Health + Wellness

Lunar New Year



Our fab Food Editor  takes us on a trip to celebrate the Chinese New Year…

 

ChinesNewYearFeastviaAnicaLin2

Last night, we spent a long evening with friends and friends of friends celebrating Lunar or Chinese New Year. We’ve been fortunate that over the years that we’ve had friends and jobs and travel that have allowed us to experience a celebration that is all about taking a couple of weeks away from work, spending time eating and visiting with family. Businesses in China close for a couple of weeks to allow employees to travel to be with their families for the festival. The Chinese families who are scattered for work will gather for a huge dinner (after a ritual housecleaning to prepare for the new year). Windows and doors will be decorated with red paper cut into symbols for good luck, wealth, and longevity. The food that is prepared is also symbolic; for example, long noodles or whole long greens represent longevity and dumplings represent prosperity. Red envelopes with gifts of money are given to children by their elders and there are lots and lots of fireworks.


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Of course, this just scratches the surface of all of the traditions of the festival. Each family will celebrate a little differently and every region has its own traditions. But if you are fortunate enough to be a part of a celebration, there will be a lot of delicious food, families will gather and spend time together, children will be played with and fussed over and fed. And there will be wishes for health and long life and prosperity in the year ahead.


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These pancakes were my contribution to the feast. They are flaky and a little greasy (in a good way) and are easy to make for a crowd. And really, you just can’t stop eating them. They are made with a similar technique to the Indian or Caribbean flatbread roti and are really simple once you get the hang of the rolling technique.

 

Flaky Scallion Pancakes

Makes 4 pancakes

Recipe

2 cups all purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon of oil
¾ cup boiling water
2 tablespoons of toasted sesame oil
4 scallions chopped fine using only the green and light green parts
oil to pan fry

 

Method:

Mix the salt and flour in the bowl of a food processor. Pour the boiling water and oil over the flour and process until a ball of dough forms. Remove and form into a smooth ball. Cover with a clean towel and let the dough sit for 20 minutes.

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Alternatively, you can use a stand mixer and a dough hook or a bowl and a wooden spoon to mix the dough. Just make sure all of the flour is incorporated and the water is absorbed and the dough begins to form a smooth surface.

Divide the dough into 4 equal parts and roll each quarter into a ball. On a lightly floured surface, roll each ball into a thin disc, rotating the dough between each pass to make it even. Many Chinese cooks have a length of thick dowel to use as a roller, which makes maneuvering with a small disc easier; I have a French rolling pin which works fine.

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When you’ve rolled the disk out so that it is about the size of your hand, brush the surface with some of the sesame oil to make a thin coat.


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Sprinkle ¼ of the scallions evenly over the surface.


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Then tightly roll the disc into a cigar shape, pinching the edges to seal them.


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When the dough is rolled up, curl the cigar into a snail and squeeze the whole roll to compact it. Repeat with the other 3 pieces of dough.


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When all of the rolls are curled into snails, dust the surface with flour again and place one of the rolls in the middle of the surface again.


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Gently roll the filled dough out into a thin disk again, once again rotating a half turn between each pass to keep it even.


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Some of the scallions make break through the dough to the surface but try to work gently to keep them inside. The cigar-to-snail-to-pancake technique is what creates crispy layers and makes a flaky pancake.


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Heat a teaspoon or two of oil in a skillet; when it is hot, cook the pancakes until they are spotted with dark golden brown and start bubbling up on both sides. You may need to add more oil between each pancake.


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Cut the pancakes into wedges and serve hot with a simple dipping sauce.


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Soy Vinegar Chili Sauce

Mix equal parts soy sauce and rice wine vinegar in a bowl, about ¼ cup each for four pancakes.

Drizzle the mixture with a teaspoon each of toasted sesame oil and chili oil.

Mix well.


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