Pajeon

The Korean pancake whose entire filling is whole spring onions laid parallel in the pan

Origin: Dongnae, Busan & the Korean Peninsula

From the journey of Spring Onion.

Most pancakes hold their filling in suspension. Pajeon lays it out flat. Whole spring onions are placed side by side across the pan, parallel and touching, and only then is the batter poured around them. The onions are the structure, not an inclusion, and a properly made pajeon holds together because they hold it together. Pulled apart, it comes away in strips along the line of the onions. The famous version is Dongnae pajeon, from the district of that name in Busan, which was a spa town under the Joseon kings and is said to have sent the dish to court. It uses long scallions, a quantity of seafood pressed in amongst them, and a batter loosened with beaten egg over the top, which sets into something between a pancake and an omelette. It is thicker and softer than the everyday haemul pajeon sold everywhere else, and Busan takes the distinction seriously. The association with rain is real and not a tourist invention. Koreans eat pajeon when it rains, and the usual explanation offered is that the sound of batter hitting hot oil resembles rain on a roof. Whatever the origin, the pattern is measurable: sales of makgeolli, the cloudy unfiltered rice beer that is the fixed accompaniment, rise on wet days. The batter itself repays attention. Korean cooks reach for a proportion of rice flour or potato starch alongside the wheat, because a purely wheaten batter goes soft within minutes and the whole ambition of the dish is an edge that stays crisp whilst the middle stays tender.

Ingredients

Pancake

  • 300 g spring onions, trimmed to the length of your pan

Batter

  • 120 g plain flour
  • 60 g rice flour or potato starch
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 0.5 tsp caster sugar
  • 240 ml ice-cold water

Filling

  • 200 g mixed raw seafood: squid, prawns, and clams, chopped small
  • 2 whole eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 whole red chilli, thinly sliced on the diagonal

Frying

  • 6 tbsp neutral oil, for frying

Dipping Sauce

  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp rice vinegar
  • 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
  • 0.5 tsp gochugaru (Korean chilli flakes)

Method

  1. Trim the spring onions so they fit the diameter of your pan and halve any thick white shanks lengthways so they lie flat.
  2. Whisk the two flours with the salt and sugar, then beat in the ice-cold water until just smooth. Do not overwork it and do not let it rest.
  3. Whisk the soy sauce, vinegar, sesame seeds, and gochugaru together for the dipping sauce and set aside.
  4. Heat 3 tbsp of the oil in a 24 cm frying pan over a medium-high heat until it shimmers.
  5. Lay the spring onions across the pan in a single tight layer, all running the same way, alternating white and green ends so the thickness evens out.
  6. Pour the batter slowly over and between them, just enough to fill the gaps rather than to submerge them. Scatter the seafood and chilli over the top and press lightly.
  7. Cook for four to five minutes until the underside is set and golden and the edges have gone lacy and crisp.
  8. Pour the beaten egg evenly over the top, then flip the whole pancake in one confident movement using a large spatula or a plate.
  9. Add the remaining oil around the edge, press the pancake down flat, and cook for a further three to four minutes until the second side is golden.
  10. Slide onto a board, cut into squares with scissors or a knife, and serve at once with the dipping sauce and cold makgeolli.

Notes

Three hundred grams of spring onions to a single pancake is correct and looks absurd in the pan before the batter goes in. For the plain everyday version, pa jeon without seafood, leave out the squid and prawns entirely. The vegetable stands alone perfectly well and this is how it is most often made at home. Kimchi jeon and haemul pajeon are the two other common members of the family, the first using chopped aged kimchi and a spoonful of its juice in the batter. The rice flour matters. Substituting all plain flour is possible and gives a noticeably softer, less crisp pancake that must be eaten at once. Makgeolli is the traditional partner and the pairing is close to compulsory. A dry cider is a fair substitute for its slight sweetness and cloudiness.

The Gastrographer

The Gastrographer

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Ingredient originTrade or transit route
Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control
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