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 7x10 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 7x10 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.
Notes
This recipe is adapted from Julie Van Rosendaal's recipe for Spring-Onion Cakes (Globe and Mail May 23, 2024) and Serious Eat's Recipe for Extra-Flaky Scallion Pancakes. The additional step of a second layer of lamination is what gives a super flaky pancake. This was the genius idea of Kenji López-Alt at Serious Eats.
The drizzle of hot honey was my idea. I loved the addition of sweet heat to these pancakes. I'm planning to serve these all summer long at Aperitivo hour with a glass of Prosecco. They freeze beautifully too, if you want to make them in advance and have them ready to go. Freeze them, rolled flat and uncooked, between pieces of waxed paper or parchment, and cook them straight from frozen
Nutrition
Serving: 4gCalories: 618kcalCarbohydrates: 71gProtein: 11gFat: 33gSaturated Fat: 12gPolyunsaturated Fat: 11gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 38mgSodium: 2061mgPotassium: 173mgFiber: 3gSugar: 11gVitamin A: 714IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 142mgIron: 5mg
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