Pumpkin Scallion Pancakes

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When I cook dinner for family or friends, one dish I always prepare is scallion pancakes, 蔥油餅 (cong you bing in Mandarin). The word 餅 in Chinese roughly translates to “pancakes” in English, but scallion pancakes are not soft and fluffy. Rather, they’re pan fried so that the exterior turns crispy. In the center, you’ll find thin layers of dough and scallions. 

I wanted to make a version of my scallion pancakes that incorporates pumpkin, an homage to the fall and winter months. For these pumpkin scallion pancakes, I added pumpkin puree to the dough to give the pancakes a hint of sweetness. I also incorporated curry powder to make the dough even more fragrant. 

These pumpkin scallion pancakes are a great dish to serve during the holiday season. Your family and friends will love it! It’s also a great way to use up any leftover pumpkin puree you may have from other recipes. If you are looking for other dishes to serve with the pumpkin scallion pancakes, check out my recommendations here.

HOW TO MAKE PUMPKIN SCALLION PANCAKES

INGREDIENTS FOR DOUGH

I love scallion pancakes that have very thin layers inside. The key to making these flaky layers is rolling out the dough into a large, thin sheet before shaping the pancake. Bob’s Red Mill Organic All-Purpose Flour is perfect for making these pumpkin scallion pancakes because there is adequate protein in the flour for proper gluten development. The gluten makes the dough stretchy so that you can roll out the dough into a thin layer without tearing.

I use Bob’s Red Mill Organic All-Purpose Flour all the time to make other Asian recipes, such as milk bread, egg noodles, and Chinese chive boxes. I love the quality of the flour and they make my doughs a dream to work with.

In terms of the dry ingredients, you’ll need 300g all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon sugar, and 1 teaspoon yellow curry powder (mild spice). You can generally find yellow curry blends in the spice aisle in a grocery store. If you can’t find any yellow curry powder, use this blend of spices: 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander, 1/8 teaspoon turmeric, 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder/granulated garlic, and 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper.

MAKE THE DOUGH BY HAND

You can make the dough by hand or with a stand mixer. If you are making the dough by hand, add all the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Whisk the dry ingredients together to ensure that the curry powder is evenly distributed. If you don’t mix it properly, the dough can get streaky. 

Next, add the pumpkin puree and very warm to nearly hot water, anywhere between 120ºF to 130ºF. You can mix boiled water with room temperature water to get this. The warm water makes the dough pliable so that you can roll it into a thin sheet more easily. I tend not to use boiling hot water because I don’t like the texture of the pancake as much once it’s cooked.

Using a fork, mix the ingredients, until it looks like the liquids have absorbed into the flour. Then, use your hands to gather all the shaggy bits of dough into a large lump. Try to squeeze the dry flour into the lump of dough. When you have nearly worked all the loose flour into the dough, turn everything out onto a work surface. Knead the dough for 3 to 4 minutes. The dough will feel lightly damp but it shouldn’t be overly sticky. If it feels sticky, add about 1 tablespoon of flour and continue kneading; if the dough feels very dry, add water 1 teaspoon at a time.

Shape the dough into a ball. The outside won’t look completely smooth and that’s okay. Place the ball of dough in a bowl and cover it with a damp towel or a lid. Let the dough rest for 30 to 45 minutes. Resting the dough will make the dough easier to roll out later.

MAKE DOUGH WITH STAND MIXER

If you are making the dough with a stand mixer, whisk together the dry ingredients inside the mixing bowl of the stand mixer. Add the wet ingredients to the bowl. Fit the dough hook attachment to the mixer. Mix the ingredients on low speed until it looks like the wet ingredients have been absorbed. Increase the speed to medium-low and mix the dough for another minute. Turn off the mixer. 

Use your hands to gather all the bits of dough until it forms a large lump. Turn it over on the counter and knead for another 2 to 3 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball and place it back into the bowl. Cover and let it rest for 30 to 45 minutes. 

TESTING THE PUMPKIN SCALLION PANCAKE RECIPE

As I tested this recipe, I experimented with many variations of the dough. I wanted to take a moment to share my cooking notes and explain how I reached the final recipe for the dough.

DOUGH #1 

I made a version of the dough that used no water and only pumpkin puree for the wet ingredients. The pancakes had considerable pumpkin flavor, but the dough was not easy to work with. The dough ripped too easily. Once cooked, the pancake seemed dense and not flaky in the center.

DOUGH #2

In this version, I added 1/3 cup of warm water and used 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree. The dough was easier to work with and ripped less. You can see in the photo above that the dough still ripped considerably when I shaped the pancake. After cooking the pancake, I thought the center was a little dense; it wasn’t as flaky as I wanted it to be. That’s why I decided to use less pumpkin puree and more water. 

