Haemul Pajeon is a crispy and chewy pancake made with scallions and a variety of seafood. It’s one of the most craved Korean appetizers and a great dish to be shared with family!
Korean Seafood Pancake or Haemul Pajeon is one of the most loved appetizers in a Korean BBQ. It not only satisfies the freshness brought by the onions and scallions but also the savor and decadence brought by the seafood. It’s light enough for a starter, but it can also be filling if you’d like to have this for snacks.
When it’s raining, pajeon is one of the things Koreans often want to eat. As the rain falls, the pancake sizzles, and a shot of makgeolli really hits differently, I’m not sure why. Kakaka~
This is a super simple and super easy Korean pancake recipe! In collaboration with my good friend Rekstizzy—a rapper, actor, hustler, and one of the people who inspired me to create online content, he made the dish successfully with my instructions! With that, I know for sure you’ll be able to recreate this at home too! Let’s go!
Ingredients for Haemul Pajeon
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Pancake Batter
- All-purpose Flour – For the base of the pancake
- Potato Starch – In combination with the flour, this will also be part of the base of the pancake, but it will also add a nice crunch!
- Water – To help create a wet batter consistency
- Egg – This will help bind and add flavor to the pancake
- Garlic – For additional fresh flavor to the pancake
- Salt and Pepper – To taste
- Hondashi – Optional, but you can sprinkle some to make the batter tastier
Korean pancake batters are usually available in Korean grocery stores, but it’s also not that hard to make it from scratch. This simple pancake batter from scratch is what I also often use in my other pancake recipes such as yachae jeon, buchu jeon, or kimchi jeon.
Seafood Pancake Filling
- Scallions – For fresh flavor and I love how it gets nicely golden and crisp
- Onion – These will nicely complement the scallions and the seafood with its natural sweetness
- Fresh Shrimp and Scallops – Shoutout to Hibi for supplying our fresh seafood for this recipe. You can also use other seafood like mussels, clams, and even oysters. Frozen seafood is amenable too!
Haemul Pajeon Dipping Sauce Recipe
If you want a simple dipping sauce for the pancake, combine the following:
- Scallions
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1/2 tablespoon sugar
- Black pepper
If you want extra kick and spice on your dipping sauce, you can also add some onions, jalapeno, and pepper flakes.
How to make Korean Seafood Pancakes?
As you combine all-purpose flour, potato starch, water, egg, garlic, salt, pepper, and hondashi. Mix this thoroughly and check the consistency—it should be a little thick. This is because there’s additional water content from scallions, onions, and seafood so it will thin out later.
Taste the batter before adding the seafood and vegetables. If you plan to use dipping sauce, season it just right. If you don’t want to use dipping sauce, season more to your liking, then set aside.
Chop the scallions into 3-inch pieces and the onion julienne so they crisscross and bond when cooked. Add this to the pancake batter and mix until everything is coated well. Use your hands when mixing! This ensures that the batter is through every crease of the vegetables.
The consistency of the batter should still be a bit thick at this point. If you find the batter too thick, add water. If you find it too watery, add one tablespoon of flour and potato starch at a time.
Pat dry and dice up the shrimp and scallion, but not too small so you still get a big chunk when you bite into it. Feel free to experiment with the size of the seafood according to how you will enjoy it even more!
Once everything is prepared, you can either add the seafood to the batter or top them on the pancake so you can nicely position the shrimp and evenly distribute the big chunks of scallops. Either way works fine!
In a nonstick pan, heat up some oil until there is a little bit of white smoke. At this point, you need to place the batter into the pan and shape it quickly and into a thin, wide, circle. Add the seafood on top of the pancake and space them out evenly. You have about 30 seconds to do this otherwise you won’t be able to reshape it anymore.
TIP: Using a nonstick pan and a big spatula helps spread the batter evenly making it easier to flip the jeon later.
To cook, use the 2-2-2-2 method where you cook the pajeon in high heat for 2 minutes on each side, then cook it on medium heat for 2 more minutes on each side. In every flip, add oil on the edges of the pan and do a little shake to spread it so the pancake gets crispier. Do not lower the temperature too much otherwise, it will turn soggy.
Flatten it every after flipping, and do some taps to get the steam out and help it cook faster on the inside. Cook the pajeon until golden brown and crispy. To get there, the key is always patience!
TIP: Always watch out for white smoke, because this means the pancake is starting to burn. Keep an eye on it and flip as needed. Always be careful when you flip!
And there you go! Haemul pajeon that’s golden brown and crispy on the outside, and soft and juicy on the inside. Serve this hot with a dipping sauce and makgeolli, and enjoy!
Other Korean snacks you may like:
Make sure to leave a rating, a comment, or tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Tiktok when you chop them up! Yeobosayo!
Korean Seafood Pancake (Haemul Pajeon)
Equipment
- Nonstick Pan
- Big Spatula
Ingredients
- Vegetable or Canola Oil For frying
- 1/2 of Whole Onion Julienne
- 3 stalks Scallions Sliced lengthwise before chopping into 3-inch pieces
- 3 pcs Big Scallops Diced
- 5 pcs Shrimp Peeled
Batter
- 1 cup All Purpose Flour
- 1/2 cup Potato Starch
- 1 pc Egg
- 1/2 cup Water
- Salt and Pepper
- Hondashi
- Minced Garlic
Dipping Sauce
- Scallions Chopped
- 1/4 cup Water
- 1/4 cup Soy Sauce
- 1/2 tbsp Minced Garlic
- 1/2 tbsp Sesame Oil
- 1/2 tbsp Sugar
- Black Pepper To taste
Instructions
- Chop the scallions into 3-inch pieces and slice the onion julienne. Set aside.
- Pat dry the shrimp and scallops and chop them up in big chunks.
- Make the batter by combining all-purpose flour, potato starch, egg, water, salt, pepper, hondashi, and minced garlic. Mix well then taste and adjust accordingly. Add salt, pepper, and hondashi as needed.
- Add the scallions and onion into the batter and mix well until everything is coated. Check the consistency of the batter, it should be a little thick. Adjust the batter as needed, add water if it’s too thick, and add flour and potato starch if it’s too loose.
- In a nonstick pan, on high heat, heat up a generous amount of oil until there is a bit of white smoke coming out.
- Once the oil is heated, add a handful of batter and shape it into a thin wide circle as quickly as you can. Top the pancake with seafood.
- Cook the pancake for 2 minutes on high heat on each side, then 2 minutes on medium heat on each side. Add a round of oil as needed every flip to crisp up the pancake.
- Watch out for white smoke, and flip as needed. Flatten to crisp it up and do taps to check if the inside is cooked through.
- Cook until the pancake is golden brown.
- Serve hot with a dipping sauce and enjoy!
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