Korean Corn Dogs Are Better Than the State Fair Classic
Growing up in the Midwest, I was (and still am) a big fan of the fair and all the delicious foods that come on a stick. Today, living with the Iowa State Fair in the Better Homes & Gardens Test Kitchen backyard, I will always get a giant corn dog. There's something about the crispy cornmeal exterior around a hot dog that is irresistible to me. Just when I thought nothing could beat my beloved corn dog, I tried a Korean corn dog while visiting Koreatown in New York City. My life was changed for the better, and I decided I had to try making them. It's a process that takes a bit to get the hang of, but I can assure you this Korean corn dog recipe is worthy of making at home.
What Is a Korean Corn Dog?
Instead of a cornmeal batter, the outside of this popular Korean street food is made with a yeasted batter, giving it a nice chewy tug. And rather than just a hot dog (though it can just be a hot dog), it's usually also stuffed with cheese. Trendy iterations are popping up in restaurants around the world, but my favorite Korean corn dog is known as the "french fry," which is rolled in frozen diced potatoes and panko bread crumbs. Once it's out of the fryer, the corn dog is sprinkled with sugar, which may sound weird, but it makes a perfect sweet, salty, and savory bite.
How to Make Korean Corn Dogs
Throughout our testing, we came up with the best way to make the crunchiest hot dog- and cheese-stuffed Korean corn dogs by following these steps:
- Prep the batter: Use a shallow baking dish—it makes it easier to coat the Korean corn dog.
- Dip and coat: Stack half a hot dog and cheese stick on a skewer. Dip in the batter, using a spoon to lift and cover the entire hot dog and cheese stick.
- Top with potatoes: Roll the corn dogs in the potato cubes, pressing with your hand to adhere. This could get a bit messy, so feel free to wear food-safe gloves.
- Roll in crumbs: Coat in panko, then fry in a shallow cooking pan of oil.
- Sprinkle: Dust with sugar (I promise it's so delicious), drizzle with Gochujang Ketchup and/or mustard, and enjoy that amazing crunch.
Ingredients
Korean Corn Dogs
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3 cups all purpose flour
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2 tablespoons sugar
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1/2 teaspoon salt
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1 1/2 tsp dry yeast
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1 3/4 cups water
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1 tbsp vegetable oil
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4 cups frozen diced hashbrowns
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5 hot dogs, halved crosswise
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5 mozzarella cheese sticks, halved crosswise
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2 cups panko bread crumbs
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3 tablespoons sugar (optional)
Gochujang Ketchup (optional)
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2 tbsp gochujang
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1/2 cup ketchup
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1 tbsp soy sauce
Directions
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For batter, in a 2-qt. rectangular baking dish stir together flour, 2 Tbsp. sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt, and the yeast. Add the warm water; stir until combined. Cover; let stand 1 hour. Batter will be sticky. (If you like, you can refrigerate batter after 1 hour of proofing up to an additional 3 hours.)
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Fill a 12-inch skillet with 2-inch sides halfway with oil; heat oil to 365°F. Meanwhile, place hash browns in a 9-inch glass baking dish. Cover with waxed paper and microwave until thawed, 3 to 5 minutes; cool. Place panko in a pie plate.
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On each skewer thread a hot dog half followed by a string cheese half.
Working with two or three skewers at a time, dip each skewer into the batter; use a spoon to spread and smooth batter around hot dog and cheese to completely coat.
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Roll skewers in hash browns, patting to make hash browns stick.
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Roll in panko to coat. Chill batter between batches.
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Carefully lower coated corn dogs into hot oil. Cook, turning occasionally, until evenly golden brown, 8 to 9 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle warm corn dogs generously with the 2 to 3 Tbsp. sugar (if using). Repeat with remaining skewers. (You can keep fried corn dogs warm in a 200°F oven while preparing remaining corn dogs.)
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Drizzle corn dogs with Gochujang Ketchup and/or mustard. Makes 10 corn dogs.
Gochujang Ketchup
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In a small bowl stir together ketchup, gochujang, and soy sauce. Store leftovers in the fridge up to one week.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
| 628 | Calories |
| 30g | Fat |
| 74g | Carbs |
| 16g | Protein |
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Servings Per Recipe 10 | |
| Calories 627.5 | |
| % Daily Value * | |
| Total Fat 30g | 38% |
| Saturated Fat 7.9g | 40% |
| Cholesterol 27.9mg | 9% |
| Sodium 1114.3mg | 48% |
| Total Carbohydrate 74.2g | 27% |
| Dietary Fiber 4.6g | 16% |
| Total Sugars 5g | |
| Protein 15.8g | 32% |
| Vitamin D 0.3mcg | 2% |
| Vitamin C 4.9mg | 5% |
| Calcium 138.7mg | 11% |
| Iron 3.8mg | 21% |
| Potassium 493.7mg | 11% |
| Fatty acids, total trans 0.1g | |
| Vitamin D 13.2IU | |
| Alanine 0.5g | |
| Arginine 0.6g | |
| Ash 4.4g | |
| Aspartic acid 0.9g | |
| Caffeine 0mg | |
| Carotene, alpha 0mcg | |
| Choline, total 40.2mg | |
| Copper, Cu 0.2mg | |
| Cystine 0.2g | |
| Energy 2626.9kJ | |
| Fluoride, F 29.5mcg | |
| Folate, total 120.5mcg | |
| Glutamic acid 3.4g | |
| Glycine 0.5g | |
| Histidine 0.3g | |
| Isoleucine 0.6g | |
| Leucine 1g | |
| Lysine 0.7g | |
| Methionine 0.3g | |
| Magnesium, Mg 42.8mg | |
| Manganese, Mn 0.6mg | |
| Niacin 6.1mg | |
| Phosphorus, P 259.1mg | |
| Pantothenic acid 0.7mg | |
| Phenylalanine 0.6g | |
| Phytosterols 5.1mg | |
| Proline 1.2g | |
| Retinol 24.7mcg | |
| Selenium, Se 24.1mcg | |
| Serine 0.6g | |
| Starch 36.2g | |
| Theobromine 0mg | |
| Threonine 0.5g | |
| Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) 2.6mg | |
| Tryptophan 0.2g | |
| Tyrosine 0.5g | |
| Valine 0.7g | |
| Vitamin A, IU 97.6IU | |
| Vitamin A, RAE 25.4mcg | |
| Vitamin B-12 0.8mcg | |
| Vitamin B-6 0.3mg | |
| Vitamin K (phylloquinone) 14.1mcg | |
| Water 114.5g | |
| Zinc, Zn 2mg | |
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.