Chive Blossom Chinese Pancakes, not to be confused with the traditional Western sweet breakfast pancake, are a savoury snack. Traditionally the dough is sprinkled with scallions and sesame oil, rolled up and coiled into a spiral and then flattened out into a disc and pan-fried.
My chives have all flowered, and after last year’s success with creating Chive Blossom Butter, I was excited to find another way to use up those gorgeous chive blossoms.
I scattered my dough with toasted sesame seeds, finely chopped chives and their vibrant purple flowers for a yummy aperitivo snack. Ultra crispy and flaky on the outside and slightly chewy inside, these are addictive.
Watch how they come together.
A hot water dough for Chive Blossom Chinese Pancakes
Commonly, the dough for most Chinese pastries, like dumplings and these pancakes, is made with hot water. This is counterintuitive to everything we have been taught about pastry. Pie dough and biscuits are made with ice cold ingredients. But, the hot water acts to inhibit gluten formation. This dough rolls out so easily and is a dream to work with. A dough with a lower gluten content will be more tender. This is what we want in these pancakes. They will still have a pleasant chew.
The secret to flaky layers in Chive Blossom Chinese Pancakes
Traditionally, the dough for Chinese pancakes is made with hot water and flour. But I came across a recipe for Scallion Pancakes, by food journalist Julie Van Rosendaal that added butter to the dough. I was intrigued. First of all, butter equals flavour, and secondly, if you think about traditional butter pastries, like croissants and puff pastry, butter adds layers of flakiness. In forming these pancakes, you are in essence performing a mini lamination.
I added butter in two forms. Solid butter is worked into the flour, with your fingertips, so that you have flat shards of butter, that will release steam when it hits the hot oven, contributing to flaky layers. The second addition of butter is melted butter. After rolling the dough flat it gets brushed with melted butter and rolled up a second time to create more flaky layers. J Kenji Lopez-Alt, had the genius idea to add a second rolling and coiling of the dough, to enhance those flaky layers. It’s a small additional step, but the payoff is worth it.
What to serve these with
I made Kenji’s soy dipping sauce, loaded with ginger and scallions. It is very delicious. I also added a big drizzle of Mike’s Hot Honey just before serving and that sweet heat was fantastic. If you’re feeling fancy, a glass of Prosecco is the perfect accompaniment for aperitivo hour.
Make ahead tips
The pancakes freeze beautifully. After the final rolling, I layered the uncooked pancakes between sheets of parchment or waxed paper and slid them into a freezer bag . I cooked them right from frozen, no defrosting. The cooking time was slightly longer.
Chive Blossom Chinese Pancakes
Ingredients
- 300 grams all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal Kosher salt
- 28 grams unsalted butter, cold cut into 1/4 inch pieces
- 3/4 cup hot water
- 42 grams unsalted butter, melted
- 24 chives, with blossoms washed and laid on paper towel to dry
- 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal Kosher salt
- 35 grams sesame seeds, toasted
- 2 Tablespoons hot honey optional, for drizzling on finished pancakes
Dipping Sauce
- 2 Tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon scallion (green onion) greens, thinly sliced
- 1/2 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
- 2 teaspoons sugar
To Cook
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt. Rub in 28 grams of butter. Stir in the hot water until you have a soft dough. Turn it out onto the countertop and knead for a few minutes, until it’s smooth. Return it to the bowl, cover with a towel and set aside for 30 minutes.
- Using sharp scissors, snip the chive flower blossoms into individual petals. Place in a small bowl. Using scissors or knife, finely slice chives into bowl with blossoms. Mix and set aside.
- Divide the dough into four pieces and roll each into a rectangle (it can be oval-ish) as thin as you can – about 7×10 inches, with a long side facing you. Brush with the melted butter.
- Starting at a long side, roll up tightly into a long roll, and then shape it into a coil. Repeat with the remaining 3 pieces of dough and let them rest for about five minutes.
- Flatten each coil, gently with your hand, then re-roll into a 7×10 inch rectangle/oval for the second time.
- Brush with another layer of melted butter and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 of the chives and chive blossom mixture and 1/4 of the toasted sesame seeds and roll up tightly into a long roll, and then shape it into a coil. Flatten coil gently, with your palm and re-roll into a 7-inch disk, about 1/4 inch thick. Repeat with remaining dough balls.
- In a small bowl, whisk together sauce ingredients and set aside at room temperature.
- Drizzle 1 tablespoon vegetable oil into in an 8-inch nonstick pan and heat over medium-high heat. Carefully slip pancake into hot oil. Cook, shaking pan gently, until first side is an even golden brown (about 2 minutes). Carefully flip with tongs and continue to cook, shaking pan gently, until second side is an even golden brown (about 2 minutes longer). Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Season with salt and cut into 6 wedges. Repeat with remaining 3 pancakes. Drizzle with hot honey, if using, and serve immediately with dipping sauce.
