Makgeolli Starter (석임) Testing

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석임

For the upcoming brew I decided to do something a little different.


Usually I steam the rice, making godubap 고두밥, and to that I add nuruk 누룩, yeast, and water. This is normal for me and it's what I've been doing for years (except for that year in Korea when I didn't use yeast).

This time I will use what is called seokim 석임.

What's seokim?

Seokim is a starter that can be used to brew makgeolli. It's started a few days ahead of the actual brew, and is added to the primary fermentation ingredients in place of yeast.


What's seokim made of?

It's actually pretty simple. Seokim uses all of the same ingredients as a makgeolli brew, just in a smaller size and different ratio. For example, the seokim recipe I used calls for 250g rice flour, 50g nuruk, 2-3g wine yeast, 25g whole wheat flour, and about 500ml water.


Freshly made seokim
Using seokim the brew hits the ground running, powered by yeast that are primed and ready to go. The yeast in seokim has been eating for a few days already, so they know what they're doing. For those with experience baking, I relate it to using a bread starter.

Seokim after 2 days of fermentation
I will post the instructions on how to make seokim using the ratio above with my upcoming post on green tea makgeolli. Until then, cheers!

 

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