Bindae-tteok is a Korean savoury pancake made with minced pork and mung bean. It is naturally gluten-free. This recipe is so simple but the taste never fools you. It is so delicious and versatile. It can be a delicious quick snack or party food to accompany drinks or to please your guests. Turn it into a burger patty. Make a pancake wrap sandwich or simply eat like Koreans dipping in soy sauce. The pancakes are soft and moist inside and crispy exterior while fresh beansprouts give a little crunch and texture to the pancakes.
About Korean Mung Bean Pancake
Korean mung bean pancake called ‘Nok-du Jeon’ or ‘Nok-du Bindae-tteok’. This sizzling pork pancake is one of the dishes many Korean families enjoy in their traditional holiday celebrations. Now it has become a popular street food that captivate foreign tourists as well as locals with the sizzling sounds, crispy and delicious flavour. Among Koreans, it is one of the most popular rainy day food. Locals are inclined to eat sizzling pancakes on rainy days as the sound of rain is reminiscent of oil sizzling pancakes sounds.
There are many different versions. Generally, it is made by panfrying a mixture of ground mung bean, mung bean sprout, pork mince, spring onion, garlic and/or Kimchi. Here this recipe is using ingredients we can easily get by in the supermarket or grocery store – Pork mince, Yellow Mung Bean, Bean Sprout. Also, it is healthier with much less oil. Ok, let’s make it.
How to Cook Mung Bean Pancakes -Ingredients Explained
The detailed ingredients and steps how to make mung bean pancakes are outlined in the recipe section. Here, I would like to add main points that will make a delicious, crispy and juicy pancakes.
☑️ Mung Bean: There are two types of mung bean available in the market. Basically there are the same; green mung beans with skins on with yellow mung beans without the shells. It is easier and faster to cook when using hulled and split yellow mung beans. When you are using green mung beans, you will need to soak a lot longer than dehulled and split yellow beans and also have to remove green shells after cooking them. Soaking helps to hydrate the beans and to be ground into smooth batter. Even 20-30 mins soaking will be enough for yellow mung bean type. Wash and remove debris before soaking. Strain the soaked water just before blending.
If beans are hydrated enough, water would not be necessary. Add a little bit of water if needed for the desired consistency. But be mindful not to add too much. A couple of table spoons will surface just to help the blender to move. Too much water can lead to it very watery puree. You can always to add corn starch to thicken it to make the whole batter hold together. However, water and corn starch can be used optionally to achieve the batter consistency. Blend it with a little of salt. It does not have to be fine puree.
☑️ Pork Mince : Pork is the classic and most popular protein ingredient for the mung bean pancakes. It is best to be marinated with seasonings prior to cooking at least for 30 mins. The longer you marinate the meat, the tastier pancakes will be. You can simply marinate the pork mince with the sauce overnight. Otherwise, leave the marinated meat for 30 mins in the fridge.
☑️ Bean Sprouts (Mung bean sprouts) : Bean sprouts are available in major supermarkets such as Coles and Woolworths in Australia or Asian grocery stores. These are mung bean sprouts. Heads are hardly visible or very small. But in Asian grocery stores especially Korean grocery stores, you may find two different types – one is bean sprouts (mung bean sprouts). The other one is Korean soy bean sprouts with big yellow heads. Choose mung bean sprouts ,, not soy bean sprouts. If you are like me, you can easily sprout bean sprouts home.
☑️Cooking Oil: Add a bit of oil gradually while cooking whenever needed to make the pancakes crispy and to prevent burning.
☑️Salt: Add salt to season. Bean sprout has a lot of water. This will make the whole pancake batter dull seasoned. So add more salt. You can panfry a small test batch and decide where to add more salt or not.
How to Eat Mung Bean Pancakes
- Make a burger with burger buns and salad. or
- Cut into small pieces and make a sandwich wraps with salad mix. or
- Make a naked burger simply with salad mix on top. or
- Eat like Koreans dipping in soy sauce when it is still hot.
How to Store Mung Bean Pancakes
Mung bean pancakes can freeze well. The recipe yields about9-10 palm sized pancakes. I usually save leftover in an airtight container lining with baking paper each layer so that individual pancakes can be taken out each time to defrost for use. Otherwise, they will stick together and have to defrost a whole lot.
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Ingredients
Pancake Batter Mix
- Pork mince 500 grams
- Mung bean blended puree 1cup
- Mung bean sprout 1 package of 200g
- Shallots 2 stalks chopped fine
- Potato starch 1-2 tbs (optional)
- Water (optional) when needed
- Salt 1 ts or more to season the batter
- Cooking Oil
Meat Marinade Ingredients
- Garlic 2 cloves (minced)
- Soy sauce 4 tbs
- Sugar 3 tbs
- Sesame oil 1 ts
- Pepper
- Salt 1/2 ts -1 ts
Instructions
Step 1 - Prepare ingredients and Soaking the bean
Wash yellow mung beans and soak in water for at least 30 minutes.
Step 2 - Marinating Meat with the sauce
- In a large mixing bowl, add pork mince, chopped shallots, minced garlic and all the meat marinade ingredients.
- Mix well and leave it in the fridge for at least 30 mins. The longer it is marinated the tastier it gets.
- While marinating meat for around 30 mins, prepare the next steps.
Step 3 - Prepare Ingredients
- Mince garlic cloves.
- Chop spring onion finely.
- Wash mung bean sprout.
- Blend soaked/washed mung bean with a little of salt (add little bit of water just to help the blender to work). See Above (Ingredient explained section for details).
Step 4 - Panfry Pancakes
- Into the large marinated meat mixing bowl, add blended mung bean puree and bean sprouts.
- Add more 1/2 ts salt and mix.
- If it is too watery, add a tablespoon or two of corn flour.
- Heat up the pan over medium heat.
- Once the pan is heated, panfry a scoop of the batter and cook each side for 2 or 3 mins or so till both sides are nicely crispy brown.
Step 5 -How to plate or serve
- Make a burger with burger buns and salad. or
- Cut into small pieces and make a sandwich wraps with salad mix. or
- Make a naked burger simply with salad mix on top. or
- Eat like Koreans dipping in soy sauce when it is still hot.
Notes
Tips:
- Add more salt to season. Bean sprout has a lot of water. This will make the whole batter not seasoned enough. You can panfry a small size pancake for a test batch and decide where to add more salt or not.
- Add more oil gradually while cooking when needed to make the pancakes crispy and to prevent burning.
- The batter contains sugar so it can get burned easily. Lower the heat when it gets burned and add more oil.
- Freeze the leftover for up to a few weeks (see the post on how to store)
