Pan-fried beef and leek pancakes
Soft dough wrapped around a juicy minced beef and Chinese leek filling, pan-fried until golden — crisp outside, succulent inside and filling enough for the morning.
- 55 min
- Serves 2
- Pan-fry
- Medium
Why it suits you: Yang-deficient people feel the cold, with chilly hands and feet, and as Bailu's mornings and evenings cool they most need warming. Beef strengthens the spleen and stomach and builds qi and blood, Chinese leek frees the yang and dispels cold, and ginger and five-spice warm the middle. Golden and piping hot, it's filling and warming ahead of the colder months.
Method
Prep 40 min · Cook 15 min- 1Mix the flour with the warm water into a soft dough, cover with a damp cloth and rest for 20 minutes. Finely chop the leek.
- 2Mix the beef with the ginger, soy sauce, wine and five-spice, adding the water a little at a time and stirring in one direction until sticky. Stir in the leek and sesame oil.
- 3Divide the dough into 6, roll each into a round, wrap in some filling and pinch to seal. Flatten gently into pancakes about 1.5 cm thick.
- 4Heat the oil and fry the pancakes over a medium-low heat for 4–5 minutes on each side until golden and cooked through. Serve with black vinegar for dipping.
Cautions
- These pancakes are warming and drying, so skip them if you have a sore throat, dry mouth or spots; let them cool a little before biting, as the juices are scalding.
Chef's tips
- Adding the water gradually and stirring until sticky keeps the filling juicy; press the pancakes to an even thickness and fry slowly so they cook through without burning.
The TCM view
Beef is sweet and neutral to warm, entering the spleen and stomach, building qi and blood and strengthening the sinews. Chinese leek is pungent and warm, entering the lungs and stomach, freeing the yang and dispersing cold; ginger warms the middle; five-spice, with star anise, cinnamon and Sichuan pepper, is warming; wheat flour supports the heart and spleen.
