Dongtae-jeon (Pan-Fried Pollock)

Dongtae-jeon lives or dies before it reaches the pan. The fish has to be thawed slowly, salted lightly, and blotted dry until the paper comes away almost clean. If you leave water on it, the flour turns to paste and the egg slides off. Then people blame the pan. The pan did nothing wrong.

This is holiday food, but not difficult food. On Seollal and Chuseok tables, it sits beside other jeon, pale yellow from egg, neat enough for guests and soft enough for children. My teacher Master Seong-nyeo made us lay every slice on cloth after salting. 눈동냥, 귀동냥 (borrowing with the eyes and ears), that was the lesson: dry fish, thin flour, gentle heat.

Don't fry it brown. Dongtae-jeon should be cooked through and lightly golden, with the pollock still tasting clean under the egg. The garnish is not decoration only; a little green chili and red chili mark the pieces and give the eye order on a crowded table. Write down the timing for your stove. Memory is a borrowed bowl.