An easy and cheap way to enhance your homemade Chinese Meal-Scallion Pancakes

It is yet again one of my favorite days, Pancake Day! This year I learned why Shrove Tuesday, which is the day before Lent, is also called Pancake Day. In most traditions the day is known for eating pancakes before the start of Lent because pancakes are made out of the main foods available, sugar, fat, flour and eggs, whose consumption was traditionally restricted during the ritual fasting associated with Lent. Now I don't participate in Lent but I have no problem participating in Shrove Tuesday by eating pancakes.

But one thing that also love to do is to find a different way to celebrate instead of the traditional sweet pancakes. So today I decided to highlight a delicious, savory pancake that I use to enjoy when my family lived in China, Scallion Pancakes. This was always a favorite of mine when we would go out, but sadly I haven't had a lot of success finding a Chinese restaurant that serves them. I never thought about making them myself because I imaged that it would be a difficult task. I am here to say that it is incredibly easy! And it uses such simple ingredients that it is an easy and cheap way to compliment your home cooked Chinese meal. I found the inspiration for this recipe from a blogger that I deeply respect and admire, Nicky from Delicious Days. If you are a food blogger you really need to read her blog, not only is the photography and writing wonderful but she has a lot of good advice about how to grow and develop your food blog.

Chinese Scallion Pancake

200g (1 1/2 c.) flour

125mL (1/2 c.) warm water

1tsp salt (plus some for sprinkling)

3 chopped scallions

2 Tbsp oil (plus more for frying)

www.deliciousdays.com

 

Sift the flour into a big bowl and then add the salt into the flour. Slowly add the water to the flour. 

 Knead the dough until it’s no longer sticky and the surface becomes smooth, about 10 minutes. Cover the dough with a small amount of oil; let sit covered for 30 minutes.

Separate the risen dough into 4 equal sized balls. Roll out the dough balls on a well floured surface.  Lightly brush the top of each circle with oil. Sprinkle over with chopped scallions and small amount of salt.

 

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

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

 Flatten the coil into a circle with the rolling pin.

Heat a flat-bottom skillet on medium high heat and add 1 Tbsp cooking oil. Working in batches, pan-fry the pancakes until golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Slice it like a pizza into 6 slices. Serve warm with soy sauce.