Hua Juan

This steamed roll is yet another childhood favorite that I recently made. I'm not sure why it's taken so long since it is not at all difficult to make. These rolls are cooked similarly to the BBQ pork buns, but instead of making a bun with BBQ pork, the dough is rolled into a strip which is then rolled into a spiral. As a result, when eating, you can peel apart the layers and eat them layer by layer or just bite into it like a regular roll. I personally like peeling off the layers and eating it that way. However, you could also press a chopstick into the middle or make them more decorative. These rolls are like Chinese scallion pancakes, but in roll form. I used yeast in the dough this time, but you could also easily use self rising flour. Just substitute the self rising flour for the regular flour and omit the yeast. These rolls can be made a variety of different ways, but this time, I used a salty oil and flour mixture topped with green onions. Another variation is to mix the green onions into the dough. Although I have not used other flavorings, you could easily adapt the recipe and use other flavorings like rousong (肉鬆), ground meat, coconut, or anything else that will fit within the layers.

What other flavorings can you think of?

Hua Juan

by CJ Huang

Layered rolls with flavorful green onions inside.

Materials:

Mass	Weight	Volume	Number	Material	Notes
		3 cups		flour
		1-2 cups		water
		2 teaspoons		yeast	eliminate if using self-rising flour
		2 tablespoons		oil
				scallions, thinly sliced
				salt
				flour

Methods:

1. Mix yeast with 3 cups flour and then add 1 cup water, followed by 2 tablespoons oil.
2. Knead and continue to add water until a soft dough that is not sticky forms.
3. Cover the dough and allow it to double in volume.
4. While waiting for the dough to rise, make a slurry with flour, salt, and oil. The slurry should have the consistency of a thin or partially melted milkshake.
5. Once the dough has doubled, knead it briefly and roll it into a log with a diameter of approximately 1.5 inches.
6. Cut the log into approximately 2 inch segments, and roll each segment into a strip that is about 0.25-0.5 inches thick. Thinner layers will allow for more layers of flavor, but if the dough is too thin, it will not cook well.
7. Paint the slurry on top of the dough, and put the scallions on top.
8. Roll the dough into a cylinder (shown above), and place the seam facing down on a moist or wet coffee filter. I usually use a quarter of a coffee filter per roll. You can also press down in the middle with a chopstick or otherwise change the appearance, but I like mine simple.
9. Steam for about 10 minutes.