Happy Lunar New Year!

Hi Substackers!!

Happy Lunar New Year to everyone celebrating!!

During filming of Taste the Nation: Holiday Edition, I was lucky enough to visit Los Angeles and learn all about Seollal, or Korean Lunar New Year. Today, I wanted to share a recipe with you all that Eric Nam taught me how to make in that episode (you can watch the K-Town Countdown episode on Hulu here!).

This is such a fun, easy recipe and so great to make with kids! You probably have many of the ingredients in your fridge or pantry right now. Hope you all enjoy this cooking video and recipe. By the way, how was Littlehands’ impression of me in this video? Haha!

Here are some photos of me with Eric (and a VERY excited Divina) on set in LA. Wishing you all a safe and happy Lunar New Year!

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Recipe: Hotteok from Taste the Nation: Holiday Edition

Ingredients:

1 can of ready-made biscuit dough

Fillings (can be made with any combination of the below):

1/4 cup cashews, crushed (or other small nuts/and or seeds of your choice- pumpkin seeds, walnuts, pistachios, etc. all work great here)

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon mixed with 1 tablespoon sugar in the raw

1 tablespoon dark brown sugar (or light brown sugar) 

Other filling ideas: a spicy, fruity jam (I used Pineapple Jalapeño Jam!) 

Canola oil or ghee

Directions:

1. Open the can of biscuit dough and separate each of the biscuits into individual rounds onto a sheet tray lined with parchment. Keep the dough refrigerated until you’re ready to use it.

2. On a clean work surface, working with one round of dough at a time, use your fingertips to gently flatten the biscuit dough. Add your filling of choice- it can be any combination of the cinnamon sugar, brown sugar, nuts and/or seeds- just use no more than 2 teaspoons of filling total per round of dough. (Be careful to keep the filling in the center and not get too close to an edge or else it may leak.)

3. To seal the hotteok, gather the edges of your round of dough up around the filling and fold toward the center. You should have a round ball of dough with filling inside. Next, flatten out each hotteok. You can use your fingertips or the bottom of a glass to gently press the dough back out until it is flat, about 1/3 of an inch.

4. Heat a couple of tablespoons of canola oil or ghee in a large, flat skillet set over medium heat. When the oil is hot, but not smoking, add the hotteok. Cook until each side is golden brown on the outside, about 1-2 minutes. The center should have a syrupy consistency and the dough should be cooked through. Work in batches of 2 or 3 depending on the size of your skillet.

5. Serve hot!

Love,