| Sungnyung | |
 | |
| Korean name | |
|---|---|
| Hangul | 숭늉 |
| RR | sungnyung |
| MR | sungnyung |
Sungnyung (Korean: 숭늉) is atraditionalKoreaninfusion made from boiledscorched rice.
This drink is typically made fromnurungji, the roasted (but not charred) crust of rice that forms on the bottom of a pot after cooking rice. Water is poured on this brown crust and the contents are put to a simmer until the water gains enough flavor of the scorched rice.[1]
Records ofsungnyung can be found in the lateJoseon era documents ofImwŏn kyŏngjeji (임원경제지).
Rice in Korea was traditionally made by using a heavy iron cauldron (like aDutch oven), with the rice being cooked until all water had been boiled away and a crust made on the bottom of the pot.[2] Makingsungnyung would not only prevent waste of the remaining rice that was sticking to the pot, it would also naturally clear out the pot's insides which made cleaning easier. Assungnyung was made after rice had been served, it was typically served after the meal.[1]
The consumption ofsungnyung waned asnickel-silver pots and modern electricrice cookers gained popularity, as they do not generally leave a layer of roasted crust after the rice is steamed.[1] However, in the late 20th centurysungnyung began to gain popularity again and many electric rice cookers now come with the ability to cooksungnyung.[3] Prepackagednurungji are also commercially available and can be used to makesungnyung in a short of amount of time by just adding boiling water.[4]
