Savory Chinese Turnips Pancakes
Jacob Bailey
Great photos on the website
http://thewoksoflife.com/2013/12/savory-chinese-turnip-pancakes/
- 1 dried Chinese sausage (lop cheung) – a few slices of good, thick-cut, smoky bacon can also be substituted.
- 2 tablespoons dried shrimp (optional)
- 2 scallions
- 1 cup grated Chinese white turnip or daikon radish
- 1 cup flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Pinch fresh ground white pepper
- 1 egg
- 1 1/4 cups water
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
- Oil, for cooking
For the dipping sauce:
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 tablespoon chopped scallion
Rinse the dried sausage, dice it up, and set aside. If using bacon, simply cook the bacon until it’s crisp and still a bit chewy, and then dice. If using the dried shrimp, rinse in warm water, and give them a rough chop. Wash and chop the scallions. Set aside 1 tablespoon of the scallion for the dipping sauce. Wash and peel your turnip/radish. Grate 1 cup.
Make the batter by putting the flour, cornstarch, salt, white pepper, egg, water, sesame oil, 1 tablespoon of sesame seeds, sausage, shrimp (if using), and grated turnip into a mixing bowl and combining thoroughly.
Before you make your pancakes, make your dipping sauce by combining all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl. There are no rules for this sauce! Make it spicy, make it sweet, make it vinegar-y with some black Chinese vinegar…
Heat the pan over medium-high heat and add 1 teaspoon of oil to the pan. Sprinkle some sesame seeds onto the pan and spoon about ½ cup of the batter on top of the sesame seeds.
Use a spatula to quickly spread it evenly across the bottom of the pan and form a round pancake. Sprinkle some more sesame seeds on top. Let the pancake cook for about 3 to 4 minutes until golden brown on one side.
Flip the pancake and press it down a bit. Add a little more oil to the pan if it’s dried out. Once that side is also golden brown, flip the pancake again and cook on the first side for a minute. Flip again and cook the second side for another minute. So if you’re counting, you’re cooking each side twice. This gets the pancakes really nice and crispy.
Cut into wedges and serve with your sauce.