Hotteok

Ingredients

• 300g plain flour
• 50g glutinous rice flour
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp fine salt
• 7g instant dried yeast
• 230ml lukewarm milk
• 1 tbsp neutral oil, plus more for frying
• 100g dark brown sugar
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 50g walnuts or peanuts, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
• 1 tsp cornflour

Before you cook

• Whisk the plain flour, glutinous rice flour, sugar, salt and yeast together in a large bowl
• Warm the milk until it feels just barely warm on the inside of your wrist
• Chop the nuts finely
• Mix the brown sugar, cinnamon, nuts, sesame seeds and cornflour into a filling and set it aside

Steps

1. Pour the warm milk and the tablespoon of oil into the dry ingredients and stir with a spoon until a sticky shaggy dough forms.
2. Knead the dough in the bowl for 3 minutes; it will stay tacky and that is correct, so resist adding more flour.
3. Cover the bowl and leave it in a warm place for 1 hour and 30 minutes until the dough has doubled and looks bubbly.
4. Punch the dough down with an oiled hand to knock out the gas.
5. Oil your hands generously and divide the dough into eight equal pieces.
6. Flatten one piece into a disc in your palm and spoon a heaped tablespoon of the sugar filling into the centre.
7. Gather the edges over the filling and pinch them tightly shut, then roll the ball between your palms to seal it.
8. Repeat with the remaining pieces and keep them seam side down.
9. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy frying pan over medium heat.
10. Lay in three or four balls seam side down and fry for 45 seconds.
11. Press each ball flat to about 1cm thick with a greased spatula or the base of a metal cup.
12. Fry for 90 seconds until the underside is deep golden, then flip and fry the other side for 90 seconds.
13. Move the pancakes to a rack and cook the rest, adding more oil to the pan each time.
14. Warn everyone that the molten sugar inside will burn, and let the pancakes sit for 2 minutes before eating.