Crispy and Delicious Potato Pancakes (Gamja-jeon) – Baek Jong-won Style
Super Easy Blender Potato Pancakes with Tips from Baek Jong-won
A meal often feels incomplete without potatoes at home, but even with careful storage, they tend to sprout quickly. What’s the best way to use up those potatoes that are starting to sprout? Making delicious potato pancakes, of course! I recently tried a recipe inspired by Baek Jong-won and it was fantastic. This recipe will transform your sprouted potatoes into a wonderful snack or dish. On a rainy day, we crave savory pancakes sizzling in oil. Even without rain, here’s how to make delicious potato pancakes anytime!
The first tip for making exceptionally tasty potato pancakes is to mix equal parts perilla oil and cooking oil. The second tip is to add tuna extract (Korean soy sauce) and salt to the batter for added umami. This way, you can enjoy savory, nutty, crispy-on-the-outside, and moist-on-the-inside (geot-ba-sok-chok) pancakes without needing a separate dipping sauce. I’ve always found that mixing perilla oil and cooking oil for frying makes pancakes and savory crepes taste much better.
Potato Pancake Ingredients- 2 Potatoes (approx. 450g)
- 1 Cheongyang chili pepper (optional)
- 1 Red chili pepper (optional)
Batter Seasoning- 1 Tbsp Tuna extract
- Pinch of salt
- Perilla oil (for frying)
- Cooking oil (for frying)
Dipping Sauce Ingredients (Optional)- 2 Tbsp Soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp Rice wine
- 1 Tbsp Vinegar
- 1 Tbsp Plum extract
- 1/2 Tbsp Toasted sesame seeds
- 1 Tbsp Tuna extract
- Pinch of salt
- Perilla oil (for frying)
- Cooking oil (for frying)
Dipping Sauce Ingredients (Optional)- 2 Tbsp Soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp Rice wine
- 1 Tbsp Vinegar
- 1 Tbsp Plum extract
- 1/2 Tbsp Toasted sesame seeds
Cooking Instructions
Step 1
Prepare 2 potatoes, wash them, peel them, and aim for about 450g. If you like a bit of heat, include a Cheongyang chili pepper, and for color, a red chili pepper is a nice addition. (Chili peppers are optional.)
Step 2
Cut the potatoes into manageable pieces so they can be easily blended. Place the cut potatoes into a blender along with 1/2 cup of water. Blending without water can be difficult.
Step 3
Instead of straining the blended potato mixture through a cheesecloth, you can conveniently strain it using a sieve to separate the solids from the liquid. Set aside the potato solids, and let the liquid settle so the starch can form a sediment at the bottom.
Step 4
Let the potato liquid sit for about 20 minutes until the starch settles. Carefully pour off the clear liquid from the top. Add the reserved potato solids to the settled starch sediment and mix well. Season with tuna extract and salt to taste. (Tip: If the batter seems too thin to fry properly, you can mix in a small amount of pancake mix or tempura powder to help thicken it. I fried mine without adding any flour.)
Step 5
Your potato pancake batter is ready! Now it’s time to fry it to a beautiful golden brown.
Step 6
Mixing equal parts perilla oil and cooking oil in the pan will make your pancakes even more savory and delicious. Once the oil is warm, spoon the batter into the pan, forming round pancakes of your desired size.
Step 7
Arrange the prepared chili peppers on top of the potato pancakes for decoration. (Optional) Fry over medium-low heat, flipping occasionally, until golden brown and crispy on both sides. Ensure the inside is cooked through while the outside achieves a perfect crisp.
Step 8
Pancakes are always best enjoyed fresh off the pan! They were so delicious that I couldn’t resist snacking on a few before taking this picture. I highly recommend enjoying them warm right away.
Step 9
While this recipe is flavorful enough on its own, you can also prepare a dipping sauce if you prefer. For a sweet and tangy sauce, combine soy sauce, vinegar, rice wine (or water), plum extract, and toasted sesame seeds. You can enhance the sauce further by adding chopped scallions, onions, chives, or wild garlic for an even richer flavor.
