This Kimchijeon Traybake is inspired by one of my favourite dishes: Kimchijeon, a Korean savoury pancake. The pancake batter is made with kimchi, scallions, flour, and water, baked in the oven and then served with a homemade soy vinegar dipping sauce. It's SO good and so simple to make, I really hope you enjoy it!
Once you've made your batter, you just place this into the oven for 20 minutes and let it do its thing! This kimchijeon traybake is such low effort, great for a midweek dinner or meal prep!
For more Korean-inspired dinners, check out my tteokbokki dumpling traybake that is such a quick and delicious idea. Another great option are my Korean rice balls (jumeokbap) or this bulgogi fried rice recipe!
For another baked pancake option, check out my Japanese-style okonomiyaki traybake!
Jump to:
About Emily's Recipe
If you're new here, hi! I'm Emily - a recipe developer, food content creator, and cookbook author! Thanks for stopping by to check out my Kimchijeon Traybake recipe. I really hope you enjoy it and please do let me know in the comments if you give it a go!
If you'd like to join a community of food lovers, just subscribe to my newsletter for recipes, cooking tips, and foodie chats. Now, let me tell you a bit more about this recipe...
Texture: imagine a thick pancake with lightly crunchy bites dotted in the pancake. Slightly crispy edges, but a soft, delicious middle.
Taste: a tangy savoury pancake with soy sauce vinegar sauce. Slightly spicy, slightly sweet, and so good.
Ease: super simple. Just make the batter, spread it out into a tray, place it in the oven, and you're ready to go!
Top Tips: 1. you want the have a high percentage of kimchi in the batter to create a nice crunchy bite once cooked. 2. heat the tray and oil in the oven before, so that it results in a crispy, perfectly cooked kimchi jeon. 3. if you don't have a circular baking tin, you can use a square or rectangular one.
Would I make this again? Yes. It's a quick and delicious meal in one. It's also great for meal-prep.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Flour: we're using all purpose flour for this recipe. There's no need for a raising agent. you can use gluten-free flour if you'd like!
Kimchi: kimchi is a wonderful fermented food from Korea. You can have all types of kimchi from cabbage kimchi to watermelon kimchi. The most popular version is using Chinese cabbage leaf and scallions. I've used a brand from my local supermarket. You'll be able to source the best quality kimchi from your local asian supermarket.
Spring onions (scallions): we're just adding these in for a bit more freshness and extra crunch. You can omit this if you want or you can use chives (finely chopped).
Vegetable oil: you want to use vegetable oil instead of sesame or olive oil because it has a neutral flavour and a high smoking point, meaning that it will crisp up and fry the pancake in the oven without smoking.
For the dipping sauce: we're making a really simple dipping sauce using light soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil and sugar.
The full list of ingredients and quantities is at the bottom of this blog in the recipe card!
Step by Step Instructions with Photos
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 210c fan / 430F. In a large bowl, combine the flour, kimchi, scallions, water, and sugar. Give everything a really good mix. The mixture should be a thick batter.
Step 2: Get yourself a circular cake tray (8 inches in diameter) and add in 2 tablespoon vegetable oil. Place in the oven for 5 minutes until the oil is very hot.
Step 3: Gently transfer the kimchi pancake batter into the tray and spread it out evenly. Place in the oven for 20 minutes.
Step 4: While your kimchijeon bake is cooking, combine the light soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, and water in a small bowl. Give it a mix and taste for seasoning.
Step 5: Once your kimchi traybake is cooked, it should be crispy around the edges and soft in the inside. Remove from the tin and slice into 6 pieces. Serve with the dipping sauce and enjoy!
What To Do with Leftovers
Storage: Leave the kimchijeon traybake to cool, then place in an airtight container and into the fridge for up to 3 days.
Freezing: you can totally freeze this. It may change in texture, slightly, but will still taste delicious nonetheless. Once cooled, place in an airtight container (don't forget to label with contents and the date), and into the freezer. Leave to defrost/thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
Reheating: you can either reheat in the microwave until piping hot, or place it into the oven at 180c / 350F for 15 minutes until piping hot.
FAQs
I love eating it alone, but some of my favourite dishes to eat with my kimchi traybake is rice, noodles, or fried chicken.
Don't worry, just grab some parchment paper (baking paper) and trace out the base of the tray and cut out a circle in the paper. Place at the base of the baking tray and then top with your kimchi batter.
For sure! If you have an air fryer large enough to fit the tray, simply cook for 10 minutes at 180C / 350F.
Traditional kimchi is not vegan. It's made with fish sauce and or shrimp paste. But many modern more accessible types of store-bought kimchi is vegan. Just make sure to check the back of the packaging.
More Recipes You Might Enjoy!
If you tried this Kimchijeon Traybake or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thank you!
Kimchijeon Traybake (Korean Kimchi Pancake Bake)
Ingredients
- 100 g all-purpose flour
- 2 scallions finely chopped
- 200 g kimchi
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 75 ml water
- 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
For the dipping sauce
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- ½ tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- ½ tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 tablespoon water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 210c fan / 430F. In a large bowl, combine the flour, kimchi, scallions, water, and sugar. Give everything a really good mix. The mixture should be a thick batter.
- Get yourself a circular cake tray (8 inches in diameter) and add in 2 tablespoon vegetable oil. Place in the oven for 5 minutes until the oil is very hot.
- Remove the tray from the oven carefully (very hot!!). Gently transfer the kimchi pancake batter into the tray and spread it out evenly. Place in the oven for 20 minutes.
- While your kimchijeon bake is cooking, combine the light soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, and water in a small bowl. Give it a mix and taste for seasoning.
- Once your kimchi traybake is cooked, it should be crispy around the edges and soft in the inside. Remove from the tin and slice into 6 pieces. Serve with the dipping sauce and enjoy!
Leave a Reply