Nanjing's Famous Duck Fat Shaobing (Yayou Shaobing, 鸭油烧饼)
Servings: 12 shaobing
The Mala Market
Ingredients
For the Dough
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 package (¼ ounce) dry yeast
- 2 cups lukewarm whole milk
For the Oil Crisp
- ¼ cup duck fat
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
For Filling
- 3 whole scallions, all parts, chopped finely
Instructions
Make the Dough
- Combine all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir just to bring all the ingredients together into a rough, shaggy dough (I like to use chopsticks). Cover and let the dough rest for 10 minutes; this helps the flour fully absorb the liquid and makes it easier to handle.
- After resting, knead the dough just until it’s smooth and no longer sticky, but do not overdevelop the gluten or the dough will be hard to shape and the shaobing will be tough.
- Cover and proof the dough in a warm spot (around 75℉) until it has just about doubled in size, around two hours.
Make the Oil Crisp
- While the dough is proofing, make the 油酥 “oil crisp” filling: Melt the duck fat in a saucepan over low heat, then remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the flour, salt and white pepper until you have a smooth paste.
Shape and Fill the Shaobing
- When the dough is ready, divide it into two halves. You’ll be working with one half at a time; keep the other half covered.
- Lightly knead one half of the dough just to get rid of air bubbles, again being careful not to overwork the dough. It should feel smooth and pliable, not sticky (which would mean underworked) nor super springy (overworked).
- Roll out the dough into a rectangle about 16 inches long, 10 inches wide and ⅛ inch thick, then spread half of the duck fat paste evenly over the entire surface of the dough. Sprinkle half of the chopped scallions over the surface, going right up to the edges. Starting with the long side, roll the sheet of dough into a tight spiral, forming a long log/rope shape.
- Cut the log/rope in half crosswise, then cut the halves crosswise into thirds, so that you have a total of 6 even sections. Take each section in your hands and use your fingers to pinch the open edges on one side closed, then repeat on the other side, so that you have an enclosed ball of dough.
- Hold each ball in your hands, with the pinched ends in your palms, and gently smoosh it into a disc, twisting it gently as you do so, so that you end up with a whorled, pudgy disc; repeat with all the balls.
- To multiply the layers in your shaobing, roll each disc into a rectangle about 8 inches by 3 inches, then letter-fold this rectangle and roll it out again lengthwise, so that you have your final shape: a rectangle that’s about 6 inches by 3 inches and ¼ inch thick. It’s OK to have some leakage during this step; some scallions will likely peek through the dough. Set your shaobing on an oiled baking sheet.
- Repeat steps 2–6 with the other half of the dough.
- When all your shaobing are formed, brush water onto the tops and sprinkle sesame seeds on them. Very lightly roll the rolling pin across the tops to encourage the sesame seeds to stick. Arrange the shaobing on the baking sheet so that there is 1 inch of space around each one. Let them rest at room temperature for another 15 minutes, to set them up for a higher rise in the oven.
Bake the Shaobing
- While the shaobing are resting, move your oven rack to the highest rung and preheat the oven to 425℉. Slide the sheet of shaobing onto the rack, then immediately turn the oven temperature down to 350℉. Bake for 20 minutes, until the shaobing feel light in your hand and sound hollow when you tap their bottoms. At this point, if you want additional browning on the tops, broil the shaobing for 1 minute. Serve and eat warm!
Notes
Once cooked, shaobing should be eaten within a day or two. Keep them in a zip-top bag in the fridge to maintain freshness and toast to reheat. Unbaked shaobing can be wrapped in plastic and kept in the freezer; you can cook them straight from frozen in the oven or toaster oven or in a covered frying pan.