These paleo scallion pancakes are pretty much indistinguishable from the ones I used to order at my favorite Mandarin breakfast joints—only mine are vegan, grain-free, egg-free, nut-free, and fried in healthy fats! These crispy-on-the-outside, chewy-on-the-inside flatbreads filled with minced scallions are delicious!
What are Chinese Scallion Pancakes?
Never heard of scallion pancakes? You may know them as green onion pancakes, or chong yao beng (葱油饼). These irresistibly crispy-on-the-outside, chewy-on-the-inside flatbreads are folded with minced scallions and sesame oil, and then cooked on a pan or griddle. They’re unleavened, and unlike the pancakes you order at IHOP, they’re savory and made from dough—not batter. Served both as a restaurant dish and a street food snack, scallion pancakes are usually eaten with breakfast.
To be honest with you, I’ve been dying to make these for a while now, but something’s always held me back. I think I was afraid I wouldn’t ever be able to make a paleo version of scallion pancakes that does justice to the real thing.
Paleo, Gluten-free, and Vegan Scallion Pancakes!
It took some elbow grease and a lot of experimentation, but I came up with a paleo, gluten-free, and vegan version that tastes pretty close to the real thing! But don’t just take my word for it; these paleo scallion pancakes got huge thumbs up from both Ollie (my picky younger son) AND my discerning and oh-so-blunt parents. My dad’s only feedback: Don’t skimp on the scallions, eat these pancakes while they’re piping hot (so the crunchy texture isn’t compromised), and enjoy them with a mug of strong Chinese tea so it helps aid with digestion. Thanks, Pop!
Cassava flour FTW!
This recipe uses cassava flour, which is not the same thing as tapioca flour/starch, and arrowroot powder, which is starch extracted from the roots of the arrowroot plant. You can read more about cassava flour here, and about arrowroot powder here. And by the way, I definitely recommend using a kitchen scale to measure out the flours for consistency!
A caveat: As I mentioned in my Paleo Curried Meat Pies recipe, I’m no paleo baking expert. So before you ask: I have no idea what happens if you substitute another flour for the cassava flour or arrowroot flour. If you successfully experiment with other flours or fats, please let us all know in the comments so we can benefit from your experience!
Time to make Paleo Scallion Pancakes!
Makes 8 (8-inch) pancakes
Ingredients:
- 2 cup (256 g) cassava flour
- ½ cup (64 g) arrowroot powder
- Diamond Crystal brand kosher salt
- 1½ cups boiling water
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 2 cups (121 g) thinly sliced scallions
- Ghee, avocado oil, or your fave high temperature cooking fat for frying
Equipment:
- Large bowl
- Kitchen scale or dry measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
- Whisk
- Liquid measuring cup
- Parchment paper
- Tortilla press (optional)
- Rolling dowel
- Silicone baking brush
- Large cast-iron skillet or non-stick skillet
- Stainless steel wire rack
Method:
Measure out the cassava flour, arrowroot powder, and 1 teaspoon of Diamond Crystal brand kosher salt into a large bowl.
Whisk well to combine.
Add about 1 cup of the boiling water and mix well with a spoon (or your hands if your nerve endings are gone like mine). Slowly add the rest of the boiling water and knead well…
…until you form a spring-y, not-sticky dough. If it seems extra dry, add a touch more water, but watch out—you don’t want a wet, soft dough, or you’ll have trouble working with it. If it gets too wet, knead in a bit more cassava flour.
Divide the dough in half, and then in half again. Next, divide the dough in half one more time. If you followed my instructions correctly, you should end up with 8 equal-sized portions. Roll ’em into balls with your hands.
Grab one dough ball, making sure to keep the rest of the balls covered. (I just pop a silicone lid or damp kitchen towel over the bowl.) Smush down the piece of dough with your fingers, and then flatten it between two pieces of parchment paper. Use a rolling pin to flatten it until it’s very thin—about ⅛-inch.
Brush on a thin layer of toasted sesame oil.
Add ¼ cup of the minced scallions in a single layer to the flattened dough. Sprinkle on some salt as well.
Carefully roll the dough up into it looks like a scallion cigar. Then, take one end and tuck it in. Coil the cigar around…
…until you end up with something that kinda looks like a pinwheel or a cinnamon bun.
Place the “cinnamon bun” between two pieces of parchment paper, and either flatten it into a thin circular pancake with a tortilla press (which helps give your pancake a nice circular shape)…
…or roll it out by hand with a rolling dowel. I usually do both: I smush mine with a tortilla press and then roll it out even thinner with a rolling dowel ’cause I like my scallion pancakes extra crispy. Repeat with the remaining dough balls and roll out as many as you feel like serving.
