Sikhye.

🪷 My Favorite Drink: Sikhye

When I go to a café, I drink coffee more than 90% of the time.
At home, too, I usually drink two cups of coffee a day.

But there’s one Korean drink I love almost as much as coffee — sikhye, the sweet rice drink.

If I didn’t have to worry about gaining weight, I’d probably drink more sikhye than coffee!

Since my childhood, I’ve enjoyed sikhye endlessly, and I’m sure it has added to my weight just like instant noodles have. 😄

Before I got married, my mother, who was a wonderful cook, used to make sikhye for us all the time.

In winter, nothing could beat the taste of her slightly icy sikhye — it was pure heaven.

The grains had a uniquely delightful texture — tender yet slightly chewy, like edible paper — and pine nuts floated on top, adding a nutty fragrance to the rich barley malt aroma.

If my mother were still alive, I’m sure she would still be making sikhye for us, waiting with a smile. 💛

Of course, the ones I buy at the rice cake shop these days can’t compare to my mom’s.

Still, I keep drinking it because that barley malt aroma brings back such warm memories.

Come to think of it, whenever I look back on my past, my late mother — who passed away more than ten years ago — is always part of my memories.
Even now, as a grandmother myself, I can’t help but wonder: will my two sons, too, have such moments remembering me someday?

Sikhye will always remain my most beloved drink — forever and ever. 🌾