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Healthy and the best scallion pancakes made of flour, green onion scallions and salt. This easy Chinese scallion pancake recipe is authentic and fail-proof!
Scallion Pancakes
Chinese scallion pancakes are healthy, vegan, crispy and delicious!
These pancakes are a type of savory flatbread made from dough, as opposed to western pancakes with a batter.
They are called cong you bing or 蔥油餅. You can find this delicacy as a popular street food in China and Taiwan.
They are commonly served as a breakfast, with soy milk, mantou, tea leaf eggs or soy sauce eggs.
Scallion Pancakes Recipe Ingredients
This scallion pancakes recipe is from my best-selling cookbook “Easy Chinese Recipes” published in 2011.
Here are the recipe ingredients:
- All-purpose flour.
- Scallion. Scallion is sometimes called green onion.
- Salt.
- Oil.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients.
How To Make Scallion Pancakes
How To Make The Dough
Step 1. Sift the all-purpose flour into a big bowl and then add the salt and chicken bouillon powder (if using) into the flour. Combine well and set aside.
Step 2. Heat the water to a boil. Slowly add the water to the flour and knead the dough until it becomes soft, no longer sticky and the surface becomes smooth and shiny, about 15 minutes. If the dough is too dry, add 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of water to the dough. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let it rest for 30 minutes.
Step 3. Heat the water to a boil. Slowly add the water to the flour and knead the dough until it becomes soft, no longer sticky and the surface becomes smooth and shiny, about 15 minutes. If the dough is too dry, add 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of water to the dough. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let it rest for 30 minutes.
How To Make Scallion Pancakes
Step 1. On a flat and floured surface, divide the dough into 8 small dough balls, as pictured.
Step 2. Working with one dough ball at a time, roll it to a thin disc using a rolling pin. Dust the rolling pin with some all-purpose flour as you go. Brush the surface of the pancake with the oil.
Step 3. Roll the dough into a cylinder.
Step 4. Coil it up like a snail.
Step 5. Dust the rolling pin with the flour and roll the snail-shape dough until flat, measuring about 6 inches (15cm) in diameter. Set the dough aside on a baking sheet. Repeat the steps above for the rest of the dough balls.
How To Fry Scallion Pancakes
Step 1. Add about 1/4 inch (6 mm) of oil into a stir-fry pan or skillet over moderately high heat. Transfer a piece of the pancake onto the pan or skillet.
Step 2. Shallow fry each side of the pancake to a light golden brown, about 1 minute. Flip the pancake over and shallow fry the other side.
Step 3. Add more oil, repeat the same for the remaining pancakes and serve immediately. They are best eaten with warm and homemade soy milk.
Helpful Tips
There are two basic methods of making scallion pancakes.
The first method is to make the plain dough, roll it out and then add the scallion and salt on the dough.
The second method is to combine the dough, scallion and salt together before rolling it out into pancakes.
My Chinese chef friend told me that both methods are authentic but the second method is a “shortcut” and great for beginners.
I like the second method as it’s easy and fail-proof.
Mixing the scallion with the dough infuses the dough with earthy aroma and fragrance of the green onion.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, all the ingredients are vegan. This recipe is 100% vegan.
I don’t recommend freezing the dough but you can freeze the pancakes after you make them.
Place them in a plastic bag and keep in the freezer. To serve, just reheat the pancakes in a microwave or toaster oven.
Traditionally, there is no dipping sauce to go with the pancakes.
They are savory and tasty without any sauce.
Each piece of scallion pancake is only 118 calories.
What To Serve With Scallion Pancakes
Serve this scallion pancakes with braised pork belly (dong po rou) for a complete meal. For a wholesome Chinese meal, I recommend the following recipes.
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Scallion Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder, optional
- 1/2 cup water
- 3 – 4 stalks scallion , or green onion, green parts only, trimmed and cut into small rounds, to yield about a tightly packed 1/3 cup or more
- 2 tablespoons oil, for brushing
- Extra all-purpose flour, for dusting and rolling
- Oil, for frying
Instructions
- Sift the all-purpose flour into a big bowl and then add the salt and chicken bouillon powder (if using) into the flour. Combine well and set aside.
- Heat the water to a boil. Slowly add the water to the flour and knead the dough until it becomes soft, no longer sticky and the surface becomes smooth and shiny, about 15 minutes. If the dough is too dry, add 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of water to the dough. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let it rest for 30 minutes.
- Add the scallions into the dough and combine well.
Step-by-Step on How to Make Scallion Pancakes:
- On a flat and floured surface, divide the dough into 8 small dough balls, as pictured.
- Working with one dough ball at a time, roll it to a thin disc using a rolling pin. Dust the rolling pin with some all-purpose flour as you go. Brush the surface of the pancake with the oil.
- Roll the dough into a cylinder.
- Coil it up like a snail.
- Dust the rolling pin with the flour and roll the snail-shape dough until flat, measuring about 6 inches (15cm) in diameter. Set the dough aside on a baking sheet. Repeat the steps above for the rest of the dough balls.
Step-by-Step on How to Fry Scallion Pancakes:
- Add about 1/4 inch (6 mm) of oil into a stir-fry pan or skillet over moderately high heat. Transfer a piece of the pancake onto the pan or skillet.
- Shallow fry each side of the pancake to a light golden brown, about 1 minute. Flip the pancake over and shallow fry the other side.
- Add more oil, repeat the same for the remaining pancakes and serve immediately. They are best eaten with warm and homemade soy milk.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hello,
May I please ask if the dough can be prepared the night before and kept refrigerated, then roll out and pan fry the next day?
Much thanks!
Yes, I think you can but you have to thaw to room temperature.
Can I add shrimp to this recipe as well?
Can I leave out the chicken bullion ?
Please let me know. By e-mailing me at
[email protected]
No shrimp and you can leave out chicken bullion.
Hi Bee,
This turned out great!
May I also check how shall we go about heating it up from leftovers in the fridge? The microwave does not seem to work so well for this.
Thank you!
You can quickly pan-fry again to reheat.
Do you know if I can use a mixture of bread flour and cake flour in place of the APF? Or should I use all bread or all cake flour? It’s hard for me to find APF. Thanks in advance for any tips.
I am not sure, I haven’t tried. You can use bread flour for this recipe.
Susan, I don’t know what went wrong, this recipe has been tested many times and by many people. Did you measure correctly?
I think it should be delicious…
I am making the pancake now. I am thinking of making an additional dough and refrigerate it then roll it out 2 days later. Will the pancake turn out well?
tried this recipe today and it turn out well! It goes well with curry too :D thank you for the recipe !
Why not omit the the chicken bouillon and use chicken broth (eg, Trader Joe’s Organic Low Sodium Chicken Broth [available in shelf-stable recyclable boxes]) instead of the water? Alternatively, a high quality vegetable broth (Trader Joe’s also sells one sold in the shelf-stable boxes) if a vegetarian version is preferred.
You can use chicken broth but chicken bouillion tastes more concentrated.
After resting my dough, it became sticky to handle and even worse when i added the chopped scallion. Anyone experienced that? What could have gone wrong. I used a lot of flour on the work surface in order to be able to roll it out, it tasted great though.
That’s strange. Just add a little bit more flour.