Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes
Servings: 1
Ingredients:
-1 tbsp brown sugar
-1 pinch baking soda
-1 tsp vegetable oil
*Equipment:
-1 ladle or extra small sauce pan
-candy sticks/skewers
-1 small silicon spatula
-1 flate plate, enamel or metal surface
-hotteok press or ceramic disk
-ppopgi milk or cookie cutter mold
Directions:
*Before you start:
-Coat a pan or a metal/stone/enamel surface with a bit of vegetable oil. Coat the hotteok press or any ceramic/metal/plate/pan that you can use to press the melted sugar with oil as well. Have these 2 items and spatula ready next to your stove.
Place the sugar in a large ladle and heat it over the stove, using medium heat. Cook the sugar for 3-5 minutes, being careful not to burn it. You want a light caramel consistency, stirring occasionally with chopsticks to prevent lumps.
When you feel the texture is smooth and you are satisfied with its color, add a pinch of baking soda and mix quickly. Move the ladle one more time back onto the heat of the stove and heat it quickly for a few seconds (5-10 seconds), until the sugar mixture starts to puff up. It will make everything change to a creamy brown tone.
Move the mix to the pressing surface (*sprinkle sugar on the surface if desired). Pour all the caramel on top of it. Put a skewer or lollipop stick in the lower center of the candy and press hard with a flat object or oiled hotteok press that's essential if you don't want any bumps.
Promptly take a cookie cutter and press hard on the center and stamp the figure you like. (*no cookie cutters or molds? You can use a skewer or chop sticks and make a desired shape)
*The hardest part about making this candy is the pressing down and making an indentation into the mold. It is not necessary to have a design)