Green Onion Pancakes or ,Scallion pancake as it is often called, is a fantastic flatbread that serves as a great side-dish or appetizer. The Green Onion Pancake recipe is not made from batter like Western pancakes are but from dough and are sometimes served as street food but can also be served in restaurants.

There is an interesting Chinese legend that the Italian pizza is actually and evolution of the Green Onion Pancake which Marco Polo brought back to Italy after his travels to China.

According to the legend Marco Polo had tried Green Onion Pancakes in China and when he was back in Italy he missed them so much that he tried to find chefs who could make it for him. Once when he was at a dinner party in Naples he met a chef and managed to persuade him to try recreating the dish. After trying for half a day without much luck Marco Polo suggested the filling be put on top rather then inside the dough. As luck would have it the dish was an instant success at the dinner party! Later they improved the recipe by adding cheese and other ingredients that make the pizza we know today.

Although this legend is almost certainly not true it is a funny story and who knows, it might be true 😀

Anyways lets go make this pancake!

This recipe makes 8 peaces and serves 4 people as an appetizer

200 g (1 1⁄2 cups) all-purpose flour

1 1⁄2 teaspoons salt

125 ml (
1⁄2 cup) water

3 green onions(scallions)
into small rounds, to yield about 1/3 cup
2 tablespoons oil

Some additional all-purpose flour, for dusting and rolling oil, for frying

Put the all purpose flour and salt into a big bowl, combine it and set the bowl aside. Bring the water to a boil and pour it slowly to the flower and knead the dough until it is no longer sticky and it feels smooth to the hand, this takes about 10 minutes. If it is a little bit too dry just add a pinch of water to it and if it is too moist just add a pinch of flour. After your have knead the dough cover it with a damp cloth and let it rest for half an hour. Chop the green onions into small rounds and after half an hour add them to the dough and combine them well into the dough.

Now put the dough on a flat surface and devide it into 8 pieces. Then roll each piece of dough into a ball using your palms. Roll the dough into a thin disc shape with a rolling pin and dust the rolling pin with some flour.

Brush the top of the dough with oil and roll it into a cylinder.

Then role the cylinder up into a snail.

Put some flour on the rolling pin and roll the dough until it’s flat. Repeat the process with the rest of the dough.

Put a skillet or skillet on the stove and put it on medium heat. Add about a spoonful of oil to the pan and start frying the pancakes until it starts to turn light golden brown on each side(takes about 1 minute). Add more oil once your finished frying the first batch. Serve it while it’s hot. 

Quick tip: If you have extra you can put them in the freezer and serve them whenever your in a hurry. All you have to do is to take them out of the freezer and put them on a hot pan or in the oven for about 2 minutes.