamer lid away from your face.
- If the makgeolli is refrigerated, let it warm to room temperature. Handle the fizzy bottle gently and open it slowly over a sink to limit foaming.
- Pour the makgeolli into a heavy stainless-steel pot. Warm it over medium-high heat for about 30 seconds, stirring, until lukewarm, about 40°C. Take it off the heat. Stir in the sugar and dry yeast; wait about 1 minute for the yeast to foam.
- Add the flour and salt. Mix with a wooden spoon or rice scoop until the batter is smooth and no lumps remain. Cover and leave for about 2 hours. Look for many small bubbles breaking at the surface; if they have not appeared, leave it longer. The source does not state a room temperature for this rise.
- Wet a large cotton cloth or steamer liner with cold water and line the steamer basket, leaving enough edge to lift the cooked bread. Pour in the batter. Scatter the fresh beans and apple over the top, then leave the batter to rise for 30 minutes.
- Bring about 7.5 cm (3 inches) of water to a boil in the steamer without letting the basket touch the water. Set the basket over the boiling water and cover. If using a cloth as the liner, arrange its edges over the lid and keep the cloth clear of the flame or heating element.
- Steam over medium-high heat for 35 minutes. Remove the steamer from the heat and lift off the lid away from your face. Using the cloth edges, carefully lift out the bread and set it on a board. Let it cool before removing the cloth and cutting into pieces.
Conditions
Yield4 servings
Fermentationfrom 2.5 h
Temperature40°C
Temperature controlMulti-stage
Places
Republic of Korea
Documented use · Country evidenceMaangchi describes sulppang as a snack sold at markets and highway rest stops in Korea; this records documented use, not a precise origin.
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Sources
MaangchiInspiration · History · Geography
Makgeolli bread (Sulppang: 술빵)Ingredient amounts, use of raw 생 makgeolli plus active dry yeast, warming to about 40°C, two-hour bubbly first rise, 30-minute second rise, fresh beans and apple, steamer setup and 35-minute steam; Korean snack and market context.
Centers for Disease Control and PreventionSafety
Raw Flour and DoughRaw flour can carry harmful germs; do not eat raw dough and clean surfaces after handling flour or batter.