← Nouns Cooking · Korean

Ingredients

• 1 Courgette (zucchini), cut into thin matchsticks
• 1 Carrot, cut into thin matchsticks
• 1 small potato, cut into thin matchsticks
• ½ Onion, thinly sliced
• 100 g garlic chives or spring onions, cut into 5 cm lengths
• 1 Green chilli, thinly sliced (optional)
• 150 g Plain (all-purpose) flour
• 30 g potato starch or cornflour
• ½ tsp Baking powder
• ½ tsp Salt
• 300 ml ice-cold water
• 6 tbsp oil, for frying
• 3 tbsp Soy sauce
• 1½ tbsp White vinegar
• 1 tbsp Water
• 1 pinch Gochugaru (Korean chilli flakes)
• 1 tsp Sesame seeds

Method

1. Whisk the flour, starch, baking powder and salt with the ice-cold water into a smooth, thin batter.
2. Fold in all the vegetables. There should be more vegetables than batter, just lightly coated.
3. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Spread a third of the mixture into a thin, even round. Fry for 3–4 min, until the bottom is golden and crisp.
4. Flip, press down with the spatula and add a little more oil around the edge. Fry for 2–3 min more. Repeat with the rest.
5. Mix the dipping sauce and serve the pancakes cut into wedges, hot from the pan.

Tips

• Ice-cold water and not overmixing are the secrets to a crisp jeon.
• Thin is better than thick: a thick pancake steams instead of crisping.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Aaron and Claire Beyond Kimchee FutureDish