North-south Onion Pancakes

Title: NORTH-SOUTH ONION PANCAKES

Categories: Oriental, Breads

Yield: 8 servings

3 c Flour, cake or all-purpose

1 c Boiling water

1/4 c Cold water

-or more if dough

-feels too dry

3 tb Shortening

Vegetable oil for pan frying

--FILLING--

3 oz Boneless breast of chicken

- skinned, diced

1/2 ts Cornstarch

1/4 ts Cooking sherry

1/4 lb Chinese sausage; diced

1 tb Chinese dried shrimp; minced

1 ts Vegetable oil

3 oz Chinese barbecued pork

- diced 1 bn Green onions; minced

1 ts Oyster sauce

1 ts Soy sauce

1/4 ts Sugar

1/4 ts Salt

MEASURE FLOUR into a large mixing bowl; add boiling

water, stirring quickly with chopsticks or fork, then

add cold water and mix well. Work dough until smooth

and supple. Roll dough into shape of a ball. Cover

well with plastic wrap or damp cloth; set aside to

rest for 1 hour at room temperature. Place the chicken

in a small bowl; add cornstarch, cooking sherry and pinch of salt. Set aside and refrigerate and let

marinate until ready to use. Stir-fry Chinese sausage

and dried shrimp in hot vegetable oil in a small

frying pan over high heat for 1 minute. Add chicken

with its marinade and stir-fry for another 2 minutes.

Quickly stir in barbecued pork and 3/4 cup of the

minced onions. (Set aside remaining onions for pancake

wrappers.) Immediately season with the oyster sauce,

soy sauce, sugar and salt, and mix well. Turn off

heat; divide into 16 portions and set aside. Knead

dough until smooth and divide equally into 16 pieces;

cover with plastic wrap. Work 1 piece of dough at a

time, keeping the rest covered in plastic wrap. Take a

piece of dough and rub both sides with a bit of

shortening, then roll out with a rolling pin to 6

inches in diameter. Again rub shortening (about 1

1 side of the dough; sprinkle evenly

with about 1 teaspoon minced scallions and a pinch of

salt. Curl up the dough from 1 end into a long, narrow

cylinder; then curl up again lengthwise into a

snail-like cylinder. Place the dough on its broad side

and roll out again with a rolling pin into a piece

about 4 inches in diameter. Place one portion of

filling in center of dough and seal well on top by

pinching the dough like a dumpling. Flatten into a

2-inch-diameter onion pancake. Set aside. Repeat until

all the dough is prepared. Pan fry the onion pancakes

in a thin layer of hot vegetable oil over medium heat,

about 2 minutes on each side or until golden brown.

Pat the onion pancakes gently with a paper towel to

remove excess oil before serving. Makes 16 Pancakes,

or 8 Servings --