Pajeon (Korean Scallion Pancake)

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Crispy, flavourful, and easy to make, this Pajeon recipe is perfect as part of a meal, appetizer, or snack! All you need are a few pantry staples to make this Korean scallion pancake. Pan-fried until crispy, you can have restaurant-quality pajeon in a few simple steps.

Whenever I have a bunch of scallions that need to be used up, this pajeon is my go-to recipe. Pa translates scallion, and jeon translates to pan-fried battered food which is essentially a combination of two of my favourite things! It only takes a few minutes to prepare and it fries up quickly.

Soft and tender on the inside but crispy on the outside, these scallion pancakes are perfect for any occasion.

While you can buy a pre-made pancake mix for this green onion pancake, this recipe makes the batter from scratch. This way, you can make it at home if you cannot find the mix. Also, I like being able to season the batter to my liking (in other words, extra garlic powder!). See below for a photo of the pre-mix pancake mix.

Ingredients You’ll Need

flour — all-purpose flour is perfect for these Korean green onion pancakes.
potato starch — potato starch increases the crispiness of the pajeon but if you don’t have any, you can use cornstarch instead.
seasoning — I season the pancake batter with salt, garlic powder, and onion powder.
water — I recommend icy cold water or bubbly water.
egg — you just need one egg. Two eggs will make the pancake too eggy.
gochugaru — this is a Korean red chili pepper flake powder. Don’t worry, the amount added doesn’t make the pancakes spicy.
green onions — I like to cut my green onions into 2 to 3 inches long but you can also cut them into smaller pieces.
oil — I like to use olive oil but you can use any netural oil of your choice.

How to Make Pajeon

In a large bowl, combine the flour, potato starch, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, water, and egg.
Add the green onions to the batter and mix until fully coated.

Korean green onion pancake batter added to a pan.

In a non-stick pan over medium heat, add around 2 tablespoons of oil and allow it to heat up. Add between half a cup to one cup of the batter, depending on the size of your pan. The pancake batter should sizzle when added. Working quickly, try to spread the batter out as thinly as possible, making sure the green onions are in a single layer.
After 3 to 4 minutes, or when the bottom of the pancake turns crispy and golden brown, flip the pancake. Add more oil to the edge of the pan if needed.
Pan fry for another 3 to 4 minutes. Then transfer the pajeon onto a plate or a cutting board as you repeat the process with the rest of the batter.

How to Make a Dipping Sauce

Pajeon is usually served with a dipping sauce. Here’s what you’ll need if you want to make a dipping sauce. Simply stir to combine and then taste to adjust it to your liking.

½ cup low sodium soy sauce
¼ cup water
1 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp sugar, or more if you prefer it sweeter
2 tbsp sesame oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp sesame seeds

Recipe Tips and Notes

I use a large spatula to flip the pancake. You could also use tongs to flip the pancakes as the tops of the pancake should be partially cooked.
Be generous with the oil as it really helps make the pajeon crispy, like the ones you get at the restaurants. I have tried to make this with less oil but it doesn’t crisp up as well.
I like to cut mine into square pieces to make serving and dipping easier.

FAQs

Is this the same as Chinese Scallion Pancakes?

Not to be confused with Chinese scallion pancakes (cong you bing), Chinese scallion pancake is made from dough whereas the Korean scallion pancake recipe calls for a liquid batter. This means you can whip up a batch in seconds!

What else can I add to pajeon?

It’s a versatile dish that I love making as you can add so many things to the batter. Grate up carrots, slice up mushrooms, or thinly cut some cabbages to go into the batter. Kimchi is another great addition.

Haemul pajeon is the seafood version of this so if you have shrimp, mussels, oysters, clams, etc. feel free to add that as well. Just be sure to chop them up into bite-sized pieces.

How do I store leftovers?

I store leftover pajeon and dipping sauce in individual airtight glass containers. When ready to eat, I reheat the pajeon in the air fryer so they stay crispy! Usually, 2 to 3 minutes is enough at 350F.

What’s the difference between scallions and green onions?

There’s no difference between green onions and scallions! They’re the same thing but they just have two different names. Not to be confused with spring onions though as those have bulbs at the bottom, unlike scallions/green onions.