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Shao Bing, Chinese Sesame Flatbread Side Square
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5 from 1 vote

Shao Bing, Chinese Sesame Flatbread

These lightly crispy and savory shao bing are great for breakfast and go well with a wide variety of fillings. This flatbread is a simple bread with a soft, flaky interior and a toasty sesame exterior.
Prep Time45 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time1 hour
Course: Breakfast, Main Course
Cuisine: Chinese, Taiwanese
Keyword: chinese flatbread recipe, clay oven rolls, sesame flatbread, shao bing, shao bing recipe
Servings: 8 pieces
Calories: 219kcal

Ingredients

  • 300 g all-purpose flour 2.5 cups, see Note 3
  • 160 mL boiling water 2/3 cup
  • 60 mL cold water 1/4 cup
  • 1 tsp salt

Oil Roux

  • 45 g flour 6 tbsp
  • 38 g oil 3 tbsp oil

Topping

  • 3 tbsp sesame seeds
  • water

Instructions

Make the Dough

  • Add the salt and flour to a bowl. Add the boiling water and mix until well combined.
  • Add the cold water and knead the dough into one mass. The dough should be tacky, but not super sticky. Cover and let rest for 15 minutes.

Make the Roux

  • Add the flour and oil for the oil roux to a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir and cook for 10 minutes, until the roux becomes golden brown and smells toasty. The consistency of the roux should be thick.

Create the Layers

  • Knead the dough for one minute until smooth. Cover and let it rest for an additional 5-10 minutes to relax.
  • On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough into a roughly rectangle around 1/8" thick. (0.3 cm thick)
  • Generously spread on the oil roux in a thin layer across the entire surface of the dough.
  • Roll from the long side and pinch to seal shut. Cut the rolled dough into 8 pieces. Pinch the sides of the cut pieces shut.
  • (See post above for picture references) Take one piece of dough and orient it so that the cut edges are along the sides and the seam is facing upwards. Roll the dough out to about 5" in length and do a vertical tri-fold (like a letter). Note 1
  • Rotate the dough 90 degrees so that the cut ends are now the top and bottom edges. Repeat the process of flattening to a 5" length and completing a vertical trifold. Repeat with the remaining dough pieces.
  • Place the sesame seeds on a flat plate.
  • Lightly dampen the smooth side of a dough piece with some water and press that side into the sesame seeds. Flatten the dough into a 6" by 2" rectangle. Repeat with the remaining dough pieces

Bake the Dough

  • Bake the dough in a 450F oven for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy. Note 2
  • Cut open and stuff with youtiao (Chinese cruller), beef shank, an egg omelet, etc. See post above for more suggestions

Notes

  1. If the dough is difficult to roll out, let it rest for 5-10 minutes before proceeding. 
  2. Don't bake the shao bing for too long, or the exterior will be too tough to cut through.
  3. When measuring with cups, lightly spoon the flour into the measuring cups and level off the excess with a flat edge. This way, the cups measurement will most accurately match the grams measurement.