Place a large skillet over medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add enough fat so it covers the bottom of the pan. Carefully transfer a pancake to the pan and cook for 5 minutes on one side (or until nicely browned). Right before you’re ready to flip it, brush on some hot oil on the un-fried side.
Then, fry on the other side for about 3 minutes or until crispy and browned.
Transfer the cooked pancake to a wire rack to cool a bit while you fry up more cakes.
Don’t wait too long before cutting and eating. As my pop said, serve these pancakes while they’re warm, and with some strong hot tea!
If you want to make the dough ahead of time, you can form the “cinnamon buns” and wrap those up individually (with plastic wrap or parchment paper) and store them in a freezer bag for up to 4 months. Thaw the “buns” in the fridge overnight and roll them out before frying. The frozen uncooked pancakes are pretty delicate, so it is best to roll them out right before you fry them.
Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes on my iPhone and iPad app, and in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013), Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017), and Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2021).
PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE CARD
Paleo Scallion Pancakes
Ingredients
- 2 cup cassava flour
- ½ cup arrowroot powder
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 1½ cups boiling water
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 2 cups thinly sliced scallions
- ghee avocado oil, or your fave high temperature cooking fat for frying
Instructions
- Measure out the cassava flour, arrowroot powder, and 1 teaspoon of Diamond Crystal brand kosher salt into a large bowl. Whisk well to combine.
- Add about 1 cup of the boiling water and mix well with a spoon (or your hands if your nerve endings are gone like mine). Slowly add the rest of the boiling water and knead well until you form a spring-y, not-sticky dough. If it seems extra dry, add a touch more water, but watch out—you don’t want a wet, soft dough, or you’ll have trouble working with it. If it gets too wet, knead in a bit more cassava flour.
- Divide the dough in half, and then in half again. Next, divide the dough in half one more time. If you followed my instructions correctly, you should end up with 8 equal-sized portions. Roll ’em into balls with your hands.
- Grab one dough ball, making sure to keep the rest of the balls covered. (I just pop a silicone lid or damp kitchen towel over the bowl.) Smush down the piece of dough with your fingers, and then flatten it between two pieces of parchment paper. Use a rolling pin to flatten it until it’s very thin—about ⅛-inch.
- Brush on a thin layer of toasted sesame oil. Add ¼ cup of the minced scallions in a single layer to the flattened dough. Sprinkle on some salt as well.
- Carefully roll the dough up into it looks like a scallion cigar. Then, take one end and tuck it in. Coil the cigar around until you end up with something that kinda looks like a pinwheel or a cinnamon bun.
- Place the “cinnamon bun” between two pieces of parchment paper, and either flatten it into a thin circular pancake with a tortilla press (which helps give your pancake a nice circular shape) or roll it out by hand with a rolling dowel. I usually do both: I smush mine with a tortilla press and then roll it out even thinner with a rolling dowel ’cause I like my scallion pancakes extra crispy. Repeat with the remaining dough balls and roll out as many as you feel like serving.
- Place a large skillet over medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add enough fat so it covers the bottom of the pan. Carefully transfer a pancake to the pan and cook for 5 minutes on one side (or until nicely browned).
- Right before you’re ready to flip it, brush on some hot oil on the un-fried side. Then, fry on the other side for about 3 minutes or until crispy and browned.
- Transfer the cooked pancake to a wire rack to cool a bit while you fry up more cakes.
- Don’t wait too long before cutting and eating. As my pop said, serve these pancakes while they’re warm, and with some strong hot tea!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Don’t make my mistake and buy the wrong flour ! I didn’t have access to the cassava flower, so I used the Trader Joe’s gluten-free all purpose flour.( It’s a blend of millet, potato starch, tapioca, rice, flour, sorghum, and xathum gum…. what a mistake!)
I followed all of the instructions to the letter, but the dough was super sticky, even though I used only one cup of water. so I slowly added enough flour until it wasn’t sticking to my hands or the parchment when I rolled it out. I fried it and a cast-iron skillet, experimenting both with avocado oil and, coconut oil, but neither worked. I even tried lowering the temperature, but the pancake itself would seize and curl up in different spots. It looked like cardboard that was half wet. It tasted like cardboard, too – kind of like when a child bakes for the first time . it was super dry, floury, burnt tasting and had no scallion flavor whatsoever.
If I’m feeling that, I have a couple hours again, I might get the exact flower she’s talking about and try it again. But I have a feeling it was my mistake in the flower and using so much of it that made it bad.
I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you——that’s why I always advise folks to not make substitutions in my bread / baking recipes. Cassava flour is very different from a random gluten-free flour blend.
I love these. They are a huge comfort food for me. Have you/anyone tried smaller versions in an air fryer? I’m in my first trimester craving comfort foods but not sure I can handle how oily they are as is now (which I usually love)