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France, Europe · Tarte Tatin

Korean Sujeonggwa Pear Tarte Tatin with Ginger-Cinnamon Caramel

The cinnamon and ginger of sujeonggwa, Korea's traditional punch, in a brown-sugar honey caramel with crisp Asian pear and walnuts under flaky pastry.

ServingsServes 2
Total cooking time50 min
DifficultyMedium
About servingsThe caramel is extremely hot and causes serious burns on skin. Keep children away and always wear oven gloves when flipping.

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Peel and core the pear and cut it into 2 cm thick wedges. Peel the ginger and cut it into very fine matchsticks.

    Add in this stepAsian (nashi) pear 1Fresh ginger 8 g

    oven

  2. Cut a 20 cm circle from the puff pastry, prick it with a fork and keep it in the fridge.

    Add in this stepPuff pastry sheet, chilled 140 g

  3. Put the brown sugar, butter, honey, cinnamon and salt in a 18 cm ovenproof pan and stir over medium heat for , until it's all bubbling and thick. Brown sugar burns faster than white, so don't walk away.

    Add in this stepLight brown sugar 60 gUnsalted butter 30 gHoney (for the caramel) 1 tbspGround cinnamon ½ tspSalt 1 pinch

    medium heat

  4. Lay the pear wedges in tightly, rounded side down, scatter the ginger in between and cook over medium-high heat for . Asian pears are very juicy, so you need to boil most of that juice away now. When the liquid is sticky like syrup and the pear edges look translucent, turn off the heat and push the walnuts into the gaps.

    Add in this stepWalnuts 20 g

    medium-high heat

  5. Cover with the cold pastry, tuck the edges inside the pan and cut 3 steam holes. Bake in the oven for , until the pastry is puffed and deep brown.

    oven

  6. Leave for , then, wearing oven gloves, cover with a large plate and flip in one go. Serve with Greek yoghurt drizzled with honey, which brings out the cool, sweet spiced notes of sujeonggwa.

    Add in this stepGreek yoghurt 4 tbspHoney (to serve) 2 tsp

Cook's tip

A firm Bosc or Conference pear works if you can't find Asian pears. If you don't reduce the pear juice enough, the tart will be watery when flipped and the pastry soggy, so wait until it's syrupy. Add a few chopped dried persimmons with the walnuts for an even more sujeonggwa-like flavour.

Cooking it at camp

Make it in a lidded cast-iron pan. Reduce the pear juice well on the burner, cover with the pastry and bake with plenty of coals on the lid for 20 to 30 minutes. Keep the yoghurt cold in the cooler until serving.