If I had to choose between street food or fine dining, I would choose street food, hands down. Although food carts or tiny hole-in-the-wall eateries may not have the cleanest kitchen, I love the authenticity of the food. Usually, the carts specialize in one dish so you know that it will be phenomenal. There is one specific food cart in Taiwan that I would love to try, but since I'm halfway across the world, I'm going to have to make it myself. This is the first time I've heard of Taiwanese radish and egg pancakes, but after seeing pictures of the food, I couldn't stop thinking about them! The gentleman who sells them in Taiwan is known for this street food and can be found selling them at a school. Kids line up for these fresh pancakes whenever he is around and I can see why. After preparing these myself, I can only imagine how delicious the original radish and egg pancakes are.
Taiwanese Radish and Egg Pancakes
Ingredients
Radish stuffing
- 1 ½ lb daikon radish
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 3 green onions chopped, whites separated from the green tops
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
Dough
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup boiling water
- 1 cup cold water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon white sugar
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
Sweet and spicy sauce
- ½ cup sweet chili sauce
- ½ cup water
- 1 tablespoon white miso
- 2 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoon cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon water
Remaining ingredients
- 6 eggs sunny side up
Instructions
- Prepare the dough. Mix together the flour, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Gradually add the hot water, stirring continuously. Add the cold water and vegetable oil and mix until a dough forms. Knead the dough for 5-7 minutes or until smooth. Lightly grease a bowl with vegetable oil and transfer dough to the bowl. Cover and let rest for 2 hours or up to overnight.
- Meanwhile, make the filling. Peel and finely grate the daikon radish. Season with salt and let sit in a large colander for 2 hours. Squeeze out any excess water.
- Heat 1 tablespoon sesame oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the chopped white stems of the green onions and saute until softened, about 1 minute. Add the grated radish and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the chopped green onion and season with white pepper and salt. Remove from heat and transfer radish stuffing to a bowl. Let cool.
- Prepare the sauce. Whisk together the sweet chili sauce with water, miso and sugar. Pour into a medium sauce pot and heat over medium heat until the mixture begins to boil. Add the cornstarch and water slurry and bring to a simmer. Continue to cook for 2 minutes or until the sauce is slightly thickened. Remove from heat and keep warm.
- Divide the dough into 8 equal portions, rolling out each into a 6-inch circle. Place the cooled radish filling in the center. Gather up the edges and seal the ball by pinching together the edges. Roll out the stuffed dough into a 6-inch circle. Repeat with remaining portions.
- Heat enough oil in a saute pan to come up ¼ inch. Add the pancakes and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Flip and cook the other side until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and repeat with remaining pancakes.
- Serve pancakes with sunny side up eggs and sauce brushed on top.
**Helpful tips and common mistakes
These Taiwanese radish and egg pancakes take some time to make, but it's actually quite easy to prepare. The dough itself only consists of flour, water, salt, sugar, and oil, making it easy to make. Just mix until a dough forms and let it rest.
While the dough is resting, prepare the filling. You want the filling to cool before stuffing the pancakes. You can choose to make the radish the day before and chill overnight.
To make even portions, use a scale to portion out the dough. You will need to dust your work counter and rolling pin with flour to prevent the dough from sticking. Roll out each portion, stuff with the radish and seal close.
When pan-frying the pancakes, use enough oil to evenly cook the pancake.
Top the pancakes with a sunny-side-up egg and sweet chili sauce for a complete snack. I loved this pancake! The pancake itself has a chew factor with a slightly sweet radish filling. The best part? The sweet chili sauce. It's sweet, a little spicy, and perfectly balances the pancake. These radish and egg pancakes are incredibly filling and definitely hit the spot! Now if only I can try the real thing in Taiwan...
For Taiwanese inspiration check out this Taiwanese breakfast burger!
Comments