The real spring roll…
…or at least the most ancient kind. You can read my piece about fresh, unfried spring rolls in today’s Financial Times Weekend magazine – it includes recipes based on those from Every Grain of Rice. As I mention, it takes a little experimenting to get the knack of making the pancakes. The dough needs to be the right consistency, and the hotplate the right temperature – not too hot or too cool. Here’s a video of a professional doing it, a street vendor in Chengdu. Isn’t she wonderful?!
4 Responses to “The real spring roll…”
Amazing skill! Keeping the wet dough moving while concentrating on the griddle looks like patting your head and rubbing your stomach! I wonder if it’s like crepes, where the first one is nearly always a write-off while you get the temp right?
I’ve visited China and seen some very impressive culinary feats, but this definitely takes the cake! I didn’t realize what she was doing until several seconds had passed. The way she forms the pancakes is super cool.
Saw a young boy doing precisely this in a shop in Chaozhou a few weeks ago (a great place for traditional foods by the way!) and was amazed. I also see street vendors making Shandong style grain pancakes most days here in Guangzhou and whilst they’re not quite as skillful as the lady above, I’m always impressed how they can get the pancakes right every single time. They make it look so easy that I even bought one of the hot plates on Taobao (Chinese eBay) to try for myself but haven’t been able to perfect the magic triumvirate of dough consistency, heat and manual dexterity…one day!
the article in in “financial times weekend magazine” was beyond excellent. thank you for the information-packed share 🙂