Sweet Rice Corn Hotteok

There is one special treat that my family is always looking forward to whenever we visit Korea. It is the “Hotteok“, the sweet Korean pancakes that you can find on any famous streets of Seoul or elsewhere in Korea.

These lovely sweet treats are to-die-for, especially in wintertime. With crisp-chewy dough on the outside and sizzling hot sugary syrup inside, you just have to be very careful not to burn your tongue. Even if you did, that is a small price to pay to indulge in such a heavenly taste.

I posted the original plain hotteok recipe a while ago, and today I want to introduce you to another kind: hotteok made with sweet rice and corn flour in the dough. We call it “oksoosoo chopssal hotteok (옥수수 찹쌀 호떡)”

There are two famous street vendors in Seoul for these pancakes – one in Insadong, the antique alley, and the other in Namdaemun market. I have tried both and they were pretty close in taste with slight difference in the texture and the color. They both are in the tourist attraction area, so, if you are traveling in Seoul, don’t miss out on their hotteoks.

Love at first bite, I had to ask the vendor owner in Insadong how he made his hotteok so crispy and chewy. Of course he wouldn’t tell me his secret of making them so addictive, but I learned that he used 3 different types of flour to create his hotteok.

Upon returning I have tried twice to come up with the recipe. Each time I used different ratios of each flour. I have to admit that I couldn’t get my dough to be exactly like theirs. But, I am very happy with how mine turned out. After all, my kids loved mine just like they loved the ones on the streets of Seoul.

So here it is, folks! Hope you get to try this hotteok at home. They are INSANELY good !

Introducing “The Flour Brothers”! – The all-purpose flour, sweet rice flour, and the corn flour

Combine the flours, sugar, salt, and the instant yeast in a mixing bowl and stir well.

Mix 1 tablespoon of oil in warm milk and pour it into the flour mixture.

And mix it up. The dough should be sticky. Cover it with plastic wrap and let it rise for 1 hour in a warm place.

Meanwhile, chop the peanuts as finely as you can.

Mix the chopped peanuts with brown sugar. You can add a little bit of cinnamon if you want. I skipped it this time.

The dough has risen. Punch the dough to deflate it. If you have time, it is good idea to let it rise for the second time. That will improve the texture greatly.

Tear off a chunk of the dough and flatten it in your palm (greased). The size is up to you. I like mine big.

Carefully place some brown sugar peanut mixture in the center. I put in 2 tablespoonfuls.

Gather up all the corners toward the center and seal it by pinching them together. Make sure there are no gaps or holes. Smooth it out to a ball shape.

Drop it in a puddle of slightly hot oil over med-low heat.  Now you know why they are so good.

Note: If the bottom of your dough turns brown too quickly, then your oil is too hot. Your hotteok will burn on the outside but the inside will remain raw. Adjust the heat accordingly.

Press the dough with a hotteok press if you have one, or use a spatula to flatten down gently. Do not press too strong. Otherwise the filling will ooze out and make a big mess.

Just like that. Cook for about 2-3 minutes on one side…

and flip to the other side and cook for another 2 minutes or until nicely browned. Take the hotteok out of the oil and place it on a cookie rack to drain.

Enjoy them while they are sizzling hot but be extra cautious, especially because of the sugar syrup inside!  It can easily burn your tongue. Nibble down a little at a time and savor the sweetness of this wonderful treat. Unfortunately these hotteoks will harden once they cool down and lose their crisp texture, so enjoy them while they are hot.

Man, oh man, they are good! Hot, crispy and chewy with a hot sweet brown sugar syrup…

But don’t indulge in them too much – a little conscience of mine is whispering to me to tell you: Be wise, my dears! Just be wise…

Sweet Rice Corn Hotteok

Holly Ford

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Prep Time 1 hr 30 mins

Cook Time 20 mins

Ingredients

  

• 1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sweet rice flour
• 3/4 cup corn flour
• 1 packet 7g instant yeast
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1-1/2 cup warm milk
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 4 tablespoon finely chopped peanuts
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon optional
• canola oil for frying

Instructions

 

• In a large mixing bowl whisk flours, yeast, white sugar, and salt together.
• Add the canola oil to the warm milk and add it to the flour mixture. Mix well with a wooden spoon. Cover the bowl with a damp towel and let it rise in a warm place for 1 hour. Deflate the dough and let it rise again for a second time for another 20 minutes if you can.
• In a small mixing bowl combine light brown sugar, peanuts and cinnamon (if using). Set aside.
• Heat generous amount of oil in a skillet (about 1/4" depth from the bottom of the skillet) over med-low heat.
• Tear a chunk off the dough and flatten it on your palm. Place 1-2 tablespoonfuls of brown sugar mixture on the center of the dough. Bring all the corners of the dough to the center to seal the dough by pinching them together and turn into a ball shape.
• Drop the dough into the oil in a skillet, gently press down with a greased hotteok press or spatula.
• Fry the one side for 2-3 minutes until golden brown. (If the bottom of the dough turns brown too quickly, your oil is too hot. Adjust the heat accordingly.) Carefully turn the hotteok to the other side and fry for another 2 minutes or so. Remove the hotteok from the oil and drain the extra oil over a cookie rack.
• Serve the hotteok immediately while hot. Be very careful, the syrup inside will be very hot!