There is a type of Korean confectionary called Sukshilgwa (숙실과) that refers to sweets that are made by using fruits that have been heated and then coated with sweeteners like honey or sugar. Sukshilgwa literally means ‘cooked fruits’, which is basically what sukshilgwa is. It is a traditional Korean sweet that used to be presented for grand feasts, but nowadays sukshilgwa can hardly be seen because of the arduous process in making it.

One type of sweet that falls under the category of Sukshilgwa is Joran (조란). Joran is a tasty Korean treat that involves boiling some jujubes in honey water until they are soft. Then the jujubes are cut open and the pits are thrown out. The rest of the jujubes are formed into the shape that you see in the picture. Then as a decorative measure a piece of pine nut is taken and pressed onto one end of the joran. This is a healthy treat to munch on when you have some time to kill!

Yullan (율란) is a type of sukshilgwa that uses chestnuts. The chestnuts are boiled until they are soft and later formed into the shape of a chestnut by hand. You can kind of cheat and shorten the process by just buying chestnut powder, which is powder that is made from grinding chestnuts. Whether you boil the chestnuts or buy the powder, remember to add some honey to the amount that you like. Then at the very end add some cinnamon powder at the base of the yullan to mimic the look of chestnuts.

Sengran (생란) is a type of sukshilgwa that is made of ginger. The skin off the ginger is first peeled and boiled with sugar water until it is soft. Then the ginger is grinded in a mixer and shaped into a three sided star with some honey. Some people like to coat the outside of the sengran with some sugar or coconut powder to further sweeten the sengran. Sengran has that extra kick or spice mixed with sweetness, so it’ll definitely make an impact on your tongue!