This refreshing Korean watermelon punch, called hwachae, is so fun to make and full of tasty ingredients! It's a delicious hydrating treat full of high water-content fruit.
Hwachae is both a drink and dessert! The combination of fresh watermelon, juicy fruit, flavored milk, and a fizzy drink is unusual and compelling, perfect on a hot summer day.
If you love viral recipes like this one, check out some of our other Korean recipes that have are popular - strawberry milk, California roll cucumbers, or cucumber kimchi.
Recipe Features
- Refreshing Korean fruit punch that can be enjoyed as a snack or dessert.
- Endlessly customizable with your favorite fruit!
- So easy to make and very fun to eat.
What is Hwachae?
Subak hwachae, a delicious Korean dessert, is a refreshing fizzy punch filled with fruit. It translates to "flower water" in English.
It's super viral on TikTok because of this cute video of TikToker Amy Flamy's mukbang hwachae video. She made the punch bowl look so tasty and fun to eat, and I knew I had to try it!
This Korean fruit punch is a popular drink in South Korea in the summer months. The watermelon is the one non-negotiable ingredient in the dish, but the rest is quite customizable—use your favorite fruit, whatever type of milk you'd like, and top it off with carbonated water or soda of your choice.
Ingredients
Here's what you'll need to make this traditional Korean punch.
- Fresh watermelon (try to use a seedless watermelon) - I highly recommend hollowing out your watermelon and serving the punch in it if you can. It's a really pretty way to serve it if you're making it for a group.
- Fresh berries or other fresh fruit (bananas, melon, etc.) - you can use your favorite fruit like strawberries, grapes, blueberries, raspberries, dragonfruit, cantaloupe, or kiwi.
- Can of Fruit Cocktail - this is optional, but I like that it recreates the chewiness of fruit jelly. You could also add a popping boba instead of a fruit cocktail.
- Strawberry Milk (or other flavored milk like banana) - choose your favorite creamy flavored milk of choice.
- Carbonated Drink (7Up, Sprite, Ginger Ale, or other lemon-lime soda) - the classic
- Ice - you'll add several ice cubes to keep the punch chilled.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
- Step 1: Place the chopped watermelon, different fruits of your choice, and drained fruit cocktail in a large bowl. Stir to combine.
- Step 2: Pour the strawberry milk over the fruit. Add the ice and stir to combine. Pour in the soft drink.
- Step 3: Stir gently to combine and serve immediately.
Tips for Making Hwachae
Ingredient Tips - Keep everything chilled before using it - everything should be cold when added together.
Recommended Tools - Use a large, sharp knife to cut the watermelon and a small knife to chop strawberries or other fruit.
Storage
This recipe is best served fresh because of the carbonation, but it can be stored in the refrigerator for one day if necessary. Add an additional fizzy drink if you'd like it to be bubbly again!
Substitutions & Variations
- Watermelon - Feel free to cube the watermelon or get fancy with a melon baller and make watermelon balls.
- Fruit - Blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, pineapple, cantaloupe, honeydew, pomegranate seeds, banana, dragon fruit, or any other types of fruit will work in this recipe.
- Fizzy Drink - I used sugar-free 7Up, but you can use Sprite, Lemon Lime Lacroix, ginger ale, or any sparkling lemon juice.
- Toppings - If you want to add some garnish, serve with a lemon slice or edible flowers.
If you try this easy Korean fruit bowl recipe, let us know! Connect with us on Instagram and share your photos, or leave us a rating.
Hwachae Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 cups chopped fresh watermelon
- 1 ½ cups fresh fruit berries, melon, etc
- 1 can (14 ounces) fruit cocktail drained
- 12 ounces carbonated beverage Sprite, 7Up, etc
- 14 ounces strawberry milk
- 1 cup ice cubes
Instructions
- Place the chopped watermelon, additional fruit, and drained fruit cocktail in a large bowl. Stir to combine.
- Pour the strawberry milk over the fruit. Add the ice and stir to combine. Finally, pour in the carbonated drink and stir gently to combine.
- Serve immediately.
Kristina says
I usually use regular whole milk. I will definitely have to make it with strawberry or banana milk! That sounds so delicious.
EW says
Oh yeah, the strawberry is my fave (I like it with banana milk, but I'm not as wild about banana milk in general). The strawberry milk makes it feel extra dessert-ish to me 🙂
Valerie Ching says
I didn’t see your pics before I bought the ingredients so I got Nestle strawberry powder to make the strawberry milk. Do you think that’s okay taste-wise? Or should I get premade strawberry milk like the fairlife one?
EW says
Absolutely fine to use the Nestle powder! It will taste great 🙂
LaToia Lemmons says
Can I use a strawberry coconut milk instead or will that mess up the flavors?
EW says
No that should be fine!