Almost every country uses what we call pancakes to cook. France has crepes; Eastern Europe, their crepes. With these, we are familiar. But for pannukakku in Finland or palacsinta in Hungary, there is not so much. Similarly, in general, for Ethiopian thrush powder injera or Colombian corn flour based cachapas.

Nevertheless, cakes cooked in a pan are the same all over the world.

Korean chefs make pajeon, a pancake seasoned with green onions and kimchi or seafood. It is not only favored for its flavor, but also for its texture, soft and chewy inside, and crispy edges and surface. These pancakes have no maple syrup, only the hot chile dipping sauce, salted with soy.

American (United States and Canada) buttermilk pancakes are similar to Russian oladya pancakes and are almost an ingredient. For centuries, our ancestors of pancakes. We use buttermilk. In Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, chefs use this drink, or more often a fermented milk drink called kefir, and sometimes yogurt. In Ukrainian, "oladya" is "oladka", which is the basis of the word "latke", which means kosher hash browns.

I, a non-Jew, learned how to make the best latkes from Gerard Rudofsky, the "zaidy" at Zaidy's, a Denver deli. ("Zaidy" or "zayde" means "grandfather" in Yiddish.) Although most latke manufacturers only use eggs to bind grated potatoes together, Rudofsky also uses an egg, unleavened A mortar made of pie and potato/onion to bundle the mashed potato mix. The fried latkes just hinted at the onion, and then took out a beautiful yellow-brown crust from the pan. They are the desired taste of pancakes.

In my heart, American buttermilk pancakes have stirred up a wave of nostalgia for happiness. When I was growing up, my father would make buttermilk pancakes for our children almost every Saturday morning. With a batter, he would write our names in capital letters: Billy, Mary, Betty, Kay, etc. We have nine people, we all have short names, but there are still a lot of pancakes. I believe my father is happy that none of us is called Bartholomew or Jacqueline.

Every August, as my father was growing up, my grandfather, the former bookkeeper of Fort Lupton Canning Company, would take my father to Denver to watch a baseball game at the Old Merchant Park Stadium south of Broadway.

They always participate in the annual semi-professional baseball championships, and the teams in the games have names like House of David (all players have beards). Before the game, my grandfather took my father to a small restaurant where the chef made their favorite pancakes. My dad’s recipe started there.

Provide 1 to 9 servings. The liquid measurements are as described, even if they seem excessive.

2 teaspoons of baking soda. Get more tips and recipes from Bill St. John.

2 eggs, beaten with a whisk

Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix the remaining ingredients well. Use a wire stirrer to gradually and gently add the dry ingredients to the liquid mixture. Mix together gently, but do not remove all lumps.

Bake the pancakes in any form you want, if it is electric, on a lightly lubricated hot grill set at 375-400 degrees, and if the grill is set on a gas flame, it will be at medium high temperature.

Note: If you use the batter to write a name on the baking sheet, it helps to write letters such as "C", "L" or "N" backwards, because they cook more evenly on the first side, so Looks better on the plate.

3/4 cup extremely cold (refrigerate if possible) water

1 small bunch green onions, trimmed and cut into 2 inches long, then cut in half

3/4 cup kimchi, cut into chunks, and its juice

Vegetable oil for frying pan (2 to 4 tablespoons total)

Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl, add eggs, water and kimchi juice, and stir until the batter is smooth and runny, just like making crepes. (If it is too thick, add 1 teaspoon of cold water at a time.) Gently stir in the green onions and diced kimchi.

On medium-high heat, add 2 tablespoons of oil in a non-stick pan and swirl to spread. Scoop enough batter and vegetables to make cakes 5 to 6 inches in diameter, without each cake touching each other. Cook until one side is browned (about 2-3 minutes), then turn the other side and brown. Continue to flip until there are spots of brown on both sides.

While using up all the batter and vegetables, place the pajeon on a plate covered with paper towels to keep it warm, adding more oil to the frying pan if necessary. Serve with a dipping sauce made from your favorite chile sauce or a sauce diluted with a little soy sauce.

Cook’s note: Pajeon mix is ​​available in some Asian grocery stores, usually as a "Korean pancake mix." If used, the mixture in this recipe can replace eggs and all dry ingredients. In addition, for this recipe, you can use any other vegetables, cut into small pieces that suit your taste, or even leftover vegetables, fish or meat.

Make 6-8, depending on the size.

3 medium to medium sized russet potatoes, peeled

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt or fine sea salt

A pinch of white pepper, to taste

1 large egg, whisk in a small bowl

Rapeseed oil or other neutral oil used for frying

After the potatoes are peeled, make sure that the whole potatoes are soaked in cold water before continuing to grind them. (For example, you can peel them in advance and place them in a refrigerator covered with water.) When preparing to cook, place the wire cooling rack on a brown paper bag in a baking tray near the heat source.

Pat the potatoes dry and grind them on the large holes of the box grater, leaving 1/3 of the grated potatoes. (If they are particularly moist, squeeze a handful of excess liquid.) Quickly follow the rest of the recipe so that the grated potatoes will not oxidize (turn gray or reddish brown).

In a food processor, add 1/3 of the reserved potatoes, onions, salt, pepper, and unleavened bread, stir 7-8 times to roughly mash them; do not puree the mixture. In a large bowl, add the contents of the processor bowl to the remaining 2/3 of the grated potatoes. Add the eggs and fold everything well, but don't overwork.

At the same time, heat a thick-bottomed frying pan (cast iron or stainless steel is best for browning) over medium-high heat, and then pour 1/4-1/3 inch of oil. Heat the oil until it sparkles. Pour a little potato mixture into the oil and see if there are lively bubbles around it to test the temperature.

Scoop 1/2 cup of latke mixture and gently slide them into the hot oil. Use a spatula to flatten each one into a patty no more than 1/2 inch thick. Don't squeeze the pot; you will cook more than one batch. Fry until the edges begin to brown, 3-4 minutes. Turn and fry for another 3-4 minutes. Using two shovels to flip or move the latkes may help.

Pay attention to the temperature of the oil: too hot, the edges will darken before being cooked in the middle. Too low, latkes will be soaked with fat. In addition, you may find it helpful to wipe the back of the spatula with a paper towel from time to time.

Check the oil before making the next batch. If it smells "uncomfortable" or dark brown, or it is filled with many small cooked lattes, throw it away, wipe off the frying pan with a paper towel (be careful not to burn yourself), and use fresh oil Start a new batch.

Serve sour cream and chunks of applesauce, maybe make a pink with a ball of strawberry jam.

Contact Bill St. John at billstjohn@gmail.com

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