Strawberry Milk (Korean)

korean-strawberrymilk This is a simple and easy to follow recipe for homemade Korean strawberry milk with fresh strawberries. Nothing artificial in here. Made with a simple strawberry purée and chunks of fresh strawberries for texture, you'll never want to go back to the store bought stuff. Use any kind of milk, non-dairy works too. Korean strawberry milk is a popular drink in Korea served during the summertime in many cafes. Korean strawberry milk is different from regular strawberry milk because it's made entirely of real strawberries. Nothing artificial here and no strangely processed strawberry syrup either.

1¼ cups strawberries, fresh or frozen
¼ cup sugar
¾ cup fresh strawberries - cut into pieces, about ⅓" (1 cm)
2 cups any milk, preferably coconut milk

Purée the 1¼ cups of strawberries using a blender, food processor, or masher. If using frozen strawberries, you can thaw them a bit in the microwave or use a high speed blender.

In a small pot, add the strawberry purée, sugar, and a third of the cut strawberry pieces. Heat until it comes to a boil. Let it boil for 1 minute, turn off the heat, and let it cool on the counter or chill in the refrigerator.

(Cook's Note: You can opt to skip the boiling step but I recommend you consume this the day of making it. The purée will also be more thin and watery but will have more fresh strawberry flavour as it's not heated.)

Take two 16 oz glasses and add half of the cooled strawberry puree and half of the remaining cut strawberry pieces into each glass. Swirl it up and around the glass to make a pattern. Next pour half of your milk of choice into each glass and serve immediately. Optional: top with whipped cream.

Makes 2 servings.

Cook's Notes:

The cooked strawberry puree can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Serve immediately once the puree and strawberry pieces are combined with the milk.