Ingredients
Dough
- 400 gplain flour
- 1 tspsalt
- 250 mlboiling water
- 60 mlcold water
Layering
- 4 tbspplain flour
- 5 tbspvegetable oil or lard
- 1/2 tspsalt
- 1/2 tspground white pepper
Filling
- a large bunch of spring onions, finely sliced
To cook
- vegetable oil, for frying
Night-market additions
- 1egg per pancake
- sweet chilli sauce
- soy paste
- shredded basil
Equipment
- a heavy flat pan
Directions
- Put the flour and salt in a large bowl. Pour the boiling water in while stirring with chopsticks or a spoon. Do not use your hands at this stage, since it is scalding. Stir until it forms rough shaggy lumps. Add the cold water and bring it together. Kneading it takes a few minutes.
- Cover it with a damp cloth and rest it for at least an hour. The rest is what lets you roll it paper-thin. Mix the four tablespoons of flour with the oil. Add the salt and white pepper. It should be a thick spreadable paste. Divide the rested dough into four pieces.
- Roll one piece out as thin as you possibly can. It should be almost translucent. Spread a thin even layer of the oil paste over the whole sheet. Leave a bare centimetre at one edge. Scatter the sliced spring onions over it. Use far more than looks reasonable. Roll the sheet up tightly from one long edge into a rope. Roll it firmly so no air is trapped.
- Pick the rope up by both ends. Stretch it gently until it is half again as long. Press the coil down gently with your palm. Let the coils rest for fifteen minutes. Rolling them out again must be gentle.
- Roll each coil into a round about eighteen centimetres across. Press lightly, since heavy pressure crushes the layers together. It should be about half a centimetre thick. Heat a heavy flat pan over a medium heat. Add two tablespoons of oil to it. Lay one pancake into the hot pan.
- Fry it for three or four minutes on the first side. It should be deep golden with darker blistered patches. Turn it and fry the other side for the same time. Press it lightly with a spatula as it cooks. Take the cooked pancake out of the pan. Do it while the pancake is still hot. Beat an egg and pour it into the pan. Lay the fried pancake straight onto the wet egg.
- Press it down so the egg bonds to the bread. Cook for a minute and flip it briefly. Serving it is done piping hot. Cut it into wedges, or roll it up whole. Brush it with sweet chilli sauce or soy paste. Add shredded basil if you want the full night-market treatment. It softens within twenty minutes and is made to order.
Technique
- Use boiling water for the dough, which gelatinises the starch and makes it easy to roll thin.
- Mix flour into the oil paste, since plain oil leaks out and gives fewer layers.
- Scrunch the hot pancake between spatulas to separate the layers into flakes.
Substitutions
- Lard in place of oil in the layering paste, which is richer.
- Frozen shop-bought pancakes, which are widely sold.
Variations
- With an egg fried onto it, as at night markets.
- With shredded basil and chilli sauce.
- Rolled around beef and salad, as a wrap.
History
A northern Chinese flatbread carried to Taiwan by mainland migrants after 1949 and refried into the flaky, egg-topped night-market version.
Frequently asked questions
What is Scallion Pancake?
Scallion Pancake is a street food from Taiwan: flaky pan-fried flatbread layered with scallions. A northern Chinese flatbread carried to Taiwan by mainland migrants after 1949 and refried into the flaky, egg-topped night-market version.
How long does Scallion Pancake take to make?
Scallion Pancake takes 30 min plus 1 hour resting of preparation and 25 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 pancakes. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Scallion Pancake?
Yes, within limits. Lard in place of oil in the layering paste, which is richer. Frozen shop-bought pancakes, which are widely sold.
What is the most important thing to get right in Scallion Pancake?
Put the flour and salt in a large bowl. Pour the boiling water in while stirring with chopsticks or a spoon. Do not use your hands at this stage, since it is scalding. Stir until it forms rough shaggy lumps. Add the cold water and bring it together. Kneading it takes a few minutes.
