Scallion Pancake, Egg & Tomato Wrap

Breakfasty Chinese street food vibes for the win

Happy Saturday! My book comes out next Tuesday (!!!) and my days have been absolutely packed—so, of course, I’ve been leaning into my snacking dinners. :) This week I revisited one I absolutely love that is kind of a California twist on a Taiwanese scallion-egg pancake. My version uses frozen scallion pancakes (there are at least three kinds available at my local 99 Ranch supermarket, and Trader Joe’s also carries a good version) coated with a layer of scallion-studded egg all wrapped around slices of fresh tomatoes. It’s rich and savory and fresh all at the same time. (It would actually make a great breakfast, but I don’t eat much in the mornings, so I always make mine as a breakfast-for-dinner kind of meal.)

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My new cookbook, SNACKING DINNERS, out this Tuesday! If you order before then, make sure to sign up for bonus drink recipes, a signed bookplate, and a chance to win a fun giveaway.

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While it’s not really tomato season for a while yet, I find that the less-juicy winter options in the markets right now actually give the snack a more accurately Chinese flavor, because the tomatoes you get in China were dense and firm rather than juicy and flavorful. (Chinese tomatoes are bred for cooking in dishes like stir-fried tomato and eggs, 番茄炒鸡蛋, not for eating raw.)

I also flavor the pancake with a slick of sweet-savory “sweet bean sauce,” which adds some fun nuance and also makes up for the sweetness lacking the in tomatoes. For the one I’m showing above, I decided I wanted to add a little kick, so I actually used Fly by Jing’s Zhong sauce instead, and it was amazing. Lastly, because scallion pancakes are often served with black vinegar (since they’re pretty mild on their own), I sprinkle some of that onto my tomatoes for a bit of oomph, then finish everything with sesame seeds and a little salt. The whole thing takes less that 5 minutes—including cooking the pancake straight from the freezer—and it’s absolutely perfect.

Scallion Pancake, Egg & Tomato Wrap

1 frozen scallion pancake
1 egg
½ scallion, thinly sliced
1 medium tomato, sliced into rounds
Sweet bean sauce (often labeled “Sauce for Peking Duck”) or Fly by Jing’s Zhong Sauce
Chinese black vinegar, such as Chinkiang or Shaanxi (optional)
Toasted sesame seeds (optional)
Salt

1. Cook the scallion pancake in a non-stick pan according to the instructions on the package. While the pancake is cooking, beat the egg with a few drops of water (to loosen it up a bit) and them mix in the scallion.

2. When the pancake has cooked, turn off the stove to let the pan cool slightly, then pour the egg into the pan, swirling as you pour so that it forms a round shape about the same size as the pancake. Immediately put the scallion pancake on top of the egg, so that it can settle in before the egg firms up and the two will stick together.

3. Once the egg has set and is attached to the pancake (it takes just a few seconds), flip the whole thing onto a plate. Spread some of the sweet bean or Zhong sauce onto the egg side, and then line up the slices of tomato down the center of the pancake. Season the whole thing with the vinegar (if using), sesame seeds (if using), and salt and enjoy hot.

From the Archives

This recipes has a very similar format to one of the earliest recipes I shared on this newsletter: Roti Canai Curry Rolls with Egg and Basil. That recipe also uses a delicious frozen flatbread as its base, paired with a pre-packaged sauce, eggs, and herbs. (I even photographed them the same way!) Try them both and see which one you like best:

Roti Canai Curry Roll with Egg and Basil

This fun dish is sort of a fusiony take on roti canai or roti prata—a Southeast Asian classic often served with curry sauce as a dip—and on a classic Malaysian egg curry. Here, instead of dipping the bread, I roll it up around a chopped egg and use curry as a flavorful sauce. The result is delicious and easy to throw together… Read more

Photos: Georgia Freedman