This 5 color pancake in inspired by the traditional Korean color scheme seen so often in hanbok fabrics, royal court cuisine, and other cultural artifacts. It’s a great rule of thumb that you can use to ensure that your banchan has the right distribution of meats and vegetables, or in this case, all in one dish.
Makes 1 pancake, serves 2.
Ingredients
For the batter:
1/2 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup water
1/2 tablespoon doenjang (Korean soybean paste)
1 teaspoon gochugaru
1 teaspoon minced garlic
For the buchimgae:
3 shiitake mushrooms, sliced
½ tablespoon soy sauce
½ teaspoon minced garlic
2 imitation crab stick
2 scallions, sliced lengthwise
½ bunch enoki mushrooms, split into smaller bunches
2 long batons of zucchini
4 strips yellow or orange bell pepper
Directions
In a bowl, mix together the batter ingredients until smooth. Set aside.
In a sauté pan, heat ½ teaspoon neutral oil over medium heat. Add shiitakes, soy sauce, and garlic; cook until mushrooms have softened and absorbed the sauce, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and wipe the pan clean.
Add 2 tablespoons of neutral oil and swirl to coat thoroughly. Lay down all buchimgae ingredients side-by-side lengthwise. Heat pan over medium until oil begins to shimmer. Add batter to coat the pan, swirling to spread evenly. Cook until the edges of the pan have bubbled, the top of the pancake has mostly set, and the pancake releases easily from the pan, 5 to 7 minutes.
Drain off any excess oil, and flip the pancake over. Add a bit more oil to the pan to coat and slide the pancake back into the pan. Cook until the pancake releases easily from the pan, 3 to 4 minutes. Serve immediately with your dipping sauce of choice.