Scallion Pancakes

Name: Scallion Pancakes
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h 25 min
Cuisine: China
Ingredients: 300 g (2⅓ cups) all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting; 180 ml (¾ cup) just-boiled water, 60% of the flour weight; 3 g (½ tsp) fine sea salt; 3 tbsp neutral oil, plus 4 tbsp for frying; 2 tbsp all-purpose flour; ½ tsp fine sea salt; 1 tsp toasted sesame oil; 1 bunch scallions, about 6, green parts thinly sliced; 3 tbsp soy sauce; 1 tbsp rice vinegar or black vinegar; 1 tsp Chili Crisp, optional

Flaky, chewy, layered flatbreads packed with scallion

Makes: 4 pancakes
Hands-on: 40 min
Total: 1 h 25 min
Level: Some skill

Cong you bing are made from a hot-water dough that is rolled, brushed with oil, scattered with scallions, coiled and rolled flat again, which creates dozens of flaky layers. Fried until crisp and golden, they are torn apart and eaten hot with a soy-vinegar dip.

Ingredients

Dough

300 gall-purpose flour (2⅓ cups)plus extra for dusting
180 mljust-boiled water (¾ cup)60% of the flour weight
3 gfine sea salt (½ tsp)

Filling

3 tbspneutral oilplus 4 tbsp for frying
2 tbspall-purpose flour
½ tspfine sea salt
1 tsptoasted sesame oil
1 bunchscallionsabout 6, green parts thinly sliced

Dipping sauce

3 tbspsoy sauce
1 tbsprice vinegar or black vinegar
1 tspChili Crispoptional

Diet: Vegan, Vegetarian, Dairy-free
Allergens: gluten, soy, sesame, sulphites
Origin: China (northern)

Method

Mix the flour and salt in a bowl. Pour in the hot water while stirring with chopsticks or a fork until shaggy. When cool enough to handle, knead until smooth and soft, 5 minutes. Cover and rest for 30 minutes. 35 min
Make a paste by mixing 3 tbsp oil with the 2 tbsp flour, salt and sesame oil.
Divide the dough into 4. Roll one piece into a thin rectangle about 25 × 20 cm (10 × 8 in). Brush with a quarter of the paste and scatter with a quarter of the scallions.
Roll it up tightly from the long side into a log, then coil the log into a spiral like a snail shell, tucking the end underneath. Repeat with the rest and rest 10 minutes. 15 min
Flatten each spiral gently with your palm, then roll into a round about 18 cm (7 in) across and 5 mm (¼ in) thick. Some onions will poke through; that's fine.
Heat 1 tbsp oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Fry one pancake until golden and crisp, 2–3 minutes per side. Lower the heat if it browns too fast. 20 min
Lift out and, while hot, scrunch it between two spatulas to separate the layers. Cut into wedges and serve with the dipping sauce. Mix the sauce ingredients while the first pancake fries.

Why it works

Hot water partly cooks the flour's starch and weakens the gluten, giving a soft, pliable dough that rolls thin without springing back and stays chewy when fried. The oil-flour paste keeps each layer separate as you coil and re-roll, so the pancake fries into flaky, distinct sheets.