Korean Stuffed Chili Pepper Pancake

Quick answer

Total time: 40 min
Level: Medium
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients: 8

About this dish

Gochu-jeon is a Korean holiday pancake made by splitting mild green chili peppers in half lengthwise, removing the seeds, and stuffing them with a filling of ground pork, pressed tofu, and minced garlic that is seasoned before being spooned in.

The mixture is then coated in flour and egg before being pan-fried until golden on both sides. The pepper's gentle heat wraps around the pork's savory richness and the tofu's silky interior, creating a layered contrast of flavor and texture in every bite. Squeezing all moisture out of the tofu in a cloth is essential; any remaining water causes the oil to splatter and the filling to fall apart during frying. Using cucumber peppers or shishito peppers instead of regular green chilies eliminates nearly all spiciness for those with lower heat tolerance, and filling each pepper to about seventy percent capacity prevents the shell from bursting as the filling expands with heat. This jeon has a fixed place on Seollal and Chuseok ancestral tables and everyday holiday spreads alike, and it tastes best served immediately while still hot, alongside a soy-vinegar dipping sauce that sharpens the meat filling's umami and complements the pepper's fresh aroma.

Ingredients

servings

IngredientAmountUnit

mild green chili peppers10 eaea

ground pork200 gg

tofu100 gg

minced garlic1 tsptsp

salt½ tsptsp

egg2 eaea

flour3 tbsptbsp

cooking oil2 tbsptbsp

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Instructions

Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.

6 steps

1

Heat

Split 10 mild green chili peppers lengthwise and scrape out the seeds and white membranes.

Press the cut sides with paper towels until dry, because moisture makes the pork filling slide off during coating and frying.
2

Season

Wrap 100g tofu in cloth and squeeze out as much water as possible.

Mix it with 200g ground pork, 1 tsp minced garlic, and 0.5 tsp salt until the filling feels sticky and holds together.
3

Heat

Press the filling into each pepper half, filling only about seventy percent of the cavity.

Level the surface with your fingers or a spoon so the filling does not swell out and split the pepper as it cooks.
4

Step

Dust the exposed filling side with 3 tbsp flour in a thin, even layer.

Shake off excess flour before dipping in egg, because thick patches turn pasty and keep the egg coating from browning evenly.
5

Control

Beat 2 eggs and dip each pepper filling-side first so the coating covers the flour.

Heat 2 tbsp cooking oil over medium heat, then place the peppers filling-side down and cook for about 3 minutes.
6

Finish

When the filling side is golden and firm, flip carefully and cook the skin side for about 2 minutes more.

Rest briefly so the juices settle, then slice diagonally and serve hot with soy-vinegar dipping sauce.

Practical Cooking Checks

The cues that matter most while cooking.

Key technique: Gochu-jeon are mild green chili peppers stuffed with a savory pork and pressed tofu filling.
Finish cue: When the filling side is golden and firm, flip carefully and cook the skin side for about 2 minutes more.
Avoid this: Squeezing all moisture out of the tofu in a cloth is essential; any remaining water causes the oil to splatter and the filling to fall apart during frying.
Substitution: Using cucumber peppers or shishito peppers instead of regular green chilies eliminates nearly all spiciness for those with lower heat tolerance, and filling each pepper to about seventy percent capacity prevents the shell from bursting as the filling expands with heat.