Recipe
Garlic chive pockets are our new snack addiction
Crispy on the outside and packed with garlicky goodness, these vegan garlic chive pockets (jiucai hezi) are a street-food classic made for home cooking.
By Yang Liu
Jiucai hezi are quite famous in the north of China. The dough is cut, rolled into wraps and usually filled with garlic chives (Chinese chives) and scrambled eggs. For the vegan version, I use scrambled tofu instead of egg and kala namak (Himalayan black salt) to add an eggy flavour.
These are commonly sold at small shops and street stands, alongside other savoury pastries. They’re typically enjoyed as a quick breakfast or snack on the go. They’re the perfect combination: affordable, filling and satisfying.
Garlic chives are widely used in China, where they are treated more like a vegetable than a herb.
PREPARATION TIME 1 hour
COOKING TIME 30 minutes
MAKES 8
Ingredients to make garlic chive pockets recipe
20 g (¾ oz) dried glass noodles
300 g (10½ oz) plain (all-purpose) wheat flour, plus extra for dusting
½ teaspoon salt
75 ml (2½ fl oz) canola (rapeseed) oil
150 g (5½ oz) semi-firm tofu
½ teaspoon kala namak (Himalayan black salt)
50 g (1¾ oz) garlic chives (Chinese chives), chopped
1 tablespoon sesame oil
½ teaspoon Chinese five-spice
How to make garlic chive pockets recipe
Soak the noodles in water for 10 minutes, then drain and chop.
Mix flour, salt and 150 ml (5 fl oz) of water in a large bowl and knead to form a dough. Cover with a damp tea towel (dish towel) and set aside to rest for 30 minutes.
Heat a wok over medium heat and, once hot, add 2 tablespoons of the canola oil. Add the tofu, breaking it up with a spatula, and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add kala namak, mix everything and stir-fry for 1–2 minutes.
Add garlic chives and noodles to a large bowl, then add the scrambled tofu, sesame oil and five-spice and mix well.
Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface into a long, thick, cylindrical length and cut it into 8 even portions.
Press a portion of dough flat with your palm and use a rolling pin to make it round and thin. Add about 2 tablespoons of the filling to the centre of the wrap (don’t overfill or it will be hard to close), then fold and seal carefully, like a dumpling. Repeat with remaining dough portions.
Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium heat until hot, then add half the remaining canola oil. Pan-fry four garlic chive pockets for 1–2 minutes. Add 100 ml (3½ fl oz) of hot water, cover and cook for a further 2–3 minutes. Uncover and cook until all the water has evaporated. Turn the chive pockets over and continue pan-frying them for about 2–3 minutes until they are golden and slightly crispy on both sides. Repeat with the remaining canola oil and pockets.
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This is an edited extract from Vegan Asian Street Food by Yang Liu, published by Hardie Grant Books. Available in stores from the 24th of November. Photography by Katharina Pinczolits.
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