Shao bing are small flatbreads that the vendor rolls out with either a little sugar or chili paste inside and usually sesame on the outside. They are freshly baked in a hollow oven, a kind of portable tandoor. The oven makes them crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and they are a perfect bite in the mornings or in colder weather. My neighborhood shao bing vendor sets up shop in the mornings only, but around busier areas of Chengdu like Chun Xi road you can find shao bing all day.
Some street foods can be fantastic from one vendor and inedible from another, but shao bing are among the most consistently good sidewalk snacks as long as they are fresh. The vendor asks ji ge, how many, and if you want tian de (sweet) or xian de (savoury). I love both kinds. They cost half a yuan, or about eight cents each.
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8 comments:
(sigh) Sounds wonderful. Puts me in mind of cinnamon sugar pastry sticks. And eight cents is pretty reasonable. It sounds like it is cheaper than cooking for yourself.
Yep, this is the main reason that fewer recipes are being posted now - I am not cooking as often and when I do cook, it is often something completely new and is taking a few tries to get right. My current project is figuring out rabbit, which is cheaper than chicken.
What is it made from? Looks wonderful.
basic, wheat flour dough. The vendor has little bowls of sugar and chili paste and rolls them out. They are removed from the oven with a big hook.
I will bookmark your recipes. Have you tried balut? It seems like an inexpensive vendor choice. I would love to read of your experience with it. You do like eggs, right?
Can you find balut in western China? I thought it was a southeast asian thing. I haven't seen it nor tried it here, though I have friends back in Canada who like it.
Do you know where one could get a recipe? I have tried making these at home, and they never come out right.
ah... i missed shaobing. had a taste of it 4 years ago when i was in wuhan. delicious when its hot and eaten on winter... hmmm i like "tian" i often say "bu yao, la jao"..hehehe.
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