These Scallion Pancakes aka Cong You Bing are super flaky and incredibly easy to make! They’re stuffed with green onions and are perfect as an appetizer or side! Dip them in Ginger Soy Sauce to take them to the next level and you’ll never go back to store-bought or take-out pancakes!
SCALLION PANCAKES AKA CONG YOU BING
HELLO INTERNET BABES!! Today I have these delicious Scallion Pancakes for you! I absolutely *love* making (and eating…) these, they’re SO fun to assemble and so deliciously flaky!
They’re typically dipped in Ginger Soy Sauce (and I’ll hook you up with a *good* Ginger Soy Sauce!) but I actually love them with hot honey?! Uhm. I said it. I dip my scallion pancakes in hot honey lol. I know, wtf, but look… it’s a delicious combo and you should totally give it a try :).
Anyway. These flaky babies are SO much better than store-bought or take-out, they’re absolutely packed with flavor and they’re perfectly flaky! Eating a batch of *homemade* scallion pancakes is a whole another experience, trust me!
SO. Get your scallions out and let’s get started?!
WHAT IS A SCALLION PANCAKE MADE OF?
Scallion Pancakes or Green Onion Pancakes (Cong You Bing in Chinese) are made with flour, water, canola oil, scallions, and five spice powder.
If you’ve never had these before, just picture an extra flaky flatbread stuffed with super fragrant scallions that’s fried in oil until golden. SO good!
WHAT DOES 5 SPICE POWDER TASTE LIKE?
Five spice powder tastes a bit like… licorice?! It has a very distinct sweet, warm flavor that’s unlike any other spice mix.
It contains anise, cinnamon, fennel, cloves, and Szechuan peppercorns! You can find it in the Asian section of your grocery store or at your local Asian market (it’s probably going to be cheaper there!).
HOW DO I SUBSTITUTE 5 SPICE POWDER?
You can make your own at home!
Simply combine 3 anise pods, 1 tbsp ground cinnamon, 1 tbsp fennel seeds, 2/3 tsp ground cloves, and 1 tsp Szechuan peppercorns. If you don’t have Szechuan peppercorns, you can use 1 and 1/2 tsp regular peppercorns! Place the mixture in a coffee grinder (or a spice grinder if you own one) and grind until smooth!
This recipe makes 2 tbsp. You can store any leftovers in an air-tight container for up to 6 months!
If you want a simpler version of 5 spice powder, you can combine cayenne pepper, cinnamon, and ground cloves! This spice mix isn’t gonna taste authentic but if you’re not a huge fan of 5 spice powder, you can totally use these three spices instead (been there, done that, they’re still delicious!).
HOW DO YOU MAKE SCALLION PANCAKES FROM SCRATCH?
- Make the dough by combining water, salt, and flour.
- Knead the dough until smooth and elastic.
- Let it rest for an hour.
- Saute the scallions until fragrant.
- Divide the dough into 4 pieces.
- Roll each piece into a rectangle, add the oil, five spice powder, and scallions to the dough.
- Fold, fold, fold! Fold the dough into thirds by grabbing the bottom of the rectangle and folding it over the center. Then grab the top third of the dough and fold it down over the center. Fold everything again one more time. Please refer to the step-by-step pictures below, it’s difficult to explain but really easy to actually do!
- Curl into a snail-like shape tucking the end underneath the rolled-up dough.
- Roll it out into a thin circle.
- Cook it in vegetable oil until golden brown, flipping it halfway through.
HOW DO YOU STORE LEFTOVER SCALLION PANCAKES?
Store in an air-tight container at room temperature for a day. If you need to store them for longer than a day, I recommend placing them in the refrigerator. Properly stored scallion pancakes keep well in the refrigerator for up to 5 days!
HOW DO YOU REHEAT SCALLION PANCAKES?
Place them back in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, add a bit of vegetable oil and reheat them for about a minute per side.
You can also reheat them in the oven: preheat the oven to 400F, pop the pancakes in the oven and reheat for 4-5 minutes or until fully heated through!
HAPPY COOKING BABES!! I hope you’ll love these Easy Scallion Pancakes as much as I do! Please leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating if you make it! I LOVE hearing from you! <3
OH! YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE MY:
- Vietnamese Fried Spring Rolls With Dipping Sauce
- Chinese Eggplants With Spicy Garlic Sauce
- Baked Cajun Popcorn Chicken with Chipotle Mayo
- Spicy Lebanese Potatoes (Batata Harra Recipe)
Scallion Pancakes with Soy Ginger Sauce
Ingredients
For the Chinese Scallion Pancakes
- 2 cups and 2 tbsp (300 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup and 2 tbsp (185 g) water room temperature
- Vegetable oil for frying
- 1/2 cup diced shallots (1 bulb)
- 2 scallions thinly sliced
- 1 tsp five spice powder * or homemade substitutes, please refer to note 1
For the Ginger Soy Sauce
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 2 tbsp scallions thinly sliced
- 1 tsp white granulated sugar
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1/2 tsp fresh ginger finely grated
- 1/4 tsp garlic minced
Instructions
For the Chinese Scallion Pancakes
- In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt. Slowly pour in the water. Stir to combine using a wooden spoon.
- Once the dough has come together and the flour has absorbed the water, transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead the dough for 7-8 minutes or until smooth and elastic. If you stretch it and the center becomes translucent without tearing, it's ready.
- Shape the dough into a ball and place it into a lightly greased bowl. Cover it with plastic wrap and let it rest for an hour.
- Meanwhile, prepare the shallots. In a medium pan over medium heat, heat the vegetable oil. Add the diced shallots and saute until soft (2-3 minutes). Remove from the heat and set aside.
- Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball, then cover with a clean kitchen towel to keep the dough from drying out.
- Grease your non-stick work surface with oil. Roll out the piece of dough into a thin rectangle (it should be almost see-through, the shape doesn't have to perfect, a few small tears are okay!). Pour 2 tbsp of vegetable oil over the dough and brush the rectangle with the oil until evenly coated, dust with five spice powder, and top with a few tbsp of your sauteed shallots and sliced scallions.
- Fold the dough into thirds by grabbing the bottom of the rectangle and folding it over the center. Then grab the top third of the dough and fold it down over the center. Fold everything again one more time. Please use the step-by-step pictures provided in my post for reference! A few air bubbles are okay, you don't have to fold the dough too tightly!
- Starting from one end, roll up the folded dough into a snail-like shape and tuck the opposite end underneath the rolled-out dough. Set aside. Repeat this process for the other balls of dough!
- Grease your work surface again, then, using a rolling pin, roll out each pancake into a thin circle. Some of the scallions might come out during this process, it's okay!
- In a skillet over medium-high heat, heat 1 and 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil. Once the oil is hot, cook the pancakes. Cook each pancake for 3-4 minutes or until golden brown, flipping once halfway through. Serve immediately, whole or cut into wedges!
For the Ginger Soy Sauce
- In a bowl, combine the water, soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, ginger, and garlic. Set aside for 10 minutes to bloom. Add in the sliced scallions and mix. Enjoy!
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