There’s something about good food that takes me to another place. Anything that has the ability to transport you out of your body to some special place, hold onto that. That’s the magic. If you’ve never had a kimchi pancake, you’re in for a treat. There are so many directions you can go with these babies, but I chose a fluffy slightly sweet pancake stuffed with kimchi and fresh green onions.
Store Bought Kimchi vs. Homemade Kimchi
For this recipe, I use a store bought vegan kimchi. A traditional kimchi is going to include fish sauce, luckily it’s 2022 and the vegan options are booming. I purchased a vegan brand called Lucky Foods that consists of napa cabbage, chili paste, carrot, garlic, green onions, cane sugar, onion, sea salt, and ginger. I fell deep down the kimchi rabbit hole in 2021, my refrigerator was stuffed full of homemade kimchi creations. One of my favorite vegan kimchi recipes to follow is by The Minimalist Baker. If you’ve never made your own kimchi, I highly encourage it. Something about fermenting napa cabbage… wild. Not to mention aesthetically pleasing to look at.
What Type of Pancake?
A fluffy buttermilk pancake works perfect for these. Thats right- the same pancakes you’d drown in some Canadian maple syrup. We are going to stuff them with kimchi and decorate them in a spicy mayo dressing. If there’s one thing I know about traditional Korean cuisine, it’s that they love their kimchi. You read stories about families growing up in Korea and grandma putting kimchi in everything. I adore that vision.
Vegan Buttermilk
These pancakes should have a slight sweetness to them that will balance out the spicy kimchi flavors. For that reason, I use oat milk, the sweetest and richest of the plant milks. Mixing plant milk with an acidic like apple cider vinegar or lemon juice is the perfect vegan substitute for buttermilk. File that little tidbit in your brains file cabinet, because it’ll come in hand for many future recipes.
The Daunting Pancake Flip
When I’m cooking pancakes, I like to pour ALL the batter into one big frying pan. Voila, a giant pancake is born. A risky move, I admit. Every time I attempt said giant pancake- I go into pancake panic mode. The flip is daunting. Here’s how I like to do it. Over medium-low, pour pancake mixture into an oiled frying pan. Do not touch. The waiting game is imperative. We want the pancake to cook almost all the way through. It’ll start to bubble, and all the remaining batter will start to cook even before the flip. Cook it a good 7-8 minutes and then cover it for another minute of so- trapping all that heat in so the batter doesn’t run. I gently shimmy the pancake out of the pan and onto a cutting board, and use the cutting board to flip it into the pan on the other side. It really is quite the adrenaline rush. If you’re not into the thrill, I can also recommend pouring smaller pancakes, but where’s the fun in that?
Presentation: For the Joy of It All
No pancake is complete without a sauce or syrup. I tend to use a spicy mayo, but I’ve also dappled with a teriyaki glaze or a soy sauce. Presentation is one of my favorite parts of cooking. I’m always going to urge you to make things beautiful, because it’s such an underrated joy in life. We rush, rush, rush so much. Take the time anticipate the dish, and present it to yourself in a creative way. Whenever I’m plating something, I go back to the younger years when we were all making things in the classroom. It was for the simple joy of it all, was it not?
I can’t wait for you to try these! Cheers and happy cooking.
“If you were born with the weakness to fall, you were born with the strength to rise.”
Rupi Kaur