EXPERIMENT WITH PUMPKIN FILLING

In an attempt to add more pumpkin flavor to the pancakes, I also made batches of pancakes with a thin layer of seasoned pumpkin puree for the filling. What a mess those pancakes turned out to be! When I flattened the pancake for pan frying, nearly all the pumpkin puree oozed out of the dough. Although these pancakes had even more pumpkin flavor, the mess was not worth the hassle.

PREPARE FILLING

While the dough is resting, prepare the filling. Thinly slice some scallions (1/2 cup). You’ll also need 1/2 cup of finely diced shallots. I think the sweet flavors of the shallots pair very well with the scallions. I’m also adding 2 tablespoons of minced garlic and 2 tablespoons of minced ginger to add more flavor to the filling.

Stir fry the shallots in some oil for about 2 minutes to soften them and to remove the raw bite. Transfer the shallots to a bowl. Toss the shallots with 1/8 teaspoon of curry powder.

Stir fry the garlic and ginger lightly for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Transfer the garlic and ginger to another bowl. I’ve kept the sautéed garlic and ginger separate from the shallots but you can mix them together.

MAKE DIPPING SAUCE

Add 1/3 cup honey, 1/3 cup water, 3 tablespoons rice vinegar, 2 teaspoons minced garlic, 1 teaspoon kosher salt (1/2 teaspoon table salt), and 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon pepper flakes into a saucepan. In a small bowl, mix 3/4 teaspoon cornstarch with a tablespoon of water to make a cornstarch slurry.

Heat the saucepan and bring the liquid to boil. Give the cornstarch slurry a stir and add it to the saucepan. Reduce the heat to medium low and let the sauce simmer for 5 minutes. Let the sauce cool slightly before transferring to a dipping bowl.

SHAPE PANCAKES

Take the rested dough out of the bowl and knead it a few times. The outside of the dough should look smooth now. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces, of about 125 to 130 grams each. Leave one piece of dough out and place the remaining 3 pieces of dough back into the bowl. Cover the bowl again.

Lightly grease a large chopping board or the counter with any neutral-flavored oil (e.g., safflower, vegetable, almond oil, etc.). Shape the piece of dough into a rough oval shape. Then roll out the dough into a large, thin rectangle, about 16.5 x 12.5 inches. Initially, the dough retracts slightly as you roll it out. Be patient and continue rolling out the dough. It will flatten out eventually. 

Spread a thin layer of sesame oil over the rolled out sheet of dough. I like using sesame oil for the nutty flavor. If you are sensitive to sesame seeds, you can use any other oil. Spread about 1/4 of the sautéed shallots, garlic and ginger over the sheet of dough. Then, sprinkle a small pinch of salt and 1/4 of the scallions over the dough.

Make an envelope fold with the dough. Grab onto the bottom side of the dough rectangle and fold it a third of the way towards the center. Next, grab onto the opposite side of the dough rectangle and fold it down so that the dough overlaps the previous fold.

Fold the thinner rectangle of dough in half and gather the dough like it’s a long rope.

Starting from one end of the dough rope, roll the dough into a coil. The coil doesn’t need to be tight. Transfer the coiled up dough to a plate.

Repeat with the remaining 3 pieces of dough.

COOK PANCAKES

Take a coiled up piece of dough and flatten it slightly with the palm of your hand. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough into a pancake of about 7 inches in diameter.

Sometimes, the edges of the pancake curls up immediately after you roll it out. That is particularly true if you try to roll out the dough you just coiled up. When that curling happens, lay your rolling pin over the curled up edges and let the dough sit for 15 seconds before rolling it out again. Some of the filling will squirt out but it shouldn’t be too much.

After rolling out the first pancake, heat a large cast-iron or nonstick pan over medium heat. Swirl 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil around the pan to coat the entire surface. Carefully transfer the pancake into the pan.

While the first pancake is pan-frying, roll out another coiled piece of dough into a pancake. 

Pan fry the first pancake for 2 to 3 minutes, until golden. Use tongs to flip the pancake over and pan fry the other side for another 2 minutes, until golden brown. The first pancake usually takes a little longer to pan fry because the pan is still heating up. Once both sides of the pancake are golden brown, transfer the pancake to a cooling rack. I don’t like resting the pancakes on a plate because the pancakes tend to steam up under the bottom side.

Pour another 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil into the pan and swirl it around. Pan fry the second pancake. Continue rolling out and cooking the remaining pieces of dough.

Serve the pancakes whole, rip them up, or slice them into smaller pieces. They taste great with my sweet chili dipping sauce (recipe below)!

CAN YOU MAKE THE DOUGH AHEAD?

Yes, you can make the dough ahead! Right after you knead the dough, put it in a sealed small container or wrap it in plastic. Transfer the dough to the fridge. The dough will keep for 2 days. If the chilled dough is difficult to work with, let the dough sit on your counter for 15 minutes before rolling it out.

