Vegetable Pancakes with Soy Dipping Sauce

Till not too long ago, pancakes for me meant cheela. The flour/batter of the pancake would vary: if not besan then moong or sooji, but the template of ‘thick batter + a dash of seasoning’ was a constant.

A chance viewing of Maangchi’s vegetable pancake recipe brought about a shift in this template.

I learned that the composition of the pancake could be turned on its head. Here the vegetables reign, the batter merely holds the vegetables together. It took a couple of attempts to get the batter right in the absence of all-purpose flour.

Here’s the recipe of vegetable pancakes I used – with thanks to Maangchi!

You Need:

[per pancake]

For the batter:

• Atta (whole wheat flour) – 1/4 cup
• Semolina (rava/sooji) – 1/4 cup
• Salt – to taste
• Water – 1/3 cup (adjust according to fineness of the atta/sooji)

For cooking:

• Oil – 1 tablespoon

For the vegetables:

Use an assortment that gives 1.5 cups of vegetables – indicative list below:

• Capsicum red/yellow/green – ~1/4 cup of slices
• Cabbage – ~1/4 cup, shredded
• Red onion – ~1/4 cup of slices
• Sweet potato – 1.5-inch piece
• Radish – 1.5 inch piece
• Spring onions – 2 stalks
• Garlic – 1 clove
• Green chili – 1

For the dipping sauce:

• Soy sauce – 2 tablespoons
• Vinegar – 1 tablespoon
• Sugar – 1/3 teaspoon
• Toasted sesame seeds – 1/2 teaspoon
• Garlic – 1 clove, finely chopped
• Onion – 1 teaspoon, finely chopped
• Spring onion stalk – 1 teaspoon, finely chopped
• Fresh chili – 1, finely chopped

How To Make Vegetable Pancake:

1. Make the batter

[Preferably 7-8 hours before you make the pancake]

Sift together sooji, atta and salt. Pour in an equal amount of water. Mix to a smooth paste.

In the picture above: (right) dry flours – atta, sooji, salt; (left): batter – dry flours mixed with water.

Refrigerate till it’s time to cook the pancakes.

2. Prep the vegetables

Chop the vegetables into thick matchstick-sized pieces.

Pour the batter prepared in step 1 over the vegetables. Fold together.

3. Cook

Heat half a tablespoon of oil in a flat non-stick pan that’s at least 6 inches wide. Make sure that the oil coats the entire surface of the pan. Tip in the batter-covered vegetables into the pan. Flatten it out to form an even pancake.

Cook for 5-6 minutes on medium heat.

Check for browning at the edges and shake the pan slightly from this point on, to check the doneness of the side facing down.

When the side facing down is almost done, sprinkle some oil on the pancake’s surface. Use a wide spatula to nudge the pancake out and turn it over.

Alternate approaches for turning the pancake over:

• If you’re wary – with hands in protective gloves, place a heat-resistant metal or ceramic plate over the non-stick pan. With one swift motion, turn the pancake upside down from the pan onto the plate. The pancake would land on the plate cooked side up, uncooked side down. Now slide the pancake back into the pan as-is, with cooked side up, uncooked side down.

• If you’re daring – just flip!

Cook for another five minutes or till the side facing down has browned too.

Vegetable pancake is ready.

Serve the pancake hot along with soy dipping sauce.

Recipe follows…

4. Make the soy dipping sauce:

In a mixing bowl, pour in dark soy sauce and vinegar. Add to it finely chopped garlic, onion, spring onion stalk, chili and sugar.

Mix all the ingredients till the sugar dissolves. Stir in toasted sesame seeds.

Soy dipping sauce is ready to have with your vegetable pancakes!

Cut wedges of vegetable pancake and dip into the sauce before popping them in, or pour over a side of the pancake just before you’re preparing to eat it.

Notes:

Try other recipes too inspired by Asian cuisine: Thai potatoes with sesame seeds, sabudana coconut milk with mangoes, Chinese date and wolfberry tea.