Korean sweet honey snack (Print Version)

Crunchy, sweet Yakgwa made with sesame oil, honey, and a hint of ginger. Perfect for tea time or whenever you're craving something sweet.

# Ingredients:

→ Filling Mixture

01 - 1/4 cup sake
02 - 1/4 cup sesame oil
03 - 1/4 cup honey
04 - 1/4 cup water
05 - 3 cups all-purpose flour

→ Sticky Syrup

06 - 1 cup honey
07 - 1/2 cup rice malt syrup
08 - 1 small ginger piece, sliced thinly after peeling

→ Preparing the Fryer

09 - Around 3 cups of vegetable oil, depending on size of pan

→ Toppings

10 - 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted
11 - 1/4 cup pine nuts, chopped

# Steps:

01 - Dump the flour into a big bowl and stir in sesame oil, working the mixture with your hands until crumbly. Whisk sake, honey, and water together in another bowl. Pour the wet mix into the flour and gently form a dough by kneading it. Wrap it up in plastic and leave it alone for a half hour.
02 - Sprinkle flour on a surface, then flatten the dough to about half an inch thick. Slice into strips about an inch wide. Make them into rectangles, diamonds, or flowers. If you have a toothpick or fork, poke a little hole in the center of each. Put them aside.
03 - Grab a saucepan and toss in the honey, rice malt syrup, and ginger slices. Heat it gently until it’s bubbling, then take it off the stove. Pour the warm syrup into a pan or dish where the cookies can sit in a single layer.
04 - Heat your oil in a sturdy pan or deep fryer, filling it with at least a couple inches of oil. Warm it to about 212°F (100°C). Fry a few cookies at a time, flipping them as needed, until they puff up and float.
05 - Raise the oil temperature to roughly 300°F (150°C). Keep frying until the cookies take on a golden brown shade. Transfer them straight out of the fryer into your pan of sticky ginger syrup using a slotted spoon.
06 - Repeat the frying method by cooking small amounts of dough at both heat settings and moving them to the syrup. Do this until all batches are done.
07 - Once the fried pieces are all in the syrup, flip them so they get coated all over. Leave them in the syrup for 2 to 3 hours until the cookies soak up the sweet flavor.
08 - Take the cookies out of the syrup and set them on parchment paper to dry. Sprinkle sesame seeds and pine nuts across the tops.
09 - These chewy honey cookies are best shared with tea or eaten as a sweet ending to a meal. Serve and enjoy!

# Helpful Notes:

01 - A beloved Korean treat, yakgwa is traditionally enjoyed during holidays and celebrations.
02 - Cooking these in two parts—first at a low temp and then higher—gives them both a soft inside and a crispy golden outside.
03 - Store your cookies in an airtight container where they’ll taste even better over the next two weeks.

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