chinese scallion pancakes

Did you do anything to celebrate the Chinese New Year this week? Monday was Chinese New Year and kicked off the Year of the Dragon. Ever since meeting my dear friend, Stacy who is half Chinese, I have loved cooking Chinese dishes and celebrating Chinese New Year. Yesterday we celebrated with a delicious lunch and everyone brought a Chinese dish to share. I made Stacy's fabulous lettuce wraps. Remember them? We also ate dumplings, beef and broccoli, a couple kinds of noodles, and cookies! One of my friends brought scallion pancakes and they were a huge hit!  She followed a recipe from Appetite for China, which is a great blog with many Chinese, as well as other culturally inspired, dishes.

(photo credit: Diana Kuan, Appetite for China)

These Chinese Scallion Pancakes were absolutely delicious. My friend served them warm with some Yoshida's sauce on the side, but they were equally delicious without any sauce. The recipe is as follows, but you will want to visit the original posting over at Appetite for China because she offers step by step photos, which is a huge help in following the recipe.  Enjoy them!

Chinese Scallion Pancake
From: Appetite for China


1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (cake flour also works, but lacks elasticity)
1 teaspoon yeast dissolved in 1/2 cup warm water + 1 teaspoon sugar to activate yeast
2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup finely chopped scallions

Sift flour into 2 equal portions into separate bowls. In the first bowl, slowly add the yeast-water, mixing with a spatula, until a dough forms.

In the second bowl, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of the salt into the flour. Slowly pour in 1/2 cup of the boiling hot water while vigorously stirring (this “cooks” the dough.) Add more water and keep stirring until a rough dough forms. (If you accidentally add too much water and the dough is too soft, add a little more flour.) Mix in 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Roll the doughs out on a lightly floured surface and knead them together. Cover with a damp towel and let rise for 30 to 40 minutes.

On the same floured surface, roll out the risen dough. Form into a 1-inch thick log, and slice into Ping Pong-ball sized segments. With a rolling pin, roll each segment out to 4″ or 5″ circles.

Lightly brush the top of each circle with vegetable oil. Sprinkle over with chopped scallions and the remaining salt.

Roll up the circle, semi-tightly, making sure the scallions stay in place.

Now, roll it again lengthwise until it forms a coiled ball.

Turn the spiral side face-up, then flatten again into a circle with the rolling pin. Place on a plate and repeat with the remaining dough until you have a stack of scallion-studded spiral patties. (Whatever you don’t cook immediately can be frozen for future use.)

Heat a flat-bottom skillet on medium high heat and add remaining 1 tablespoon cooking oil. Working in batches, pan-fry the pancakes until golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Serve warm.