Hotteok – Korean pancakes with sugar and nut filling Recipe
Hotteok are sweet, filled yeast pancakes that are sold in Korea on the streets in winter as a warming snack. Inside there is a hot, sticky sugar-and-nut syrup with cinnamon. They are a bit like fried doughnuts, but flat and with a more caramel-like flavor.
These hotteok bring classic Korean street food straight to your kitchen: a soft, chewy yeast dough hides a molten, caramel-like sugar and nut filling with cinnamon that warms you up from the first bite.
Chef's tips
Don’t overfill the dough, otherwise the sugar will leak out during frying and burn in the pan. Make sure the edges are tightly sealed and control the heat – too high and the outside will brown before the inside cooks and the sugar melts properly.
How to serve
Serve hotteok fresh from the pan, slightly cooled, with hot tea, coffee or roasted barley tea. You can dust them lightly with powdered sugar or drizzle with a little honey for extra sweetness.
Ingredients
- wheat flour - 250 g
- rice flour can be omitted and replaced with wheat flour, but it gives a better texture - 50 g
- instant yeast - 1 teaspoon
- sugar for the dough - 1 tablespoon
- salt - 0.25 teaspoon
- milk lukewarm, can be replaced with water - 180 ml
- vegetable oil for the dough and frying - 2 tablespoon
- brown sugar for the filling - 80 g
- walnuts finely chopped - 40 g
- cinnamon - 0.5 teaspoon
- sesame seeds optional, for the filling - 1 tablespoon
Preparation
- In a bowl, mix lukewarm milk, yeast and 1 tablespoon of sugar, then set aside for 5–10 minutes until foam appears on the surface.
- Add the wheat flour, rice flour, salt and 1 tablespoon of oil. Knead with a spoon or by hand for 5 minutes until you get a soft, slightly sticky dough.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a cloth and leave in a warm place for about 40 minutes, until the dough clearly doubles in volume.
- In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar, chopped nuts, cinnamon and sesame seeds.
- Once the dough has risen, lightly dust your hands with flour. Divide the dough into 6 equal portions and shape each into a ball.
- Flatten each ball in your hand into a disc about 0.5 cm thick, place 1–1.5 tablespoons of filling in the center. Gather the edges of the dough to the center like a pouch and seal well so the sugar doesn’t leak out.
- Heat a thin layer of oil in a pan over medium heat. Place a few buns seam side down and fry for 1–2 minutes, until the bottom is golden.
- Flip the pancakes and gently flatten them with a spatula or the bottom of a mug so they are flat. Fry for another 2–3 minutes on each side over medium-low heat, until golden and the sugar inside has melted.
- Serve carefully – the filling is very hot and runny right after frying. It’s best to wait 2–3 minutes before the first bite.
Storage
Placuszki po wystudzeniu możesz przechować w lodówce i odgrzać na suchej patelni lub w piekarniku w 160°C przez kilka minut. Po zamrożeniu odgrzewaj bez rozmrażania, aż środek będzie znów płynny.
