Crispy Potato Chijimi (Gluten-Free Korean-Style Pancake)
Chijimi — the Japanese name for Korean-style savory pancakes (jeon) — is what I make when the vegetable drawer has odds and ends and dinner needs to happen. This version binds garlic chives and carrot with grated potato, rice flour and potato starch: no wheat, no egg, and a chewier, crispier result than the standard batter.
Eat it hot off the pan with the spicy-sour dipping sauce. It also freezes well enough that I deliberately make extra.
Ingredients
- Garlic chives (nira)or scallions1/2 bunch
- Carrot1/4
- Potatoes2 small (5 oz)
- Toasted sesame oil1 Tbsp
Batter
- Rice flour3 Tbsp
- Potato starchor cornstarch3 Tbsp
- Salt1/4 tsp
- Garlic, grated1/4 tsp
- Water1 Tbsp
- Sakeor water1 Tbsp
Dipping sauce
- Soy sauce1 Tbsp
- Rice vinegar1/2 Tbsp
- Chili oil1/2 tsp
- Toasted sesame seedsa sprinkle
- Chili flakes (optional)a pinch
Nutrition
per serving🛒 Ingredient notes & substitutions
Garlic chives: Sold as nira (Japanese) or buchu (Korean) at Asian groceries. Scallions are the easy swap — use 3 or 4, cut the same way.
Rice flour + potato starch: This pair replaces wheat flour entirely, which is what makes the pancake both gluten-free and extra chewy-crisp. Cornstarch can stand in for the potato starch.
Instructions
Peel the potatoes and grate them straight into a bowl.
Cut the garlic chives into bite-size lengths and julienne the carrot.
Add the vegetables and all the batter ingredients to the potato bowl and mix well.
Heat the sesame oil in a frying pan, pour in the batter and shape it into a round. Cover and cook over medium heat until browned underneath, then flip, cover again, and cook about 5 minutes more over medium-low.
Stir the dipping sauce together, slice the pancake, and serve hot.
Tips
The grated potato is the texture engine: it binds the pancake and turns the inside mochi-chewy while the outside crisps in sesame oil.
These freeze beautifully — wrap slices in plastic, freeze, and microwave about 2 minutes straight from frozen. For kids, skip the sauce and cut into small pieces.