Crispy Chinese Beef Pancakes

These Crispy Chinese Beef Pancakes are savory, juicy, and pan-fried until perfectly golden and crisp. With a tender homemade dough and flavorful beef and potato filling, they're a comforting street-style snack you can easily make at home.

If you love Chinese scallion pancakes or green onion beef pancake rolls, these crispy beef pancakes combine the best of both worlds -- flaky on the outside, meaty and satisfying on the inside.

Why you'll love this recipe

Crispy & juicy: a thin, crisp exterior with a tender, savory beef interior.

Easy to make dough: just flour, water, and salt.

Customizable: switch up the ground meat, or add vegetables or different aromatics to the filling.

Freezer-friendly: like scallion pancakes, they're perfect for make-ahead meals or snack prep.

Ingredients you'll need

Beef filling:

• ground beef: or ground lamb, ground pork
• shallots: diced; or sub with white onion
• garlic: minced
• potato: cooked, cooled and mashed
• cold water: to bind the mixture
• soy sauce: for flavor
• sea salt
• mala spice: optional; adds extra flavor and spice; contains Sichuan peppercorn, chili, ground cumin, fennel, and coriander
• sesame oil

Dough:

• all-purpose flour: regular plain flour
• sea salt
• hot boiling water: keeps the dough pliable and tender
• room temperature water: to neutralize the temperature
• vegetable oil
• sesame seeds: optional

For pan-frying:

• neutral vegetable oil

How to make Chinese crispy beef pancakes

Prepare the beef filling:

In a bowl, combine ground beef, shallots, garlic, cooled potato, water, soy sauce, salt, mala spice and sesame oil.

Mix until combined well, sticky and cohesive.

Divide the filling into 10 equal portions.

Cover and set aside in the fridge until ready to use.

Make the dough:

In a large bowl, combine flour and salt.

Pour in hot boiling water and use a pair of chopsticks to combine until shaggy. Slowly pour in room temperature water, oil and knead until a smooth dough forms.

Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let it rest at room temperature for about 2 hours.

Divide the dough into 10 equal pieces.

Assemble:

Flatten each piece of dough using a rolling pin, into a thin circle, about a 5-6" wide, and add the meat mixture to the center.

Enclose the meat mixture and seal the edges.

Flatten and roll the dough into a pancake, about 4½-5" wide, taking care not to pierce the skin.

Sprinkle both sides of the pancake with sesame seeds (optional).

Repeat with the remainder.

Pan-fry:

Heat up a skillet or frying pan over medium high heat.

Add in a little vegetable oil and pan-fry the beef pancakes for about 3-4 minutes per side, flipping halfway through, until golden and crisp.

Cook the remaining pancakes, adding more oil as needed.

Serve with a dipping sauce of soy sauce, vinegar and chili oil.

How to serve

Serve the crispy beef pancakes hot and fresh, with black vinegar and a splash of soy sauce, chili oil, sliced green onion or a simple garlic-soy dipping sauce.

They pair perfectly with congee, noodles, or a warm cup of tea.

How to store & reheat

Fridge: keep fully cooked pancakes in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Freezer: freeze uncooked pancakes individually on a tray until solid, then transfer to a freezer bag for up to 1 month.

To reheat: pan-fry from frozen over medium-low heat until crispy and heated through.

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