Inspired by a street stall we ate at in Xi’an, I knew the minute I sank my teeth into this crispy treat that I had to add this stuffed pancake to our recipe collection. It’s a layered, rolled, crispy pancake with spiced pork and cabbage in the middle.
Watching the vendors put this snack together was one of the best parts of our street food experience. For the Xi’an China tourist price of 10 RMB each (about $1.50), and the entertainment value of the experience, these snacks were a bargain!
These street cooks really make it look easy; they were making them as fast as people were lining up for them. Though the stuffed recipe seems simple, it took me four tries until I was confident enough to post the recipe. Lots of trial and error, but the end product is pretty comparable to the real thing, if a little less oily. Which is always a good thing!
(Update: We didn’t make this recipe halal, but you can certainly do so by substituting the pork for a halal meat of your choice!)
Here’s the final Xi’an stuffed pancake recipe:
Makes 8 stuffed pancakes
Recipe Instructions
Start by making the dough. Add the flour, water, and salt to a mixing bowl and mix until it forms a dough. Knead for 5 minutes. Set aside and cover with a damp kitchen towel to rest for at least 30 minutes but an hour is better if you have the time.
Then make the filling components. In a small bowl, combine the pork, five spice powder, cumin, soy sauce, pinch of sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. In another bowl, combine the cabbage, scallion, garlic powder, sesame oil, and white pepper.
Now you’re ready to assemble the stuffed pancakes.
Divide the dough into 8 equal portions and keep the unused dough covered with a damp towel. Next, use a couple drops of oil to lightly oil your work surface. A bamboo or wood cutting board works well.
Roll one of the dough pieces into a long, thin rectangle about four inches wide.
No need to make it perfect. Very lightly oil the dough and spread on about an eighth of your pork mixture. Then add about 2 tablespoons cabbage to one end.
Roll the dough forward into a cylinder.
Then stand it on one end so it’s a standing cylinder. Press the dough down into a flat pancake (about 3/4 inch thick, with a diameter of about 3 1/2 inches) with one hand and then sprinkle with sesame seeds.
These measurements are just meant to give you a general idea so no need to get out any tape measures!
Next, pour ½ cup oil into a small cast iron skillet or pan and heat to about 300 degrees. Place pancakes into the pan (we did 3 at a time) and fry until golden. Carefully flip and fry on the other side (about 3 minutes per side). Always be extra careful when working with hot oil.
When golden brown, transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. These Xi’an stuffed pancake rolls are best eaten as soon as they come out of the pan, but they can also be placed in the refrigerator or even frozen and re-toasted in the oven.
Xi’an Stuffed Pancakes
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- ¾ cup water
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the filling:
- 1 cup ground pork (or ground lamb, beef, or chicken)
- ½ teaspoon five spice powder
- 1/8 teaspoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1/8 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup green cabbage (finely chopped)
- 1 scallion (chopped)
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/8 teaspoon white pepper
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
- 1/2 cup oil (for frying)
Instructions
- Start by making the dough. Add the flour, water, and salt to a mixing bowl and mix until it forms a dough. Knead for 5 minutes. Set aside and cover with a damp kitchen towel to rest.
- Then make the filling components. In a small bowl, combine the pork, five spice, cumin, soy sauce, pinch of sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. In another bowl, combine the cabbage, scallion, garlic powder, sesame oil, and white pepper.
- Now you're ready to assemble the pancakes. Divide the dough into 8 equal portions and keep the unused dough covered with a damp towel. Next, use a couple drops of oil to lightly oil your work surface--a bamboo or wood cutting board works well. Roll one of the dough pieces into a long, thin rectangle about four inches wide. No need to make it perfect. Very lightly oil the dough and spread on about an eighth of your pork mixture. Then add about 2 tablespoons cabbage to one end. Roll the dough forward like a snail. Then stand it on one end so it's like a standing cylinder. Press the dough down into a flat pancake (about 3/4 inch thick, with a diameter of about 3 1/2 inches) with one hand and then sprinkle with sesame seeds. These measurements are just meant to give you a general idea so no need to get out any tape measures!
- Next, pour ½ cup oil into a small cast iron skillet or pan and heat to about 300 degrees. Place pancakes into the pan (we did 3 at a time) and fry until golden. Carefully flip and fry on the other side (about 3 minutes per side). Always be extra careful when working with hot oil.
- When golden brown, transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. These pancake rolls are best eaten as soon as they come out of the pan, but they can also be placed in the refrigerator or even frozen and re-toasted in the oven.
I tried this recipe yesterday, leaving the dough to rest for three hours while working on getting firewood (ah, Winter time!). I think I’m more like Kaitlin and don’t follow recipes well (why does it feel like a torture to do every little step and ingredient exact? Freestyle is the way to go! Lol!), so I had carrot, zucchini, and turkey for the filling. I also made a few with fruit whipped honey! Mmmmm-mmmmm!!!! Delicious!!!!
My only problem was the dough broke when I squished it just before frying. It didn’t affect the flavor, so I don’t really mind, but I have that nagging fear I did something terribly wrong! Oh, well! ;) It was delicious anyway! :D
Hi Joy, sometimes the dough can break with too much stuffing. It happens to me when I overstuff them too ;-)
Do you prefer cold, warm or hot water when making the dough for this recipe? Do you find it makes a big difference? And should the dough feel more sticky or dry? Doughs are not my forte, it was my mom’s, but she is no longer here so I need all the advice I can get.
Ps. Just got your cookbook last week! Can’t wait to cook from it! Thanks for writing and sharing all of the family recipes.
Hi Doreen, for a softer and chewier dough, you can use some hot or even boiling water. Use 1/4 cup of boiling water to pour evenly over the dry ingredients first, mix and then add the rest of the room temperature water. This will give your final dough and pancake and softer texture. Happy cooking!
Could I use bread flour instead of all purpose flour? Thanks!
You can, but you might have to let the dough rest longer because of the high gluten content in the bread flour to make them easier to work with.
This was a great and easy recipe. I substituted the pork for halal chicken and it tasted amazing!!
I bet, this is a tasty recipe, Sanya :-)
I have rated this without trying to it yet. It looks simple enough for me and delicious. So this weekend I am going for it. Thanks.
Thank you, Lesley, hope you enjoy it.
I have made these twice and they are delicious but the inside of the dough is very chewy and seems raw. I fried them for the time suggested and perhaps a bit higher oil temp. Not sure how to correct this. Might try the baking method. I want to make this for a birthday tea this Sunday.
Hi Harmony, you can try a slightly lower temp and cover them when frying (even adding a splash of water). Then you let them crisp up toward the end of frying. It’s similar to how you cook potstickers and pan-fried dumplings.