Chinese Scallion Pancakes

- Makes 8
​Ever had Chinese scallion pancakes? These gorgeous, golden flatbreads are a regular breakfast staple in many parts of China and Taiwan. Our ayi back in Shanghai would often make them with leftover dumpling dough and many times first thing in the morning with half-fried eggs. This delicious flatbread is surprisingly easy to make and once you’ve tried this fresh homemade version, you’ll never go back to its oily store-bought counterpart. Serve it hot with fried eggs, Chinese cucumber salad or simply dipped in Chinese chili oil. Leftover uncooked pancakes freeze beautifully - simply pile them up with baking paper in between, then freeze them in a sealed ziplock bag. To use frozen pancakes, thaw them in the fridge before roasting them in a hot pan.

Ingredients for Chinese Scallion Pancakes

​250 g all-purpose flour , about 2 cups + extra for dusting
1 teaspoon salt
165ml or 2/3 cup plus 1 teaspoon boiling hot water, plus more if neccesary
For the filling
2 tablespoons lard or coconut oil, melted
2 tablespoons plain flour 
1/4 teaspoon ground toasted Sichuan pepper, or Chinese five-spice powder
1/4 teaspoon sea-salt, or to taste
8-10 stalks spring onions or scallions, finely chopped
For frying
2-3 tablespoons vegetable or coconut oil

Recipe
Make the dough
  1. Place flour and salt in a large bowl. Pour in boiling hot water. Stir with a pair of chopsticks for about a minute until the flour is crumbly. When cool enough to handle, knead the mixture into a soft, pliable dough. Cover with a damp tea-towel and leave to rest for at least 30 minutes.
Prepare the filling
  1. In a bowl, stir together oil/lard, flour, ground Sichuan pepper (or five-spice powder), and salt . Finely chop the scallions/spring onions - set aside.
Rolling and roasting pancakes
  1. Knead the dough again until smooth, then split into 2 balls. Flatten the dough balls between your palms, cover in dusting flour on both sides, then roll using a rolling pin into a very thin rectangle shape. Brush all over with spiced lard/oil. Sprinkle generously all over with chopped spring onion or scallions.
  2. Roll the pastry into a log, then cut into 4 equal pieces. Flatten the pieces cut side down, dust with more flour and roll again into 1mm thick discs or thinner if you like.
  3. Heat a heavy base frying pan or cast-iron pan on medium flame, until smoking. Add 1-2 tablespoons oil, then place a few discs in the pan. Reduce heat to low-medium flame, then cook for 2-3 minutes, flipping every 20-30 seconds. The pancakes are ready to serve once crispy golden all over. Let them rest for 1-2 minutes on a paper towel before crunching the bread in between your palms to reveal the beautiful layers. Serve hot with chili oil or fried eggs.
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