Hotteok

Pancakes filled with chopped walnuts from Korea - Very tasty!

Hotteok are a popular street food in South Korea. In Seoul, the capital of South Korea, you can buy the pancakes at many street stalls. They are crispy and filled with a warm, caramel-sweet cinnamon-sugar syrup and nuts. In Korea, hotteok are now also available with savoury fillings, such as vegetables and noodles.

For approx. 10 pieces

Ingredients (serves 4):

For the dough:
300 g flour
2 heaped tsp sugar
½ tsp salt
2 tsp dry yeast
260 ml lukewarm milk

For the filling:
approx. 120 g chopped walnut kernels (or hazel nuts, almonds of your choice)
4 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
4 tbsp water

Also:
Oil for frying
Icing sugar for dusting, if you like it even sweeter

Preparation:
Sift the flour into a bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and knead into a dough.
The dough will be a little sticky, that`s okay. Cover the dough and let it rest in a warm place for about 2 hours.
After 1 hour, knead the dough well again and then let it rest covered for another 1 hour.

In the meantime, you can prepare the filling. Mix the chopped walnuts with the cinnamon and sugar.
Heat the mixture together with the water in a pan until the sugar caramelises.

The dough is still a little sticky. To prevent it from sticking to your hands, it helps to oil your hands.
Divide the dough into about 10 equal-sized pieces. Form the pieces into a ball and flatten them with the palm of your hand. Then put a little nut filling in the middle. Fold the dough over from the edges to the centre. The filling should be enclosed in the dough. Carefully flatten them so that they get the typical pancake shape.

Heat some oil in a frying pan and fry the Hotteoks on both sides for about 2 minutes.
Press down lightly with a spatula. When they are golden brown, remove them from the pan.

Serve the Hotteoks plain or sprinkled with icing sugar.