I saw this in South Korea, which I recognized from watching the Netflix Squid Games last year, so of course I had to buy the kit. I finally had time to test it out, and made two of each shape. So we will play the game later and see who WINS! Ha ha! Can’t wait!
The kit we bought, but honestly, you can just use a metal ladle and cookie cutters
I made two of each shape. It just takes putting about 2 tablespoons granulated sugar in a ladle over a flame, stirring constantly til sugar melts. Then add a pinch of baking soda, stir til foamy. Pour onto silicone mat. Stamp with cookie cutters.
While easy, it does take a bit to get the hang of it. Here’s my first dozen FAILED attempts. First I cooked the sugar too long and it tasted burnt, so gotta take it off the flame when there’s just a hint of brown. Second attempt, didn’t cook long enough and there were still micro sugar crystals, so when the cookie cutter touched the mass, it seized and crystallized out. Third attempt, I put too much baking soda and the thing puffed up too much and was way too thick, although the product tasted better because it wasn’t hard like rock candy! The 4th, 5th, 6th, etc attempts, the sugar mass stuck to either the cookie flattener or the cookie cutter, even when I applied oil to the cutters, or tried to use a second silicon mat to press. Don’t tap the cookie sheet to flatten either because that will shatter your other cooled cookies. Yes, I learned the hard way! The trick is to forget flattening with a cookie press. Just use the chopsticks to spread the molten sugar mass out a bit. Then wait at least 10 secs before applying the cookie cutter. Apply cookie cutter lightly, and if it doesn’t release, wait a few more seconds, then press cookie cutter in. I was about to give up after all those failed attempts, but the experimentalist in me just couldn’t stop.