I don’t recommend filling the pancakes and coiling them before refrigerating. The pumpkin puree seems to make the dough disintegrate a lot easier, so the dough may fall apart very easily when you flatten the dough into a pancake.

CAN YOU FREEZE THE PANCAKES?

Yes, you can freeze cooked pumpkin scallion pancakes. If you are stacking them in the freezer, separate the pancakes with a bit of parchment paper. When you’re ready to eat them, place the frozen pancakes on a baking sheet and bake at 350ºF for 12 to 15 minutes. Heat them for a few more minutes if you don’t think they’re heated through. You don’t need to defrost the pancakes beforehand, and you don’t need to line the baking sheet with parchment.

WHAT TO SERVE WITH PUMPKIN SCALLION PANCAKES

• Kung Pao Brussels Sprouts
• Teriyaki Tofu
• Salt and Pepper Tofu
• Spicy Tofu with Creamy Coconut Sauce
• Chinese Smashed Cucumber Salad

MORE RECIPES USING BOB’S RED MILL FLOURS

• Pineapple Buns
• Baked Scallion Bread
• Chinese Coconut Buns

4.34 from 3 votes

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Servings: 4 pancakes

Author: Lisa Lin

Pumpkin Scallion Pancakes

These irresistible flaky pumpkin scallion pancakes are crispy on the outside and filled with thin layers of flaky dough. With each bite, you’ll get pumpkin, scallion, curry, shallot, garlic, and ginger flavor. The pumpkin scallion pancakes pair well with a sweet chili sauce.

I prefer pan-frying scallion pancakes in a cast-iron pan because I think the pancakes are crispier on the outside. Check the notes for make-ahead and freezer directions.

Prep Time1 hour hr

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Resting Time45 minutes mins

Ingredients

Dough

• 300 grams all-purpose flour, (see note 1)
• 1 teaspoon salt, (2g, see note 2)
• 1 tablespoon sugar, (12g)
• 1 teaspoon mild curry powder, (3g, see note 3)
• 85 grams 1/3 cup pumpkin puree at room temperature , (see note 4)
• 120 grams 1/2 cup very warm water , somewhere between 115ºF to 130ºF

Filling

• 1/2 cup sliced scallions, (35g)
• 1/2 cup finely diced shallots, (80g)
• 2 tablespoons safflower or canola oil, plus more for making and frying pancakes
• 1/8 teaspoon curry powder
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic, (15g)
• 2 tablespoons minced ginger, (15g)
• sesame oil
• salt

Dipping Sauce (See note 5 for vegan option)

• 1/3 cup honey, (115g)
• 1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon water, divided
• 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt (1/2 teaspoon table salt)
• 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon chili flakes
• 3/4 teaspoon cornstarch

Equipement

• large mixing bowl or stand mixer
• large fork
• damp towel or lid for bowl
• saucepan
• large chopping board
• rolling pin
• large cast-iron or nonstick skillet, at least 10 inches wide
• cooling rack

Instructions

Make Dough

• Add all the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Use a whisk to mix the dry ingredients together. Don’t skip this step as the curry powder won’t be evenly distributed otherwise and your dough will be streaky. Then, add the pumpkin puree and very warm water, anywhere between 120ºF to 130ºF. The warm water will allow you to roll out the dough more thinly later.
• Using a fork, stir the wet and dry ingredients together, until it looks like the liquids have absorbed into the flour. Then, use your hands to gather all the shaggy bits of dough into a large lump. Try to squeeze the dry flour into the lump of dough. When you have nearly worked all the loose flour into the dough, turn everything out onto a work surface. Knead the dough for 3 to 4 minutes. The dough shouldn’t be overly sticky. If it is, add another tablespoon of flour. If the dough seems very dry, add water 1 teaspoon at a time.
• Shape the dough into a ball. The outside won’t look completely smooth and that’s okay. Place the ball of dough in a small bowl and cover it with a damp towel, silicone lid, or plastic wrap. Let the dough rest for 30 to 45 minutes. Letting the dough rest will allow you to roll out the dough more easily later on.

Prepare Filling

• While the dough is resting, prepare the filling. In a skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Cook the shallots in the heated pan for about 2 minutes, until they soften. Turn off the heat and transfer to a bowl. Toss them with 1/8 teaspoon curry powder.
• Add the remaining tablespoon of oil into the pan. Add the garlic and ginger to the pan and sauté for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Transfer the garlic and ginger to another bowl.

Make Dipping Sauce

• Add the honey, 1/3 cup water, rice vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper flakes into a saucepan. In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with the remaining tablespoon of water to make a cornstarch slurry. Set the cornstarch slurry aside.
• Heat the saucepan and bring everything to boil. Give the cornstarch slurry a stir and add it to the saucepan. Mix the contents of the saucepan. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let the sauce simmer for 5 minutes. Let the sauce cool before transferring to a dipping bowl.

