Kasia Polish Mom
Polish-born, Chicago-raised, feeding a family of six with babcia’s recipes and a global pantry. I grew up folding pierogi at my grandmother’s kitchen table and never stopped — 15+ years of cooking from scratch, one Sunday dinner at a time. Everything here is tested on four kids, a hungry husband, and the memory of a woman who never measured anything but always got it right.
Scallion Pancakes — Flaky, Crispy, Dangerously Easy to Eat
These are the savory pancakes I did not know I needed. The first time I made scallion pancakes I stood at the stove and ate three of them straight from the pan before any of them made it to the table. My family received only what remained, which was enough, but barely. I have since enacted a strict “taste one before serving” policy that everyone accepts as reasonable and which I abuse with full awareness.
Chinese scallion pancakes (cong you bing, 葱油饼) are a Taiwanese and northern Chinese street food that I discovered through my endless Chinese cooking education. They are unleavened flatbreads rolled with scallions and sesame oil, pan-fried until the outside is crispy and the inside is flaky and chewy. The layers are created by rolling the dough with oil, similar to how croissants get their layers by rolling with butter. The result is a pancake with shatteringly crispy outside, chewy layered inside, and the bright, fresh flavor of scallions throughout.
I see the connection to nalesniki — my Polish pancakes. Different dough, different flavors, the same fundamental idea: thin cooked dough with filling, pan-fried in fat. We are all pancake people at the core. This is the Chinese version and it is exceptional.
The Layering Technique
Scallion pancake layers are created by a simple roll-oil-roll technique: roll the dough flat, brush with sesame oil and scatter scallions, roll into a cylinder, coil the cylinder into a disc, then flatten again. This distributes oil throughout the layers, which create steam pockets during frying and produce the characteristic flaky, multi-layered texture. The more care taken in the roll-and-flatten step, the more distinct the layers.
Ingredients
For the Scallion Pancakes (makes 4 large pancakes)
- 300g (2.5 cups) plain flour, plus more for dusting
- 175ml (3/4 cup) just-boiled water
- Pinch of salt
- 2 tbsp sesame oil for filling
- 8 spring onions (scallions), thinly sliced (green parts only or whole)
- 1 tsp fine sea salt for filling
- White pepper (optional)
- 3–4 tbsp neutral oil for pan-frying
For the Dipping Sauce
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp finely grated ginger
- 1 tsp chili oil (optional)
How to Make It
1
1Make and Rest the Dough
Combine flour and salt. Add just-boiled water gradually while mixing with a fork until a shaggy dough forms. Knead on a lightly floured surface for 5–7 minutes until smooth. Cover with a damp cloth and rest for 30 minutes. The rested dough will be much more pliable and easier to roll thin without tearing.
2
2Create the Layers
Divide the rested dough into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a thin rectangle (about 25cm x 15cm). Brush generously with sesame oil, leaving a 1cm border. Scatter a quarter of the sliced scallions evenly over the oil. Season with fine salt and white pepper. Roll up tightly into a cylinder from one end. Coil the cylinder into a disc shape, tucking the end underneath. Gently flatten with your palm. Rest 5 minutes.
3
3Roll and Pan-Fry
Roll each coiled disc into a flat pancake about 5mm thick. Do not roll too thin — the disc should have visible layers and a slight thickness. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil per pancake in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Pan-fry for 3–4 minutes per side until deep golden and crispy. The pancake should sizzle vigorously and the surface should bubble and blister. Reduce heat slightly if browning too fast.
4
4Serve Immediately
Cut into wedges or leave whole. Serve immediately with the dipping sauce. Scallion pancakes are at their absolute best within 5 minutes of coming off the pan — the outside shatters and the inside is chewy-warm. They soften as they cool. At the table with dipping sauce is the only correct serving presentation.
Scallion Pancake Tips
Rest the dough. Freshly made dough is elastic and fights back when you roll it. Thirty minutes of rest relaxes the gluten and the dough rolls easily and stays where you put it. This rest is one of the most effective passive improvements in the recipe. While it rests, prepare the other components.
Oil is the flavor. Sesame oil in the layers is not background flavor — it is the primary flavor. Use good quality sesame oil. The scallions add fragrance; the sesame oil provides the deep, toasty richness that makes scallion pancakes taste like themselves.
Medium-high, not screaming hot. Pan-frying scallion pancakes on too-high heat browns the outside before the inside cooks through, producing a pancake that is burnt outside and raw-doughy inside. Medium-high heat for 3–4 minutes per side produces even, golden color and fully cooked layers throughout.
Hit them gently with a spatula when done. While still in the pan in the last 30 seconds, press gently with a spatula to compact the layers slightly. Then immediately slide onto the plate. This last press helps the layers stick together after cutting and produces cleaner wedges.
Serving Scallion Pancakes
As a starter or snack with the soy-ginger dipping sauce. Also excellent alongside congee or egg drop soup as part of a Chinese breakfast spread. Pairs with Chinese dumplings as a dim sum-style first course before a larger dinner.
Variations Worth Trying
With sesame seeds. Press a tablespoon of sesame seeds into the surface of each pancake before pan-frying for added crunch and visual appeal. The sesame seeds toast in the pan oil and add another layer of sesame flavor to the finished pancake.
Spicier filling. Add a teaspoon of chili oil or a pinch of chili flakes to the sesame oil filling. The heat dispersed through the layers adds a pleasant warmth to every bite without overpowering the scallion flavor.
Scallion pancake egg wrap (bing). Crack an egg over the pancake in the last 2 minutes of cooking, covering the pan until the egg sets. This is a popular Taiwanese street food breakfast — a scallion pancake wrapper holding a fried egg. A deeply satisfying breakfast that requires minimal additional ingredients.
Storage
Uncooked scallion pancake discs freeze beautifully — stack with parchment between each disc, freeze until solid, then bag. Cook directly from frozen in a covered pan for 4–5 minutes per side. This is one of the most useful freezer discoveries I have made — ready-to-cook scallion pancakes from the freezer in 10 minutes. Always make a double batch and freeze half.
FAQ
Can I use regular white onion instead of spring onions?
Not ideally — white or yellow onion is too strong, too wet, and does not have the delicate, fresh character of spring onions in these pancakes. Spring onions (scallions) are the correct ingredient and produce the right flavor. In an absolute pinch, very thinly sliced and briefly salted red onion can work, but the result is different.
What is the difference between scallion pancakes and green onion cake?
They are the same thing with different regional names. Scallion pancake (American), green onion pancake (common alternative), cong you bing (Mandarin), chung yau beng (Cantonese). The same unleavened flatbread with spring onions and sesame oil. Regional variations in thickness, size, and sesame oil quantity exist but the fundamental recipe is the same throughout Taiwan, northern China, and the Chinese diaspora globally.
Kasia Polish Mom
Polish-born, Chicago-raised, feeding a family of six with babcia’s recipes and a global pantry. I grew up folding pierogi at my grandmother’s kitchen table and never stopped — 15+ years of cooking from scratch, one Sunday dinner at a time. Everything here is tested on four kids, a hungry husband, and the memory of a woman who never measured anything but always got it right.
