A classic Japanese confection, Dorayaki is a honey pancake sandwich filled with sweet red bean paste called anko. It‘s a wildly popular snack and dessert among children and adults alike in Japan.
Dorayaki (どら焼き) is best described as a dessert with red bean filling between two slices of sweet fluffy pancakes. If you are familiar with Japanese cartoons from the ’70s, you probably know this dessert from the anime character Doraemon who is crazy about this snack and falls for any trap involving them.
Different Types of Dorayaki
Besides Doraemon, my entire family including my children and husband all love this snack. This traditional Japanese confectionery is most commonly filled with sweet azuki red bean paste called anko; however, custard cream (recipe), chestnuts (kuri), and cream (matcha cream, cream with fruits, etc) are also popular.
The soft moist honey pancake with sweet red bean filling goes perfectly with warm and slightly bitter Japanese green tea. I am drooling just thinking about these tasty pancake snacks.
Golden Brown Dorayaki Pancakes
For perfect golden brown pancakes, make sure to wipe off all excess oil on the frying pan’s surface. If you leave oil streaks on the pan, the pancakes will not turn into nice golden color without spots. Don’t worry if the first few don’t turn out perfect, just keep going and you’ll get the hang of it very quickly.
Most of the Japanese confectionery stores in Japan carry these traditional sweets. Here in the U.S., Japanese and Asian grocery stores carry packaged dorayaki. They taste good, but homemade ones are very easy to make and I hope you give this homemade recipe a try!
Wish to learn more about Japanese cooking? Sign up for our free newsletter to receive cooking tips & recipe updates! And stay in touch with me on Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, and Instagram.
Dorayaki (Japanese Red Bean Pancake)
Video
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell)
- 140 g sugar (⅔ cup + ½ Tbsp)
- 2 Tbsp honey
- 1⅓ cups all-purpose flour (plain flour) (weigh your flour or use the “fluff and sprinkle“ method and level it off)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1–2 Tbsp water (adjust to achieve the desired batter consistency)
- neutral oil (for greasing the pan)
- 1.1 lb sweet red bean paste (anko) (you can make Homemade Anko)
Instructions
- Before You Start: I highly encourage you to weigh your ingredients using a kitchen scale for this recipe. Click on the “Metric“ button at the top of the recipe to convert the ingredient measurements to metric. If you‘re using a cup measurement, please follow the “fluff and sprinkle“ method: Fluff your flour with a spoon, sprinkle the flour into your measuring cup, and level it off. Otherwise, you may scoop more flour than you need.Gather all the ingredients.
To Make the Batter
- In a large bowl, combine 4 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell), 140 g sugar (⅔ cup + ½ Tbsp), and 2 Tbsp honey. Whisk well until the mixture becomes fluffy.
- Sift 1⅓ cups all-purpose flour (plain flour) and 1 tsp baking powder into the bowl with the egg mixture and mix until combined. Put the bowl in the refrigerator to rest the batter for 15 minutes.
- After resting, the batter should be relaxed and slightly smoother. Now, stir in half of the 1–2 Tbsp water and check the consistency. It should be similar to pancake batter. Add more of the water, as needed, until you achieve the right consistency. Depending on the size of the eggs and how accurate your flour measurement is, the water amount may vary.
To Cook the Honey Pancakes
- Heat a large nonstick frying pan over the lowest heat setting for 5 minutes. It‘s best to take your time and heat the pan slowly. When it is thoroughly heated with no hot spots, increase the heat to medium low. Dip a paper towel in neutral oil and coat the bottom of the pan with oil. Then, use another paper towel to remove the oil completely. This is the key to evenly golden brown Dorayaki pancakes. With a ladle or a small measuring cup (I use a 4 Tbsp measuring cup), pour 3 Tbsp of the batter from 3 inches (8 cm) above the pan to create a pancake that‘s 3 inches (8 cm) in diameter. Cook one pancake at a time.
