Hwachae: Authentic Recipe of Korean Watermelon Punch 

If you’ve been searching for a sweet and refreshing summer dessert, this Korean hwachae (화채) will save you on a hot summer day — and you can make it in just 10 minutes. There are many recipes for this Korean watermelon dessert, but today, I’m going to show you the easiest, most authentic recipe that Koreans use most often.

What is Hwahae?

Traditional hwachae is known to have originated during the Joseon Dynasty. In the past, people enjoyed omija hwachae, made by adding fruits and honey to a cold omija (magnolia berry) drink, creating a sweet and refreshing traditional beverage. Since hwa means “flower” in Korean, it is believed that flowers were once added to this drink as well.

Today, the most common type is subak hwachae, which is made with watermelon. The inside of a watermelon is scooped out and mixed with bite-sized pieces of other fruits, such as bananas and apples. Then, it is served with Sprite and strawberry milk. One easy way to make it is to use fruit cocktail instead of fresh fruit, as in today’s recipe. Many Korean bars serve hwachae-fruit bowl this way, so if you’ve tried it in Korea before, you might just shout, “Ah! This is the taste!”

Korean watermelon punch is a treat to enjoy with family or friends, and it is also a popular bar snack to pair with drinks.

Viral Hwachae-girl

Do you remember Amy Flamy, the famous TikToker who did a mukbang with subak hwachae bowl at 3 a.m. because she said she needed to hydrate? Thanks to her, this Korean watermelon dessert has become popular around the world. She was right—this watermelon punch is one of the best ways to stay hydrated.

Watermelon Punch Ingredients

• Half a watermelon

You’ll use the watermelon shell itself as a bowl. As you scrape out the watermelon, the juices blend into the base, making it even sweeter and more refreshing.

• Strawberry milk + Sprite

You can add Sprite alone, but mixing in strawberry milk will give you the classic, sweet Hwachae style served as a bar snack in Korea. Here in Belgium, where I’m currently staying, I couldn’t find the same strawberry milk that I had in Korea, so I made my own by mixing milk with strawberry syrup. If you don’t have strawberry syrup, you can mix strawberry jam into milk to make simple strawberry milk.

• Fruit cocktail and other fruit toppings

At Korean bars, they almost always add canned fruit cocktail, since fresh fruits can be quite expensive in Korea. I’ll recommend some tasty fruit topping options later in this post.

• Sweetened condensed milk

Condensed milk gives it a rich, sweet, nutty flavor that sugar just can’t replace.

The Most Authentic Hwachae Recipe

If you look on TikTok, you’ll see lots of hwachae bowl videos where people scoop the watermelon into perfect little balls and make it look super fancy. But real, authentic hwachae doesn’t need all that. The classic way is simply pouring watermelon, fruit cocktail, Sprite, and strawberry milk all together and mixing it up.

• Watermelon bowl

Scoop out the inside of the watermelon completely to make a watermelon bowl. Cut the scooped-out watermelon into bite-sized pieces.

• Fruit and Sprite mix

Add the watermelon and fruit cocktail into the watermelon bowl. Then pour in the strawberry milk and Sprite, and add condensed milk for extra sweetness. If your watermelon is on the smaller side, you can reduce the amount of milk and Sprite from this recipe. The ratio of milk to Sprite is 1:2. When I made it today, I found the strawberry milk and Sprite mix was a bit too much for my small half-watermelon.

Topping Recommendations

• Fruit

Honestly, any fruit tastes amazing in hwachae. Koreans often add bananas because they’re easy to find, as well as pineapple, kiwi, and strawberries. If you order it at a restaurant or bar in Korea, it will usually include sweet and delicious canned fruit like canned peaches.

• Popsicle

Adding fruity popsicles like the famous Korean Subak Bar (watermelon) or Screw Bar makes it even cooler and tastier.

• Gummy Candy

Adding some gummy candies will give you a chewy texture and an extra burst of fruity sweetness in every bite.

Healthy Version

If you’re worried about too much sugar, you can easily make a healthier version of hwachae.

• Zero-sugar Sprite or sparkling water

Instead of regular Sprite, try using zero-sugar soda or plain sparkling water.

• Fresh fruit

Swap out the syrupy canned fruit cocktail for fresh fruit to cut down on sugar and make it healthier overall.

• No-sugar fruit cocktail
  • Recommended: US

Instead of the typical fruit cocktail with syrup, you can use a no sugar added fruit cocktail to keep it lighter and healthier

• Honey

If you want to add sweetness without condensed milk, honey works well, or you could even try a sugar substitute like stevia. Just keep in mind that condensed milk has a creamy, rich sweetness you might miss if you leave it out.

Summer Korean Dessert

Besides hwachae, there are plenty of other summer desserts to enjoy in Korea.

Bingsu

Bingsu is a shaved ice dessert made from finely shaved sweet milk ice, topped with fruits, cookies, and drizzled with syrup or condensed milk. It’s sweet, cold, and perfect for sharing with 2–4 people.

This one is a strawberry bingsu made with fresh seasonal strawberries. The key to bingsu is getting the perfect ratio of milk ice to water ice — I’ll share that secret recipe with you too! It’s seriously sweet, refreshing, and so good.

Strawberry Latte

In Korea, strawberries start appearing in the winter, so strawberry lattes are a popular seasonal menu item in cafés from winter through early spring. However, strawberry season is in the summer here in Europe, so I highly recommend making this a summer dessert drink.

You can also drizzle Korean-style strawberry syrup (ddalki-cheong) over bingsu or mix it with sparkling water for a refreshing mocktail.

Ingredients Guide

• Strawberry Milk: US | UK
• Condensed Milk: US | UK
• Fruit Cocktail: US | UK
• No Sugar added Fruit Cocktail: US

Disclosure: Blonde Kimchi is part of the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program that allows websites to earn advertising fees by linking to Amazon.com and promoting products.