I’m a food travel show junkie–there, I’ve admitted it. I constantly troll Netflix, Cooking Channel, YouTube searching for my next hit. David Chang’s latest Netflix series Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner–yep, already binge-watched it over two nights. Ditto for the Jon Favreau/Roy Choi buddy foodie road trip The Chef Show. I’m so obsessed with Samin Nosrat, I’ve watched Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat twice…so far. I know her seminal cookbook only covered those four elements, but why couldn’t the series have stretched it out over say eight episodes?!
A thoughtful, well-orchestrated, artfully shot series is like sitting down to a multilayered gastronomic feast–each course perfectly curated to tantalize the palate and mesmerize the senses, but not to the point of painful gluttony.
Alas, it takes time to produce the good ones. I’m (im)patiently waiting for the second Ugly Delicious series, not to mention Samin’s next series, whenever that will be. In the meantime, I’ve been “snacking” on a buffet of YouTube offerings–mostly what I would consider fun fast food fare–like The Burger Show, where host/chef Alvin Cailan teams up with follow burger enthusiasts to deep dive into the culture of fast food chains and regional specialties. Does the show satisfy my wanderlust for travel? Not really. However, if I’m ever in Minneapolis, I’ll know where to go for the best Juicy Lucy.
Another entertaining YouTube series is Fung Bros Food. It is, as the title suggests, heavy on the “bros” (David and Andrew) and bro culture, populated with a cadre of like-minded hip, young Asian American foodies. The brothers’ travels through Asia–China, Singapore, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, Thailand, as well as regional jaunts through NYC and LA–are documented through the herky-jerky lense of hand-held cameras and rapid-fire commentaries. The show is at its best when they stick to the travelogue format, weaving in and out of stalls and restaurants, sampling a wide variety of offerings. More often than not, the brothers enlist their fellow foodie friends to help them eat and critique the copious amounts of food they’ve assembled. It’s all very democratic–review by consensus.
No surprise, my favorite episodes have focused on their travels through Hong Kong, Beijing, and Shanghai, partly because I’ve been to those places and partly because much has changed in the last decade with respect to food and culture. I won’t lie, there’s definitely some envy at play here, because when I went to mainland China with my cousins years ago, we didn’t really get to experience Chinese food, in particular street food, the way the Fung brothers did. Yes, we did eat some tasty dumplings, but that was about it. Our Hutong tour did not include sampling crispy xian bing or meat pies. So I watch their Asia food crawls, jealously wishing I could join in on their foodie adventure.
I found myself once again watching Fung Bros Food last night before bed. It happened to be an episode where they focused on trying variations of xian bing at a restaurant in Southern California. Needless to say, I woke up this morning craving xian bing and itching to make some myself. Having never made them before, I did what most people do. I went on YouTube to search for recipes and tutorials. After watching a few and getting a general idea of how to make them, I set off to get me some ground pork and cabbage.
The basic xian bing consists of a simple dough made of plain or all-purpose flour and hot water, rolled into thin disks, filled with a ground pork and cabbage (or chives) mixture that’s seasoned with ginger, scallion, soy, white pepper, salt and sugar, edges gathered and pinched into folds, then flattened into rounds, and fried until golden brown on both sides. I took a shortcut when it came to the dough, making it in my trusty food processor fitted with a dough blade instead of mixing it by hand. I also skipped blanching the cabbage in hot water, opting to microwave it for 90 seconds on high, which produced the same results. I added a touch of sesame oil and rice wine for flavor, as well as a tiny bit of cornstarch to offset the added liquid. Overall, my xian bing came out crispy and flavorful, exactly what I was craving. I made way more filling than I needed (actually had enough for a dozen), so I’m saving the rest to mix with a little shrimp for wontons.
Xian Bing (Pan-Fried Meat Pies)
Yield: 12 pies
Dough:
- 400 gm all-purpose flour
- 200 ml hot (boiled) water**
- pinch of Kosher salt
**proportion of flour to water is about 2:1, though you may need to add a bit more water if the dough seems too dry to knead into a smooth pliable dough.
If mixing by hand, create a well in the center of the flour then gradually mix in the water to form dough. Knead until dough is smooth and pliable, then lightly coat with non-stick spray and wrap with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at room temperature for at least 30 mins. before rolling.
Filling:
- 8 oz. ground pork
- 1/4 head napa cabbage, sliced
- 2 scallions, finely chopped
- 2 T. grated peeled ginger
- 2 t. dark soy sauce
- 2 t. light soy sauce
- 1 t. sesame oil
- 1 T. rice wine
- 1 t. sugar
- 1/2 t. white pepper
- 1 t. Kosher salt
- 1 t. corn starch
Place the sliced cabbage in a microwave-safe bowl, cover and cook on high for 90 seconds. Transfer the wilted cabbage into a food processor and pulse a few times until it’s been finely chopped. Put the chopped cabbage into the center of a double layer of paper towels, gather up and squeeze out the excess liquid. Transfer the drained cabbage into a mixing bowel, along with the remaining ingredients. Mix to fully combine ingredients. Cover bowl and chill for 30 mins. to firm up filling.
Assembly:
Divide the dough in half, then roll each half into a log on a floured surface. Cut each log into six pieces, then form into balls. To make the wrapper, flatten dough ball, then roll out from the center rotating the dough in sections until you have a thin disk that is slightly thicker in the center. Holding the wrapper in the palm of one hand, place a heaping tablespoon of filling in the center and spread out, leaving about 1/2″ border from the edge. Gather and pleat the dough towards the center to close off the top. Flatten the “pouch” with a rolling pin to form a 1/2″ thick disk. Repeat the process with the remaining dough and filling.
Heat a frying pan with a liberal amount of oil (I used canola) on medium low heat until oil shimmers. Fry the disks in batches until golden brown on each side, about 5-6 mins. Serve with a soy and rice vinegar dipping sauce on the side.
