Lacy-Edged Korean Seafood Scallion Pancake

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A crisp, shatter-edged seafood pancake built on a deliberately thin batter cut with potato starch. Whole scallions are laid out like planks, chopped shrimp and squid are pressed in, and the whole thing fries flat in a generous slick of oil until the rim goes brown and lacy. Cut into wedges and dip in a sharp soy-vinegar sauce.

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• 1 tsp granulated sugar
• 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
• 1 tsp gochugaru (Korean chile flakes), optional
• 1 tbsp finely minced scallion

• 6 oz medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 5 oz cleaned squid bodies (calamari tubes)
• 2 bunches scallions (about 16), trimmed
• 1 long red chile or 1/2 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup potato starch
• 3/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup ice water, plus 1-2 tbsp as needed
• 1 large egg

• 1/2 cup neutral oil, such as canola or grapeseed
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil

Instructions

1. Make the dipping sauce: stir together the soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, sesame seeds, gochugaru if using, and minced scallion in a small bowl until the sugar dissolves. Set aside so the flavors meld.
2. Prep the seafood: pat the shrimp very dry and chop into 1/2-inch pieces. Slice the squid tubes open, score the inside lightly in a crosshatch if you like, then cut into 1/2-inch pieces. Blot everything again on paper towels — wet seafood steams instead of crisping. Toss with 1/4 teaspoon salt and set aside.
3. Prep the scallions: cut them into lengths that match your skillet, about 8 inches, splitting any thick white ends in half lengthwise so they lie flat. You want two flat bundles, one per pancake.
4. Make the batter: whisk the flour, potato starch, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and baking powder in a bowl. Add the egg and 1 cup ice water and whisk just until smooth. The batter should be thin — like heavy cream, thinner than pancake batter — and should run off the whisk in a stream. Add another tablespoon or two of ice water if it is thicker than that. Keep it cold and do not let it sit more than 20 minutes.
5. Heat a 10- or 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat for 2 minutes. Add 3 tablespoons neutral oil plus 1 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil and swirl to coat generously — the oil should visibly pool. When it shimmers (about 350°F), you are ready.
6. Ladle about 1/3 cup batter into the pan and spread it into a thin round with the back of the ladle. Immediately lay half the scallions over it in a single flat layer, all running the same direction, and scatter half the chile slices between them. Scatter half the seafood over the scallions, keeping it in one layer.
7. Drizzle another 1/3 cup batter over the top, concentrating it where the scallions meet so everything binds, and let a little run out to the edges of the pan — those thin margins are what fry into the lacy rim. Press the whole pancake firmly flat with a wide spatula.
8. Cook 4 to 5 minutes, pressing every minute or so and rotating the pan for even color, until the bottom is deep golden and the edges have gone brown and frilly. Tilt the pan and spoon a little of the oil back over the top as it cooks.
9. Slide the pancake onto a plate, invert a second plate over it, and flip; or flip directly in the pan with two spatulas if you are confident. Add 1 tablespoon more neutral oil to the pan, slide the pancake back in seafood-side down, press flat, and cook 3 to 4 minutes more until the second side is crisp and the shrimp are opaque.
10. Transfer to a wire rack (not paper towels — the steam will soften the crust) and let it sit 1 minute. Repeat with the remaining oil, batter, scallions, and seafood for the second pancake.
11. Cut each pancake into 6 to 8 wedges with kitchen shears or a pizza wheel and serve hot with the dipping sauce.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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