North-South Onion Pancakes
Submitted by rusty1
Flaky Chinese onion pancakes stuffed with chicken, Chinese sausage, dried shrimp, and barbecued pork. Crispy outside, savory layered inside. Northern dough meets southern filling.
YIELD
8 servingsPREP
30 minCOOK
10 minREADY
40 minThis is a marriage of two Chinese regional styles. The flaky hot-water dough and spiral-rolled layers come from northern scallion pancake technique; the dense, savory filling of lap cheong, dried shrimp, and char siu is pure southern Cantonese pantry. Hence the name.
The dough is what makes these special. Boiling water hits the flour first, partially gelatinizing the starch so the finished pancake fries up tender rather than tough. The cold water added after rebalances hydration so you can still work the dough by hand.
The snail-coil technique is the secret to layers. Rolling the dough, brushing with shortening, rolling again into a spiral, and then flattening creates dozens of fat-separated flour sheets. When fried, they puff apart into crisp, flaky layers instead of a dense pancake.
Stuffing each pancake with filling before the final flatten is the twist here. Most scallion pancakes are plain; these become a meal.
Chef Tips
- Let the dough rest the full hour. A shorter rest means tough, snappy pancakes that won’t roll thin.
- Use real Chinese sausage (lap cheong) and char siu if you can find them; substitutes change the character entirely.
- Pinch the dough fully closed over the filling or juices will leak and splatter in the hot oil.
- Fry over medium, not high, heat so the layers cook through before the exterior burns.
Variations
- Make a vegetarian version with five-spice tofu and shiitake mushrooms in place of the meats.
- Add a pinch of Sichuan peppercorn powder to the filling for a tingly note.
- Serve with a dipping sauce of soy sauce, black vinegar, and chili oil.
Ingredients
Directions
MEASURE FLOUR into a large mixing bowl; add boiling water, stirring quickly with chopsticks or fork, then add cold water and mix well.
Work dough until smooth and supple. Roll dough into shape of a ball. Cover well with plastic. Wrap or damp cloth; set aside to rest for 1 hour at room temperature.
Place the chicken in a small bowl; add cornstarch, cooking sherry and pinch of salt. Set aside and refrigerate and let marinate until ready to use.
Stir-fry Chinese sausage and dried shrimp in hot vegetable oil in a small frying pan over high heat for 1 minute.
Add chicken with its marinade and stir-fry for another 2 minutes.
Quickly stir in barbecued pork and ¾ cup of the minced onions. (Set aside remaining onions for pancake wrappers.) Immediately season with the oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar and salt, and mix well.
Turn off heat; divide into 16 portions and set aside.
Knead dough until smooth and divide equally into 16 pieces; cover with plastic wrap. Work 1 piece of dough at a time, keeping the rest covered in plastic wrap. Take a piece of dough and rub both sides with a bit of shortening, then roll out with a rolling pin to 6 inches in diameter.
Again rub shortening (about 1 teaspoon) onto 1 side of the dough; sprinkle evenly with about 1 teaspoon minced scallions and a pinch of salt.
Curl up the dough from 1 end into a long, narrow cylinder; then curl up again lengthwise into a snail-like cylinder. Place the dough on its broad side and roll out again with a rolling pin into a piece about 4 inches in diameter.
Place one portion of filling in center of dough and seal well on top by pinching the dough like a dumpling.
Flatten into a 2-inch-diameter onion pancake. Set aside. Repeat until all the dough is prepared.
Pan fry the onion pancakes in a thin layer of hot vegetable oil over medium heat, about 2 minutes on each side or until golden brown.
Pat the onion pancakes gently with a paper towel to remove excess oil before serving.
Makes 16 Pancakes, or 8 Servings
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