Haemulpajeon

Taste and texture

Haemulpajeon is a broad pancake made with flour batter, scallions and seafood. Squid, shrimp and mussels are common; recipes also use oysters or clam meat. Long scallions may be arranged and joined with batter, or shorter ingredients may be mixed together. Generous oil and cooking on both sides create crisp edges and a soft center.

Scallions are trimmed, washed and cut to fit the pan. Thin ones are used, or thick white ends are split lengthwise. Long scallions come away in strands when the pancake is divided; shorter cuts are distributed through the batter. The scallions are a main ingredient alongside seafood, rather than a small garnish.

Seafood is prepared in bite-size pieces. One combination uses peeled, deveined shrimp with squid or clam meat. Home recipes also use frozen seafood mixtures. Scallions and seafood are drained before going into the batter, since excess moisture can make it soggy. Moisture control is part of producing a crisp pancake.

Flour and water form the basic batter, with several flour mixtures possible. Recipes add potato starch, rice flour or other starch, or combine savory pancake mix with frying mix. Commercial pancake mixes may contain starch, rice flour and seasoning as well as wheat flour. Cold water makes a relatively fluid batter that spreads between the ingredients.

One method uses anchovy-kelp stock instead of water. Flour, starch, stock and salt form a batter in which the scallions are dipped before being laid side by side. Alternating white and green ends can form a rectangle. Seafood is mixed into the remaining batter and spread over the scallions, preserving their long shape beneath a seafood layer.

Another method pours batter into the pan first, then spreads scallions on top and presses them into it. Seafood and chili follow, with a little extra batter to join the ingredients. An egg may be cracked on top and spread out, or beaten egg spooned over it. The egg forms a layer across the pancake rather than coating each ingredient separately.

The all-in-one method cuts scallions shorter and mixes them with seafood and batter. Ladlefuls are spread thinly and evenly in the pan. Instead of arranging long scallions, this distributes scallion and seafood pieces throughout the pancake. Large or small pancakes can be made, with either long strands or shorter mixed ingredients.

A separate home recipe seasons its batter with traditional soy sauce and adds a little grated lotus root. Scallions go into the pan first, batter fills the gaps, squid and shrimp go on top, and egg is added near the end. Another recipe seasons frying-mix batter with fish sauce. These are specific ways of flavoring the batter within the shared seafood-and-scallion structure.

Once the bottom is golden, a broad spatula turns the pancake so the seafood side can cook. Some methods add oil at the edges and let it flow underneath. The substantial pancake is cooked while keeping its batter and scallions joined as one piece. The scallions and seafood inside are cooked through as well as coloring the surface.

The outside is crisp from frying, while the scallion-and-seafood interior is soft and moist. Cooked scallion aroma and sweetness combine with savory seafood. Squid adds springy chew, and shrimp and shellfish contribute their own flavors. Scallions and seafood are eaten with the batter, and areas topped with egg have a soft egg layer.

A pancake with long scallions can be divided along them with chopsticks, or cut into smaller pieces before serving. Taking scallion and seafood with the crisp edge brings the ingredients together. The dish is known as a rainy-day companion to makgeolli, and a broad pancake lends itself to sharing.

A common dipping sauce combines soy sauce, vinegar and chili powder. Chopped scallion and sesame may be added, or water and sugar used to adjust it. One cook eats fish-sauce-seasoned batter without additional soy sauce. Cheongyang chili on the pancake or in the dip adds heat; the sauce brings saltiness, acidity and heat alongside the pancake's savory flavor.

How to order it in Korea

1. Look for “haemulpajeon,” then ask which seafood is included.
2. If you're allergic to specific seafood like shrimp, squid or mussels, let the restaurant know beforehand.