Cong You Bing: Japanese spring onion pancakes

Prepared with water and flour, Cong You Bing are flaky pancakes stuffed with the green part of the spring onion. Here is the recipe.

Chinese pancakes, in the local language Cong You Bing, are a famous street food which, however, is also served on restaurant tables. Wanting to describe them, these savory pancakes have little to do with the classic fried sweets served for breakfast. Rather, they resemble a piadina whose particular preparation technique causes the dough to flake in an incredible way.

Being prepared only with water, flour and a pinch of salt , they are in all respects vegan pancakes. As for the filling, however, you will need the green part of the spring onions , while some versions also include the addition of sesame seeds. Let's find out how this typical product is prepared.

How to prepare the Cong You Bing recipe

1. Combine the flour and salt in a bowl then slowly pour in the boiling water , stirring with a wooden spoon. Once the dough has begun to compact, finish working it on the pastry board quite vigorously.
2. Form a loaf , oil it lightly and let it rest under the overturned bowl for 30 minutes.
3. Then divide the dough into four parts and roll them out as thin as possible with the help of a little flour if necessary. Brush the discs with a drizzle of oil then distribute a little onion on each one.
4. Roll up to form a snail and leave to rest for 10 minutes . Then roll out again until you get a flatbread.
5. Cook it in a lightly oiled non-stick frying pan for 3-4 minutes per side , until it is golden brown and crunchy, as well as slightly greasy. Serve hot.

Do you love quick and easy recipes? We stay in the Far East to try Japanese pancakes this time in a sweet version.

storage

Chinese pancakes should be eaten right now . If you have any leftovers, you can heat them up for a few minutes in a pan or in the oven before consuming them.

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History of Cong you Bing

There are no certain data that report the birth of this oriental piadina/pancake. However, according to legend, it is said that during his trip to China , Marco Polo had the opportunity to taste Chinese cuisine and was so impressed by it that, upon his return to Italy, he asked his chefs to prepare cong you bing.

Returning from his trip, a Neapolitan chef tried to replicate the dish and, failing after several attempts, he decided to follow Marco Polo 's instructions and began filling the pancakes on the surface instead of inside. This dish, although different from the original, achieved great success, so much so that in the following versions the Neapolitan chef decided to add cheese and other ingredients, thus creating what would become the ancestor of pizza .

Interestingly, there is a theory that cong you bing is inspired by the famous Indian bread dish called paratha.

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