Shape Pancakes

• Take the rested dough out of the bowl and knead it a few times. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces, of about 125 to 130 grams. Leave one piece of dough out and place the remaining three back into the bowl. Cover the bowl with a damp towel or a silicone lid.
• Lightly grease a large chopping board or the counter with canola or safflower oil. You’ll be rolling out the dough into a large rectangle.
• Shape the dough into a rough oval shape. Then roll out the dough into a large, thin rectangle, about 16.5 x 12.5 inches. The dough might retract a little when you initially roll out the dough. Just be patient. The dough will flatten as you roll it out.
• Spread a thin layer of sesame oil over the rolled out sheet of dough. Spread about 1/4 of the sautéed shallots, garlic and ginger over the dough rectangle. Then, sprinkle a small pinch of salt and about 1/4 of the scallions over the dough.
• Make an envelope fold with the dough. Take a long edge of the dough rectangle and fold it a third of the way towards the center. Next, grab onto the opposite side of the dough rectangle and fold it down so that the dough overlaps the other two layers. Fold the thinner rectangle of dough in half and gather the dough like it’s a long rope. Starting from one end of the dough rope, roll the dough into a coil. The coil doesn’t need to be tight. Transfer the coiled up dough to a plate.
• Roll out, fill, and coil up the remaining 3 pieces of dough.

Cook Pancakes

• Take a piece of coiled up dough and flatten it gently with the palm of your hand. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough into a flat circle of about 7 inches in diameter. Sometimes, the edges of the pancake curl up immediately. That is particularly true if you try to flatten the dough you just coiled up. If that happens, lay your rolling pin over the curled edges and let the dough sit for 15 seconds. Then roll it out again.
• After rolling out the first pancake, heat a large cast-iron or nonstick pan with about 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat. Swirl the oil around the pan to coat the entire surface. Carefully transfer the pancake into the pan.
• While the first pancake is pan-frying, roll out another coiled piece of dough into a pancake.
• Pan fry the pancake for 2 to 3 minutes, until golden. Use tongs to flip the pancake over and pan fry the other side for another 2 minutes, until golden brown. The first pancake usually takes a longer time to pan fry because the pan is still heating up. Once both sides of the pancake are golden brown, transfer the pancake to a cooling rack. I don’t like resting the pancakes on a plate because the pancakes tend to steam up under the bottom side.
• Pour another 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil into the pan and swirl it around. Pan fry the second pancake. Continue rolling out and cooking the remaining pieces of dough.
• Serve the pancakes whole or slice them into smaller pieces. They taste great with the sweet chili dipping sauce!

Notes

1. I always weigh the flour when I’m making dough because it’s much more accurate. If you are measuring the flour by volume, use the spoon-and-sweep method to measure 2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour. You’ll need to fluff the flour with a fork and spoon the flour into a measuring cup before leveling off the excess on the top. Do not tap the measuring cup on your counter to try to pack in more flour. Some people like to use the dip-and-sweep method, which I find more inconsistent. With this method, you fluff the flour with a fork, then dip your measuring cup directly into the bag of flour. 300 grams of flour will be about 2 cups + 1 tablespoon of flour. Can you see how big the difference is if you used the spoon-and-sweep vs the dip-and sweep method?
2. I generally use kosher salt for all my cooking.
3. You can typically find yellow curry powder in the spice aisles of grocery stores. If you can’t find any, use the following spice blend: 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander, 1/8 teaspoon turmeric, 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder/granulated garlic, and 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper.
4. If you are using refrigerated pumpkin puree, warm it up before making the dough. I usually stick the pumpkin puree in the microwave and heat it up for 30 seconds. You can also use butternut squash or sweet potato puree instead of pumpkin.
5. Vegan Option of Dipping Sauce: You can substitute the honey with agave or light brown sugar.
6. Making Dough Ahead: Right after you knead the dough, wrap it in plastic or put it in a small container. Transfer the dough to the fridge. The dough will keep for 2 days. If the chilled dough is difficult to work with, let the dough sit on your counter for 15 minutes before rolling it out.
7. Freezing Pancakes: You can freeze cooked pancakes. If you stack them up in the freezer, separate the pancakes with parchment paper. When you’re ready to eat them, place the frozen pancakes on a baking sheet and bake at 350ºF for 12 to 15 minutes. You don’t need to defrost the pancakes beforehand, and you don’t need to line the baking sheet with parchment.

Nutrition

Serving: 1pancake | Calories: 519kcal | Carbohydrates: 68g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 24.2g | Saturated Fat: 3.5g | Sodium: 589mg | Fiber: 3.9g | Sugar: 6g

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Cuisine: Chinese

Category: Appetizer

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill! To learn more about their products and to get more recipe inspiration, follow them on Instagram or Facebook.