An Asian Supper

Scallion Pancakes, fried fluffy and served with a sauce of Ginger, Scallions, Tamari Sauce, Sugar, and Rice Vinegar

After Sunday's impulse buy of scallions (green onions) to serve and garnish my burgers with, I found myself with a double bunch of scallions. With this key ingredient, I felt like an Iron Chef Contestant. I imagined the big unveil of the night's secret ingredient, as some Japanese guy holds up scallions into the air, while yelling something in Japanese into the microphone as the crowd goes "oooh" and "aaah". Well, my Iron Chef fantasy aside, I came up with the ingenious idea (if I do say so myself) of making scallion pancakes out of them.

This savory treat is a classic Asian dish. Although I grew up in a half-Chinese household, I rarely got to eat them, and mostly have memories of eating scallion pancakes in Asian restaurants. Also, no, I was never passed on the secrets of Chinese cooking. If I haven't said so before - I'm pretty new at cooking.

This dish was made by first making dough using flour and boiling water, which supposedly changes the protein structure of the bread so it's flakier, not airy. After letting it sit for a half hour, I rolled four balls of dough into flat circles. After brushing on sesame oil and rolling up & flattening into circles again, I applied another coat of sesame oil and sprinkled a LOT of scallions on top. After this was rolled into a ball (first like a carpet, then the carpet roll is coiled like a cinnamon bun), it was rolled out into the final pancake form. In a pan generously oiled with sesame oil, the frying began. Amidst a ton of smoke and oil spatter, the scallion-bulging pancakes were fried to perfection.

The last, and best part of the dish was the sauce, a combination of 2Tbsp Tamari Sauce (soy sauce), 2Tbsp Rice Vinegar, 1.5tsp sugar, and then chopped up scallions and ginger. You can also add chili oil if you like it spicy (I do).

They came out great - fluffy but dense, with a crispy outside and an almost chewy inside. They were also surprisingly filling, so they'll yield some leftovers! Although a lot of oil and dough is used, I'd recommend this to anyone who's up for a savory meal.