Chinese scallion pancakes

Preparation

1. Place the flour in a bowl and mix in the salt. Add the hot water and mix to a smooth dough. If needed, add a little more hot water so that the dough comes together into a ball but is not wet.
2. Knead the dough for around 3 - 5 minutes then wrap in cling wrap/film and set aside to rest for around 30 minutes.
3. While the dough is resting, trim the white part and dark ends from the scallions then finely mince/chop the middle light and mid-green part for the filling and set aside. Separately, blend together the flour and oils into a smooth paste.
4. Mix together the ingredients for the dipping sauce and set aside. You'll need to mix a little more before serving as the sesame oil will likely separate a little.

Forming the pancakes

1. Once the dough has rested, divide it into 4 even pieces and roll each into a ball. Take one and set the others aside and cover them until needed.
2. Roll out the one piece of dough as thinly and large as possible. It can be helpful to roll on a silicone mat. You can make it a rectangle or circle, as the dough rolls.
3. Brush the top of the dough with a thin layer of the oil-flour paste then sprinkle over some scallions evenly over the top (use around 1 rounded tbsp).
4. Starting from one side, roll up the pancake with the scallions inside to form a relatively tight roll. Then, flatten the roll slightly with the seam on the top (this also helps push out the air). Take one end and roll it up in a coil, so that the seam ends up on the inside of the coil (see photos above and video). At the end, you can either just press the end against the coil or tuck it under. Set the coil aside while you repeat the same process with the rest of the dough and filling.
5. Once all the coiled pancakes are formed, flatten the coil side with your hand to spread it out a little then roll it out into a circle around 6 in (15cm) diameter. Don't worry if some air bubbles pop a little and pieces of scallion pop out, just tuck them back in.
6. Warm a thin layer of oil in a small skillet/frying pan over a medium heat then fry the pancakes for a minute or two either side until lightly brown over most of the pancake and cooked through. Repeat with rest, adding a little more oil as needed. Cut the pancakes into triangles (quarters or smaller, if you prefer) and serve warm. If can be good to bend them a little either before you cut or as you eat to help fluff up and separate the layers.