Sweet pancake with persimmon punch (hotteok with sujeonggwa)

Hotteok is a popular Korean street food eaten during the winter months. The yeasted dough is filled with sugar, cinnamon and nuts, flattened and cooked until crisp. Sujeonggwa is a traditional, cold fruit punch scented with ginger, cinnamon and persimmon.

• serves

  10

• prep

  25 minutes

• cook

  30 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

Hotteok

• 125 ml (½ cup) warm water
• 1 tbsp caster sugar
• 2 tsp dried yeast
• 450 g (3 cups) plain flour
• 250 ml (1 cup) milk
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil

Filling

• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp white or caster sugar
• ½  tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp crushed toasted peanuts, optional

Sujeonggwa

• 2 litres (8 cups) water
• 100 g (10 cm x 2 cm) ginger, sliced
• 12 cassia bark or cinnamon sticks
• 330 g (1½ cups) raw sugar
• 55 g (¼ cup) brown sugar
• 2 tbsp pine nuts, toasted
• 2 persimmons, thinly sliced

Resting time 1–2 hours

Chilling time 2 hours

The following recipe has been tested and edited by SBS Food and may differ slightly from the podcast.

Instructions

To make the punch, combine the water, ginger and cinnamon in a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until well flavoured with the ginger and cinnamon. Remove from the heat, add the sugars and stir until dissolved. Allow the punch cool, strain (discard solids). Add half of the sliced persimmon then refrigerate until chilled.

To serve, place a slice of persimmon in a glass, fill with punch and top with pinenuts.

To make the pancake batter, combine the warm water, ½ tablespoon sugar and yeast in a bowl and mix until combined. Set aside for 10 minutes.

Sift flour into another bowl. Add the yeast mixture, milk and salt to the flour and mix until a sticky dough begins to form. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 3–4 minutes until evenly mixed. The dough doesn’t need to be smooth end elastic. Place in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and allow to prove in a warm place until doubled in size (1–2 hours).

Combine all the filling ingredients in a bowl and set aside.

With floured hands (alternatively, use oil on your hands to stop the dough sticking), roll the dough into balls slightly larger than a golf ball. Lightly flatten a ball in your palm and place 1 teaspoon of the filling mixture in the centre. Fold the dough over the filling and seal to enclose. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.  

Heat the oil in large frying pan over medium-high heat. Place a dough ball in the frying pan, spray the base of a plate or bowl with oil and use it to flatten the dough. Cook for 2–3 minutes until the dough puffs up and the underside is golden. Flip, flatten a little if needed, and cook for another 2–3 minutes until golden.

Serve hot with the punch to the side.

Photography by Alan Benson

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.