There is something about the way flour bonds with water. Something that possibly goes back to afternoons spent sat on the kitchen counter, watching my grand-mother making pâte brisée [shortcrust pastry], which I would – of course – nibble on.
So the prospect of mixing flour and water to a dough, then sprinkled with a generous handful of chopped spring onions – and a pinch of Maldon sea salt – felt like music to me.
I followed this recipe. For those of you who prefer to use kitchen scales – and may the gods of pastry bless you for that – I’ve written the quantities I’ve used below.
The resulting pancakes are chewy and yet flaky. And the drawing above should have given you a hint, but they’re rather delicious when served with a drizzle – or more – of Sriracha sauce.
Chinese scallion pancakes
Makes eight pancakes, or four huge ones.
Mix 300 g of plain flour with 240 g of boiling water using a wooden spoon. After it comes together, invert onto your kitchen counter and and knead until smooth. five minutes or so. Brush with a little vegetable oil, cover with clingfilm and allow to rest for half-an-hour, or overnight in the fridge.
Cut the dough into four. Lightly oil your work surface and roll out one of the balls of dough into a thin rectangle at least 30x35cm.
Lightly brush the top of the dough with vegetable or sesame oil. Finely chop a bunch of spring onions and sprinkle on top of the dough along with a pinch of Maldon sea salt.
Starting from the long end, roll the dough up tightly, then cut in two. Coil each part into a bundle. Let the snails rest under clingfilm while you repeat this process with the rest of the dough.
And finally roll out the snails into flat disks.
Heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil into a frying pan and cook the pancake for approximately two minutes on each side, until golden brown.
Cut into wedges and serve with a dipping sauce. And when I say dipping sauce, I really mean Sriracha.
Now, what’s your favourite use for Sriracha? And have you tried making your own?