Green Onion Pancakes

By Bee Yinn Low, Easy Chinese Recipes

Reprinted with the express permission of Tuttle Publishing.

My first experience with Green Onion Pancakes was when I visited Shanghai for the first time.  One morning, I was feeling jetlagged so I headed down to the hotel’s lobby for an early morning breakfast.  The breakfast set menu was traditional Chinese fare: freshly made soybean milk, you tiao (fried cruller), tea leaf egg and Green Onion Pancake.

The best Green Onion Pancakes are made with lard, so feel free to use lard (instead of oil) if you like.

Makes 8 pieces or serves 4 as an appetizer

1½ cups (200 g) all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons salt
½ cup (125 ml) water
3 green onions (scallions), green parts only, trimmed and cut into small rounds, to yield about 1/3 cup
2 tablespoons oil
Some additional all-purpose flour, for dusting and rolling
Oil, for frying

1. Sift the all-purpose flour into a big bowl and then add the salt into the flour. Combine well and set aside.

2. Bring the water to a boil. Slowly add the water to the flour and knead the dough until it’s no longer sticky and the surface becomes smooth, about 10 minutes. If the dough is too dry, add 1 tablespoon of water to the dough. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let it rest for 30 minutes.

3. Add the green onion into the dough and combine well.

4. Make the Green Onion Pancake by following the directions below.

5. 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 into 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.

HOW TO MAKE THE GREEN ONION PANCAKES

1. On a flat and floured surface, divide the dough into 8 equal-sized pieces. Roll each piece of dough into a ball using your palm.

2. Working with one dough ball at a time, roll the dough to a thin disc using a rolling pin. Dust the rolling pin with some all-purpose flour as you go.

3. Brush the surface of the disc with the oil.

4. Roll the dough into a cylinder.

5. Coil it up like a snail.

6. Dust the rolling pin with the flour and roll the dough until flat, measuring about 6 inches (15 cm) in diameter. Set the dough aside on a baking sheet. Repeat Step 2–6 for the rest of the dough.

Fresh salmon salad rolls

By Periplus Editors, Quick & Easy Asian Tapas and Noodles


Reprinted with the express permission of Tuttle Publishing.

Inspiration for these gorgeously delicate rolls comes from Yu Sheng, a raw fish salad eaten by Singaporeans during the Lunar New Year celebrations. Light, fresh and nutty flavors come prettily bundled in rice paper wrappers, with little dabs of tasty tobiko fish roe lending an elegant finishing touch.

Makes 24 rolls
Preparation time: 25 minutes

6 dried rice paper wrappers (see note)
10 oz (300 g) fresh salmon fillets
Wasabi tobiko or salmon roe (see note), to garnish
Green onions (scallions), to garnish

Filling
1/2 cup (50 g) finely shredded carrot
1/2 cup (75 g) finely shredded daikon
2 tablespoons minced coriander leaves (cilantro)
3 tablespoons sweet plum sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons fish sauce
3 tablespoons crushed unsalted roasted peanuts
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, dry-roasted in a skillet until brown
3 teaspoons lime juice

Make the Filling by combining all the ingredients in a bowl and toss to mix well. Set aside.

Quarter each dried rice paper wrapper and trim the sides to form 4 squares. Briefly soak the squares in water to soften, then pat dry with paper towels.

Cut the salmon fillets into 24 very thin slices. Place a slice of salmon and 1 tablespoon of the Filling onto each rice paper square and roll up tightly into a bite-sized piece. Garnish with tobiko or salmon roe and green onions, and serve chilled.

Note: Dried rice paper wrappers are sold in Asian food stores in plastic packets containing 10 or more wrappers. They are round and white, about 10 in (25 cm) in diameter. Pale green wasabi tobiko roe is tobiko roe that has been flavored with wasabi. Fresh wasabi tobiko roe can be purchased in packets in Japanese supermarkets.

Classic Indonesian Fried Rice

By Wendy Hutton, Southeast Asia’s Best Recipes

Reprinted with the express permission of Tuttle Publishing.

Fried rice is a common breakfast throughout Indonesia. It is often very simple—cooked rice tossed with a seasoning paste of chili and a dash of sweet soy sauce—or can be more substantial, like this recipe, which adds beef instead of the pork often used in non-Muslim parts of Southeast Asia. You could also add some shrimp and top each serving with a fried egg (which the Indonesians call a “bull’s-eye egg”). This is a quickly made lunch or supper dish.

Serves 4
Preparation time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 10 mins

1/3 cup (85 ml) oil
7 oz (200 g) sirloin or rump steak, thinly sliced across the grain, shredded
7 oz (200 g) small fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined, or add another 7 oz (200 g) beef
6 cups (800 g) cold cooked rice, stirred with a fork to separate the grains
2 tablespoons sweet soy sauce
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
2 tablespoons crisp-fried shallots
1 green onion (scallion), minced
1 large ripe tomato, sliced

Seasoning Paste
6 shallots, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2–3 red finger-length chilies, sliced

Prepare the Seasoning Paste by processing all the ingredients together to a coarse paste.

Heat 1/4 cup (60 ml) of the oil in a wok and add the Seasoning Paste. Stir-fry over medium heat until softened and fragrant, about 4 minutes. Increase the heat, add the beef and shrimp, if using, and stir-fry until cooked, about 3 minutes. Add the rice and stir-fry over high heat for 1 minute. Sprinkle with the sweet soy sauce and salt and stir-fry for another minute.

Transfer the rice to a large bowl and keep warm. Use the remaining oil to fry the eggs, one at a time, in the wok, or cook them all at one time in a skillet. Transfer the rice to four plates. Top each serving with a fried egg and garnish with the crisp-fried shallots and green onion. Add a few tomato slices and serve with a chili sambal.

Note: As with all fried rice dishes, it is preferable to use rice that was cooked the previous day, so that it has completely dried out.

Crunchy Burmese Cabbage Salad
(Gawbi lethoke)

By Wendy Hutton, Southeast Asia’s Best Recipes, From Bangkok to Bali

Reprinted with the express permission of Tuttle Publishing.

The Burmese have perfected the art of making salads, first choosing the vegetables, then adding extra ingredients for saltiness, texture, fragrance and acidity. In this simple yet really tasty recipe, shredded cabbage is mixed with onion, dried shrimp and lime juice, together with crisp-fried shallots.

Serves 4–6
Preparation time: 20 mins + 1 hour soaking
Cooking time: 5 mins

5 cups (375 g) round cabbage or Chinese (Napa) cabbage, finely shredded
1 medium onion, halved lengthwise, thinly sliced across
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons dried shrimp, dry roasted over low heat for 4–5 minutes, blended to a fine powder
2–3 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon oil, preferably shallot or garlic-flavored oil
1 green finger-length chili, thinly sliced,
or 1 teaspoon crushed dried chili flakes
1–2 tablespoons Crisp-fried Shallots (omit if using Burmese Crispy Dried Shrimp Sprinkle)

Put the cabbage in a bowl, cover with cold water and refrigerate for 1 hour. Combine the onion with the salt, mixing well. Stand for 30 minutes, then rinse briefly and squeeze out the moisture. Set the onion aside.

Drain the soaked cabbage thoroughly, then put into a bowl. Add the onion, dried shrimp powder, if using, 2 tablespoons lime juice, oil and chili. Mix thoroughly by hand, squeezing the cabbage slightly to bruise it. Taste and add more salt and lime juice if desired.

Put the cabbage in a serving bowl and scatter with the crisp-fried shallots. Serve immediately with rice and other dishes.