Scallion Pancake Image Used Under Creative Commons License From Wikipedia
Citizens, many of you perhaps assume China is a country where rice is the primary starch. While certainly true in the South, Northern Chinese raise wheat, not rice and this delicious fried scallion bread (usually referred to as a “pancake”) reigns supreme!
As noted on sites.psu.edu/jerryliuenglish15:
There is a legend behind the scallion pancake in which Marco Polo borrowed the dough he found in China and that pizza evolved from the scallion pancake in this way. Italians altered the method of making pizza indefinitely, but there are many different stories of possible legends of how pizza originated. Some believe that Marco Polo missed Cong You Bing so much that he made chefs in Italy to make their own variation to the scallion pancake.
Cong You Bing’s origin dates back so long ago that many Chinese historians cannot fully agree on where it was created. Many believe Cong You Bing originated in Shanghai, where many Indians had once lived. This makes sense due to the scallion pancake’s similarity to Indian naan bread.
My version of this toothsome treat uses melted chicken fat and a touch of sesame oil for frying to add real savor – you can use just corn oil if you so prefer. I also added a touch of ground Sichuan peppercorns, but this is totally optional, Citizens! I first learned how to make these amazing breads from my Chinese cooking mentor, the late Dr. Barbara Tropp, Chinese historian and gastronome extraordinaire! I am forever indebted to her tutelage on the correct approach to Chinese cuisine!
If you’re interested in reading her cookbooks, you can either buy copies of the still in-print versions at Amazon or visit ckbk.com and subscribe there to read them (and thousands of others!)
Regardless, I think you will find my version to be the most flavorsome you’ve ever tried!
Sesame oil mixed with melted chicken fat for brushing
Kosher salt for sprinkling
Fresh-ground Sichuan Peppercorn (optional)
3 bunches scallions (green onions), white and light green parts, minced
Instructions
Measure the flour by scooping it into a measuring cup, then leveling it off. Mix the flours and salt together in a bowl or food processor. Add the oil and then stir in the water gradually to form a cohesive dough. Knead into a ball – or, if using a food processor, process until the mixture comes together into a ball – then turn the dough out onto a floured board and knead two minutes by hand. Cover with a moist dish towel and let rest for half an hour.
Roll the dough into the shape of a snake and cut this into 12 segments, rolling each of these into a ball. Cover them with a moist towel until needed.
Take one ball, roll it out into a circle, brush it thinly with sesame oil/chicken fat mixture, and sprinkle it liberally with scallions and a touch of kosher salt as well as a tiny pinch of freshly-ground Sichuan peppercorn (optional).
Carefully roll the circle up into a cigar shape as if making a jelly roll. This distributes the scallions evenly throughout and creates layers of dough in which air bubbles are trapped. These will expand from the heat of frying and leaven the pancake.
Coil the cigar into the shape of a cinnamon roll, with the seam on the inside.
Repeat steps 3 to 5 for each of the remaining balls of dough. Cover these coils with a moist dish towel and let rest for half an hour.
Roll each pancake flat. They should be about 5 inches wide and ¼-inch thick. But be careful not to roll too hard. If you lose those air bubbles, you’ll get scallion hockey pucks.
Heat ⅛ inch of corn oil (to which you’ve added a goodly amount of melted chicken fat and a touch of sesame oil) over a medium flame in a 12-inch skillet (nonstick works great). When the oil is hot, fry the pancakes three or four at a time (don’t crowd them), giving them 3 minutes on the first side and 2 minutes on the second or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Serve and eat immediately.
Prep Time:0 hours
Cook Time:0 hours
Category:Recipes
Nutrition
Calories:710.6 kcal
Sugar:2.31 g
Sodium:600.18 mg
Fat:31.34 g
Saturated Fat:4.38 g
Carbohydrates:94.72 g
Fiber:4.7 g
Protein:12.12 g
Cholesterol:0.0 mg
How useful was this post, Citizen?
Click to rate My Recipe, Citizen - 5 hearts are ALWAYS appreciated!
Average rating / 5. Vote count:
No votes so far! Be the first to rate this post.
As you found this post useful...
Follow us on social media, Citizen!
We are sorry that this post was not useful for you!
Be advised that as an enlightened Dictatorship here at TFD, we are indeed on the side of right when it comes to protecting the privacy of TFD Nation!
We do use technologies such as cookies to store and/or access device information, solely to improve your browsing experience and to show personalized ads.
Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions - trust us, we really ARE on your side!
YOUR LOYALTY IS NOTED!
Functional Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Leave a Reply