- When you see the surface of the batter starting to bubble, flip the pancake over and cook the other side. (With my stove and frying pan, it takes 1 minute and 15–30 seconds to cook one side and 20–30 seconds for the other side.) When done, transfer it to a plate and cover it with a damp towel to prevent it from drying out. Grease the pan between batches, as needed. Continue making the rest of the pancakes; you can make about 12 pancakes.
To Assemble the Dorayaki
- Assemble the Dorayaki by making sandwiches using two pancakes and a scoop of the 1.1 lb sweet red bean paste (anko) as filling. Put more red bean paste in the center of the pancakes so the sandwich‘s middle is thicker than the edges and the Dorayaki's overall shape is curved. Wrap the Dorayaki with plastic wrap until ready to serve.
To Store
- The leftovers can be wrapped in plastic and stored in a cool place for 2 days. They also can be put in a freezer bag and stored in the freezer for a month.
Nutrition
Editor’s Note: The post was originally published on October 28, 2011. The new post includes updated images and the new video.
I’ve made these a couple times now, and they’re so good! They really are finicky with the heat, though. Every batch I’ve straight-up burnt the first pancake because I auto-pilot to medium heat like I do for normal pancakes. Obviously that’s my fault, not the recipe’s, of course! But just in case anyone’s reading the comments, really listen to the recipe on that lol.
This time I made lots of little dollar-coin-sized dorayaki. They’re so cute I could die ;_;
Hi Rachel! Thank you so much for reading Nami’s post and trying her recipe! The dollar coin-sized Dorayaki must be so cute! ☺️
Thank you for sharing your cooking experience and tips with us.
Instead of using red bean paste can you use a chocolate filling?
Hi Amaya! Yes! You may enjoy Dorayaki with chocolate filling, custard cream, etc.
We hope you enjoy making different varieties!
Happy Cooking!
A great recipe if you have leftover red bean paste (but so good I’d open a new package just to make these again). All of the pan heating and other tips really helped mine cook up golden and perfectly light. My only issue was with the sweetness. The honey flavor was great. Would they still work if I used less sugar?
Hi Kate, Thank you so much for trying Nami’s recipe and sharing your cooking experience with us.
Depending on how sweet you would like it, the amount of sugar can be reduced. So, feel free to reduce it, but don’t omit the sugar for a good brown color.😉 We hope this helps!
Looks delicious! It reminds me of Doraemon! Love watching Doraemon when I was a kid!
Hi, Cecilia! When we were kids, we also enjoyed watching Doraemon.🤩
Thank you for taking the time to read Nami’s post and try her recipe!
We made these and they were easily burnt and disgustingly sweet.
Hi Olivia! Thank you for trying Nami’s recipe. We’re sorry that this recipe didn’t work out well for you.
To get a nice even color on the pancake, one of the most difficult parts of the recipe is to control the heat. Because everyone has a different stove, the only way to find the right heat is to experiment. The amount of sugar in the pancake can be adjusted depending on how sweet your red bean paste is, as store-bought ones can be quite sweet.
We hope this helps.
i love them! Where can I buy some?
im in Australia/ Melbourne
Hi, Bernadette! Thank you for reading Nami’s post!
Most Asian grocery stores sell premade Dorayaki. Here is a list of stores from around the world.
https://www.justonecookbook.com/japanese-grocery-stores-around-the-world/
We hope this helps!
This turned out perfectly on my first try. I am OBSESSED with these treats, I can’t wait to make more dorayaki!❤️
Hi Shelli! Aww. We are so happy to hear your Dorayaki turned out perfectly!!! 🥰
Thank you so much for trying Nami’s recipe and taking the time to send us kind feedback.
Happy cooking!
I made these and they burned very quickly even on medium heat and didn’t cook properly on low. I lived in Japan for a long time and these are sweeter than I had there so I’m guessing the high sugar content was the issue. I used Greek honey (not adulterated) which may have been an issue as well. They tasted amazing when I tried the (not burnt, but partially raw) ones and reminded me of castella in flavor. I’m not sure how I can get them to cook properly without burning. My batter was a perfect consistency and I measured carefully (used weight instead of volume). They also came out round, but were so fragile when flipped that it was hard to turn them over even when bubbles had formed.
