Lay a piece of parchment paper down in a baking sheet, and grease the paper with cooking spray, wiping it down so the surface of the paper is smooth and glossy with grease.
In a stainless steel or copper ladle, add the sugar. Hold the ladle over a medium flame, stirring constantly with a chopstick (a spoon would be too large). Watch the sugar carefully, and remove it from the heat a few times to let the sugars melt without burning. Just before the last of the sugar has melted, remove from the heat and stir constantly until the whole thing is liquid. Add your pinch of baking soda and stir well to combine. (you'll know if you added too much if it quickly puffs up and becomes voluminous and airy)
Once the baking soda is all mixed in, (this should only take a few seconds) keep stirring while holding the ladle back over the flame for 5 more seconds. Remove from the heat and pour out onto the greased parchment paper, being careful to keep it as circular as possible.
This next step is important: let the dalgona sit there for 10-15 seconds undisturbed. Then lay another greased piece of parchment paper over top (I recommend cutting out just a small square of paper) and then press down with any flat piece of metal, a metal measuring cup works well. Once done, quickly remove the top piece of parchment paper and it should come away from the dalgona pretty easily. Quickly press your desired cookie-cutter shape into the dalgona, pressing all the way down. Remove the cutter and let the dalgona cool for another 10-15 seconds, then carefully slide a spatula underneath and transfer the dalgona to a second baking sheet with parchment paper to cool completely.
Clean out the ladle and repeat as many times as you'd like! Enjoy!
