The Jianbing: A Chinese Galette

The Jianbing: A Chinese Galette from tim quijano on Vimeo.

When I was in high school, I was lucky to be able visit my sister while she was teaching English in Poitiers, France. Since this vist, the crêpes and galettes we had on that trip have lived in my dreams as some of the most delicious of simple snacks. The simplicity of the ingredients belies the art of crêpe-making; on top of a perfect batter, they require an excellent understanding of temperature and time. Needless to say, my attempts at home were never quite up to snuff.

Living in a terribly insulated Beijing hutong apartment, warm breakfast snacks are a wonderful thing to wake up to. I rediscovered my love for crêpes in Beijing–the jianbing (煎饼). The most exquisite incarnation of this Northern Chinese snack was made every morning in the bed of a tricycle from just after sunrise to about 10:30am, just a few minutes walk out my apartment door on Fangzhuanchang Hutong (方砖厂). Beijing residents: GO! I made the following video in honor of my favorite jianbing-maker.