Cabbage jeon, or baechu jeon(배추전), is a simple Korean savory pancake from central Korea. Baechu jeon is essentially battered cabbage, typically served with dipping sauce.

To prepare the napa cabbage, first clean it and separate the leaves. Smack each leaf with the side or back of a knife or some other blunt object to tenderize it until it lies flat.

For the batter, put flour and salt in a bowl and mix in water until you get a thin to medium batter consistency. Dip each cabbage leaf in the batter and transfer immediately to a preheated, greased or non-stick cooking surface. A pan or griddle wiped with sesame oil will do.

A typical Korean pancake sauce can be made by combining garlic, scallion, sesame seed, salt, sugar, gochugaru, rice vinegar, and soy sauce.

Cabbage Jeon Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose wheat flour
• ½ tsp salt
• 1-1¼ cup water
• sesame oil (as needed)
• ½ napa cabbage, leaves removed and tenderized to flatten

Method

• combine flour and salt
• mix in water until it forms a smooth batter
• heat cooking surface to medium-low heat and coat with sesame oil as needed
• dip each cabbage leaf in batter and immediately transfer to hot cooking surface
• cook each side until lightly browned
• serve with sauce

Jeon Sauce Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 clove garlic, minced (optional)
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp brown sugar (optional)
• 1-4 tsp gochugaru
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 scallion, minced
• 1 tsp sesame seed

Method

• mix ingredients
• serve with jeon