Taiyaki/Bungeoppang

I recently picked up a taiyaki mold at Cost Plus (I guess the kids call it World Market these days….) because I love the ice cream taiyaki from Uji Time in Japan Center in SFO and because what’s not to like about adorable fish-shaped doughnut-pancakes? They’re very similar in conception and taste to æbleskiver—no clue if they’re historically related—and they traveled from Japan to Korea in the 1930s with the Occupation, where they became known as bungeoppang. These days sometimes the molds for bungeoppang are shaped a little differently than taiyaki molds (sea bream v. sea carp?), but otherwise they’re exactly the same. Bungeoppang apparently got popular again about 20 years ago as a winter street snack, as they come smoking-hot off the griddle.

Anyway, I tried to make them today. Went pretty well. My first batch were a bit overcooked and my second a bit under—par for the course. But they were sweet and fluffy and perfectly complemented the strong herbal bitterness of a bowl of matcha. I like this recipe for taiyaki and this one for bungeoppang.