Hotteok, or Korean Sweet Pancake

Make hotteok at home with chewy dough and a molten cinnamon-sugar filling. This short stovetop version cooks in minutes and brings the cozy flavor of Korea’s street-food markets right into your kitchen, steady as a warm snack or dessert.

Hotteok (호떡) is one of Korea’s most beloved winter street snacks—golden pancakes with a warm, syrupy center of brown sugar, cinnamon, and nuts. Vendors press them flat on hot griddles, and the sweet filling melts into a gooey crunch that keeps you coming back for more.

Living in Korea, we've tried countless versions, from the old-school stalls in Seoul to the famous ssiat hotteok in Busan, stuffed with seeds and nuts after frying. That one was nutty, crunchy, and so good our husband wanted seconds—but the line stretched too far!

These days you’ll see creative twists like red bean, Nutella, or even cheese, but we always return to the classic cinnamon-sugar hotteok. With a few street-vendor tips we've picked up here, you can make them at home with the same crispy, chewy texture and molten center—no store-bought mix needed.

If you’re craving something warm but a little softer than hotteok, hoppang (Korean steamed buns filled with sweet red bean paste) are just as comforting on cold days. For more cozy Korean desserts and snacks, browse our Korean sweet treats collection for more ideas.

Key Ingredients & Tips for Hotteok

• Flour blend: After testing many versions in our kitchen here in Korea, we've found that combining all-purpose flour with sweet rice flour (chapssal-garu) gives a keeper chewy texture. Even a small amount of sweet rice flour keeps the pancakes soft after cooling. A touch of baking powder lightens the dough so it’s not dense.
• Sugar filling: Street vendors often mix brown and white sugar with a spoonful of fine breadcrumbs to keep the syrup from crystallizing. We use that same trick at home, and it makes a difference in creating a smooth, molten filling. Cinnamon adds warmth, and chopped peanuts give the familiar nutty crunch. You can easily adapt this with other nuts or seeds, but this classic version is the one we cherish.

How the dish comes together

Make the dough: Mix dry ingredients, stir in warm milk and oil, then let rise until doubled.

Prepare the filling: Combine sugars, cinnamon, peanuts, and breadcrumbs.

Shape the pancakes: Flatten the dough, add filling, pinch to seal tightly.

Pan-fry to golden crisp: Cook seam-side down, flip after 30 seconds, press gently, and cook until golden on both sides.

Using a Hotteok Press: This handy tool has a flat stainless steel base and a wooden handle, steady for shaping hotteok or dalgona candy. You can find it in Korean markets or online. No press? No problem—a round bowl with flat bottom or a burger smasher works too!

Serving Hotteok the Street-Food Way

In Korea, we often see vendors tuck each pancake into a small paper cup. It keeps your hands clean, catches the drips, and makes it direct to enjoy while walking the street. It’s an unfussy trick that brings the full street-food experience home.

• Yield: 8 people
• Prep: 5 minutes
• Cook: 25 minutes
• Total: 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cup (375 g) all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (40 g) sweet rice flour (chapssal-garu)
• 1 tbsp (12 g) sugar
• 2 tsp (6 g) instant yeast
• 1/2 tsp (2 g) baking powder
• 1 tsp (6 g) salt
• 1 1/3 cup (315 ml) lukewarm milk, more if needed
• 1 tbsp (15 ml) oil
• more oil for pan-frying

Hotteok filling

• 1/3 cup (70 g) light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup (60 g) granulated sugar
• 1 tsp (3 g) cinnamon
• 1 tbsp (8 g) fine breadcrumbs, or 1 tsp flour
• 4 tbsp (30 g) peanuts or any nuts of your choice, finely chopped

Method

1. Mix flours, yeast, baking powder, sugar, and salt with a whisk in a large mixing bowl. Heat milk to lukewarm and add oil. Pour the milk/oil mixture into the flour mixture and mix to combine with a spoon for 1-2 minutes. The dough should be on sticky.
2. Cover the dough mixture with plastic wrap and let it rise until doubled in volume, about 1-2 hours. You should see the spider web-like gluten development when the dough is pulled.
3. Meanwhile, make the hotteok filling by mixing sugars, cinnamon, breadcrumbs (or flour), and peanuts in small bowl.
4. Divide the dough into 8 equal portions. Grease your hands with a little bit of oil. Take one portion of dough and flatten it in your hand in a cupping shape. Put 1 1/2 tablespoonful of brown sugar filling on the center of the dough.
5. Pull the edges of the dough together, pulling toward the center, and pinch together to seal. Make sure you seal it completely by pinching well. Repeat the other dough portions in the same manner and place them on a greased platter.
6. Heat a generous amount of oil in a large griddle or skillet over med-low heat. Place the filled hotteok dough, seam side down and maintaining space from each other, in the griddle and let it cook for 30 seconds.
7. Flip to the other side and press down on the dough with a hotteok press or spatula until it becomes about 1/2-inch thick. Do not press it too thin; you don't want to tear the dough and explode the filling inside.
8. Cook hottoek until golden brown on both sides, about 1-2 minutes per side. Lower the heat if it browns too quickly. Serve warm—just be careful, the molten filling stays piping hot!

Notes

Caution: The syrup inside the hotteok that just came out of skillet will be extremely hot. So be cautious when you offer it to young children. In Korea, they’re often folded into a paper cup to catch the syrup and make them easier to eat. Try this at home for the full street-food experience.