by REERA YOO | @reeraboo
editor@charactermedia.com
It’s summer, which means it’s time to hit the beach and eat cool summer treats. Of course, in South Korea, nothing says summer treats more than patbingsu, or shaved ice.
This incredibly popular dessert can be found almost everywhere–in bakeries, hotels, specialty shops and street vendors. Traditionally, patbingsu consists of shaved ice and three other ingredients: red bean paste, rice cakes and ground nut powder. Fruits and ice cream are occasionally added for presentation and taste.
But according to Kotaku and Korean forum Instiz, several students at all-girls high schools have been adding a few more ingredients of their own.
Here’s what a traditional patbingsu looks like before it’s mixed:
(Photo courtesy of Look and Walk)
Simple, cute, classic. Now, this is what these schoolgirls made:
I’m not sure whether I should be more impressed by the number of ingredients or the sheer massive size of the bowl. In the past few months, images of these female students’ hodgepodge of sweets have popped up on various Korean foodie sites like GreedEat and several Internet forums.
The ingredients seem to include tubs of ice cream, Peperos, cookies, chocolate bars and pretty much anything sugary enough to give you a heart attack.
This looks like an explosion of colors and future regrets.
Death by chocolate, anyone?
They really should have added more popsicles.
If you’re looking to create your own gigantic patbingsu, you’ll need a lot of ingredients and some hungry friends to help you finish the meal. Seriously, do not attempt to eat this junk food beast by yourself.
I counted, and there are 20 cups of nutella on that bench. No one needs that much nutella.
You pour everything into bowl like this…
Stir well…
Attack the bowl with your spoons!
Make sure to eat everything.
Lick the bowl clean if you have to. You don’t want to waste precious ingredients.
And you’re done! Good job, you’re a champion.
Many of these female students seemed to have participated in the giant patbingsu challenge to create memories and bond with their fellow classmates. You have to admit, the dessert is a pretty good dish for group study sessions.
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All images via Instiz
