Korean Pancake Face Off

As much as I love the traditional Chinese scallion pancakes, I have to admit, I love Korean pancakes (pa jeon or pajung or whatever) even more. I love how they're so moist on the inside but still super crispy on the outside. And even better, it's a great way to get rid of leftovers, which I really appreciate because some weeks I have a lot of leftover hot pot ingredients that I need to get rid of.

The only problem is, every time I ask a Korean how to make this from scratch, they just tell me that their moms make it from the mix. Seriously? I can't think of a single thing that my mom makes that uses a mix! Fortunately, I live close enough to several Korean grocery stores and can pick up the mix, which does deliver an almost no-fail pancake every time.

Looking at the list of ingredients, though (wheat flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, MSG), it just seems incredible that it can't be replicated from scratch. I've tried both David Lebovitz's and the New York Times versions, but they both couldn't compare to the mix. The last week I saw this post on thekitchn.com. Could it be that I finally found a recipe that could replicate or even supersede the mix?

It seemed likely. Not only did this recipe include rice flour, which I always assumed was used in pa jeon because of the light, moist texture, but it also used seltzer water to add airiness to the batter. So I decided to have a side-by-side comparison of the two pancakes. The ground rules:

1. I used the same filling for both: scallions, diced and sweated bok choy stems, sliced fish cake, marinated and sauteed beef, sliced and sauteed Chinese sausage.
2. I would use the same non-stick pan and the same amount of oil (exactly 2 tablespoons of canola) for each.
3. I would cook both the same way: 4 minutes on each side at medium heat.

Homemade Korean Pancake from Scratch (based on this recipe)
makes 1 big pancake

1.2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup rice flour
1 egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cups cold unflavored seltzer water
1/2 tablespoon canola oil, plus extra for the pan

In a large bowl, gently mix flours, eggs, seltzer, and oil until smooth. Let rest a few minutes and then stir in filling, tossing to coat.

Heat a large frying pan over medium heat and coat with 2 tablespoons of canola oil. When pan is hot, add batter and spread out so it's no more than a half-inch thick. Turn heat down to medium-low.

Cook about 4 minutes, flipping when pancake no longer resists, then cook about 4 minutes on the other side. Pancake should be crispy and brown, with no liquid inside.

As you can see from the pictures, I had a hard time flipping the pancake over in one piece, but that's due to user error and not one of the criteria for this contest.

Korean Pancake Mix (from the back of the bag)
makes 1 big pancake

1 cup Korean pancake mix
3/4 cups water

In a large bowl, mix mix and water until there are no lumps. Add filling, mixing to coat.

Heat a large frying pan over medium heat and coat with 2 tablespoons of canola oil. When pan is hot, add batter and spread out so it's no more than a half-inch thick. Turn heat down to medium-low.

Cook about 4 minutes, flipping when pancake no longer resists, then cook about 4 minutes on the other side.

The batter for the mix version was definitely a lot drier due to the fact that there was no egg or oil added, and you definitely had to "push" the batter around in the pan to get it to an even thickness. And once again, I tore the pancake in two trying to flip it over. So I guess both versions are even there. =P

For the dipping sauce, I mixed equal portions of rice wine vinegar and aged soy sauce and added a splash of sesame oil and a pinch of sugar.

Side-by-Side

Comparing the two, all testers found that one was definitely more moist and generally had a preferable texture (less dense) to the other. Otherwise, there didn't seem to be too much of a difference in flavor, although Jenny did mention that because we were using a dipping sauce, just about anything would've tasted the same.

Can you guess which version won the taste test? Answer in the next post.

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Dutch Babies

On snowy days like this when I get to work from home or on a lazy Saturday morning I like to treat myself and make a Dutch baby. Ellen first told me about these puffy pancakes and waxed poetically about how good they were. It wasn't until I was in Ft. Lauderdale with Angela that I got myself to Original Pancake House and finally tried one. We also ordered their other specialty, the Apple Pancake, but compared to that sugar-laden monstrosity, the Dutch baby was clearly the superior.
The Dutch baby contains a lot of egg in its batter and is baked in the oven in a skillet so that it rises to heights never before seen by any other pancake and finally settles down into a custardy shell ready to be topped with powdered sugar, fresh lemon juice, and melted butter. I actually forgo the additional melted butter don't let that stop you from trying it.
When I went looking for the recipe on-line to try to make myself I found two delightful blogs about it: this one from Orangette, who is one of my favorite food writers, and this one from Steamy Kitchen which showcases her adorable sons making the simple recipe. Notice that the latter is called a German Oven Pancake; I believe the Dutch moniker arose from a bastardization of the word Deutsch, which is German for German (yay for 3 years of high school German!). I chose to make the latter simply because I don't usually have half and half in the fridge unless I am making ice cream. I use a Calphalon Everyday Pan for this; make sure that whatever pan or skillet you use is oven safe. In other words, if there are any plastic bits, don't put it in the oven!

With this recipe we come across the same issue as with the nian gao recipe, namely, how to mix raw eggs, milk, and melted butter together without either cooking the eggs with the melted butter or solidifying the melted butter with cold milk. My solution is to use very warm milk--not hot enough cook the eggs and at the same time not cold enough to solidify the butter.

Dutch Baby (adapted from here)
makes one pancake

1/3 cup of all-purpose flour, sifted
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/3 cup milk
1 1/3 tablespoons melted butter
2/3 tablespoon sugar
1/6 teaspoon of salt

Lemon juice
Powdered sugar
Blueberries (optional)
Melted butter (optional)

Preheat oven to 450 °F.

Lightly beat eggs in a large bowl. In a glass measuring cup, heat the milk in the microwave for 30 seconds so that it is very warm but not too hot. Add to the eggs. In the same measuring cup, melt the butter in the microwave for 30 seconds. Add to the milk and eggs and stir. Add salt and sugar.

Gradually add flour to egg mixture, a spoonful at a time and whisk to incorporate until there are no lumps left.

Lightly spray a 9" oven-safe skillet with cooking spray. Pour batter in the skillet. Bake 12-18 minutes, just until the edges are golden. Check your pancake at the 12 minute mark.

Remove from oven and set on a trivet. Serve hot and top with lemon juice, powdered sugar, blueberries, and melted butter, if desired.

I've also seen posts where people have topped theirs with apples and cinnamon or caramelized pears, but I prefer the simple tartness of lemons and blueberries. Eating a Dutch baby requires some care, not only because the pan will be quite hot, but also because if you breathe in while bringing a piece into your mouth, you're likely to inhale quite a lot of powdered sugar.

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