Hi Orchid64, Thank you for trying Nami’s recipe and for your feedback.
We are sorry to hear that your Dorayaki didn’t come out well. The sweetness might be different depending on the honey types, so please feel free to adjust the sugar amount for your liking next time.
As for the heat level, It could be the difference in heat distribution of the pan. Have you tried to keep the heat on the lowest setting for 5 minutes before you pour the batter to get rid of hot spots? This might help cook the pancake evenly and slowly.
We hope this helps!
Was making these and they were just turning out so weird, so liquid-y and so I kept adding flour but still wasn’t satisfied.
I was confused as I used a scale as per your recommendation. But then after making most of them I read more closely and realized you recommend using a scale…and then give the amount in grams for a single cup when the total required is one cup plus one third
I’d recommend changing it to the amount needed in the recipe – one cup and one third aka 120 + 40 = 160 grams. I’m sure others have made the same mistake!
Hi Kay! Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe and for your feedback.
We are sorry to hear the recipe instruction made you confused.
The note is to tell the cup size weight, 1 cup = 120 g, and it’s not the actual ingredient you need.
Would you please click the bar “Metric” next to the ingredient list when you use the scale? That will change the measurement easy to read for you in the Metric system.
We hope this helps!
I made this. The colour was just right when cooking it. I need to offer advice to anyone else who tries to make it. The pancakes are too large and thick. I kept having to add water to thin it down, but at least that didn’t affect the flavour or the colour. I would recommend using 4-6 tablespoons of water, and also to make much smaller pancakes. I am very happy it turned out edible, but I feel like I’ve eaten three store-bought ones instead of one. Happy baking!
Hi Anna! Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe and sharing your cooking experience.
Dorayaki in Japan is about 3 inches (8 cm) in diameter and the same as Nami’s, but glad to hear you enjoyed the flavor and color.
If you needed to add more water to the batter, your batter might have extra flour. Did you use a scale to measure the flour? Here is the method if you don’t use scale.
https://www.justonecookbook.com/how-to-measure-flour/
Another reason you needed water might be your flour absorbed more than Nami’s flour due to a different brand.
We hope this helps, and thanks again for your input.🙂
A uns 6 a 8 anos eu assisti um maravilhoso filme sobre um vendedor de Dorayaki. Na rua do seu estabelecimento era toda de cerejeiras, nossa era a coisa mais linda que eu já vi. Ele contrata uma senhorinha pra fazer o recheio do Dorayaki, e ela conversava com o “Anko” enquanto cozinhava pra saber quando estava pronto.
Hi Syd! Thank you very much for reading Nami’s post and for your input!
We hope you enjoy making Dorayaki!
Hi, I was wondering if the honey is a needed ingredient or just for more sweetness? I’m not a huge fan of the taste of honey so is there a way I can use a substitute?
Hi Daliya! Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe!
The honey adds not just the sweetness, it gives moister too. The closest substituting ingredients are maple syrup or light molasses. Do you like these flavors?
We hope this helps!
Nami – Can I use an electric beater to mix the batter and put it in the refrigerate overnight to make it the next day?
Hi Grace, Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe.
Yes, you can use an electric beater if you are careful not to overbeat the batter. The batter can be stored in an airtight container and placed in the refrigerator, but it will lose the fluffiness of the pancake compared to the pancake that follows the recipe.
We hope this helps!
Hi,
I had a question with anko. If i make it beforehand and put it into the fridge/ freezer, wouldn’t it be cold? How do I warm it up?
Thank you!
Hi Elle, Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe!
You can reheat Anko in the microwave or use a pot and add a bit of water to simmer on low heat.
We hope this helps!
Thanks a lot for the reply! And what about frozen dorayaki? How should I reheat it? Thank you! 🙂
Hi Elle! You can defrost frozen dorayaki in the microwave. Heat up for about 20~30 seconds.
You can also put them in the toaster oven or pan-fry for more crispness.
We hope this helps!
This recipe worked really well for me! The pancakes turned out really fluffy and round 🙂
Hi Abigail, We are so happy to hear your Dorayaki turned out very nicely!
Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe and for your kind feedback!