Don’t be fooled by the name, these Chinese pancakes have nothing to do with the classic American pancakes with a soft texture and sweet taste.
Chinese pancakes, or rather cong you bing, have a texture that is more or less similar to a flatbread but crunchier, as they are fried or cooked with a little oil in a pan.
The dough is very simple to prepare and requires very few ingredients such as flour, salt, and hot water.
The presence of the green part of the fresh scallion gives these pancakes a special but not overpowering taste.
I absolutely loved them, especially accompanied by cold cuts and cheeses.
Now take a minute to read the recipe and then…let’s cook and eat!!
See also
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 30 Minutes
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Chinese
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 2 cups g all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup ml water (hot)
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 3 fresh scallions (only the green part)
- 3 1/2 tablespoons ml water
- 2 tablespoons g extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons g all-purpose flour
- 1 pinch fine salt
- as needed vegetable oil
Tools
- 1 Kitchen Scale
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Small Bowl
- 1 Work Surface
- 1 Rolling Pin
- 1 Fork
- 1 Dough Scraper
- 1 Pan
- 1 Brush
- 1 Plastic Wrap
Steps
Preparing the Chinese scallion pancakes is very simple and takes very little time.
First, gather the flour, salt, and hot water in a bowl.
Mix everything with a fork until the flour has absorbed all the water. At this point, move to a work surface and knead the dough for a few minutes (use a dough scraper as the dough will be quite sticky).
Once you have a smooth and homogeneous mixture, transfer it to an oiled bowl, cover it with plastic wrap or a clean cloth, and let it rest for thirty minutes.
In the meantime, prepare the emulsion by collecting the oil and water in a small bowl, add a pinch of salt and the flour. Mix everything well to avoid lumps.
Once the emulsion is ready, proceed to cut the previously washed green part of the fresh scallions.
After the resting time, take the dough, transfer it to a lightly floured work surface, and flour the top of the dough as well.
Work it to form a log and cut it into 4 pieces.
With the palm of your hand, flatten each piece, spread a tablespoon of emulsion over the surface, and stretch the dough into a very thin rectangle onto which you’ll sprinkle the chopped scallion.
Starting from the long side, roll the dough tightly on itself, then twist it to form a spiral. Let it rest for 10 minutes, cover the spirals, then roll them out with a rolling pin to obtain a dough disk about 1/8 inch thick.
Then proceed to cook in a pan where you have added a little vegetable oil.
Brush the surface of each pancake with a bit of emulsion and cook for 4-5 minutes on each side or until golden.
Serve your hot and crispy Chinese pancakes with a side of soy sauce or a platter of cold cuts and cheeses 😉.
