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Learn how to make this popular street food at home. The recipe makes the whole process of making Jian bing more approachable for home cooks.
What is jian bing guo zi?
Jian bing is Chinese super popular breakfast food originating in Tianjin. Chinese-style crepes fried with egg, garnished with black sesame seeds and scallion, and then brushed with some spicy, savory, and slightly sweet sauce, topped with some filling of choice such as luncheon meat, preserved mustard stems, etc and also include crispy crackers known as guobie. All wrapped up and ready to be munched. I love the layers of texture and the savory, spicy, and sweet in jian bing. The soft crepes and the crispy crackers, the savory, sweet, and spicy sauce! oh…so good!
Jian bing is widely sold everywhere in China and hardly anyone would make them at home. They are so affordable, incredibly tasty, and fill the tummy!!
Special ingredient
Traditional Tianjin jian bing crepe batter is made from mainly mung beans that have been ground with liquid. Nowadays though, the batter is made with a mixture of all-purpose flour (white flour), mung bean flour (NOT mung bean starch), and sometimes other grains such as millet are added. Some will grind whole mung beans and millet with liquid instead of using flour. If you are outside of China, you may not be able to easily source this flour.
Make your own mung bean flour
Mung beans or sometimes called green mung beans are widely available at Asian grocery stores. You can grind the mung bean into fine powder consistency using a high-speed blender.
Substitutions for mung bean flour
If you can’t get any mung bean flour or don’t want to make your own mung bean flour, I have tried store-bought roasted soybean flour (kinako), fine corn meal, and millet flour as a substitute and they all work great. You cannot use mung bean starch. Mung bean flour is made by grinding mung beans. Mung bean starch is made by extracting the starch from the beans. So, they are totally different things and cannot be used to replace one another.
A more approachable recipe
It may not be the most authentic way of making jian bing, but I have to make it with what I have and I can tell you it’s enough to satisfy that craving for jian bing.
1. You don’t need mung bean flour
You can substitute mung bean flour with other flour as I’ve mentioned above
2. You don’t need a special pan and crepe spreader
You can watch how the street vendors make jian bing at YouTube and you’ll see the large round cast-iron pan and also the crepe spreader they use to make jian bing. I do not own this and don’t plan to get them either. So I make jian bing using regular non-stick pan instead
3. I don’t make the crispy crackers (guobie) from scratch
I use ready-made thin wonton wrappers and it’s just as delicious and not to mention way easier
Tips for Success
- Consistency of the batter
The batter needs to be thin enough to be easily spread by swirling the pan. So you may need to adjust by adding a bit of liquid at a time and then test it by cooking on the pan. If you have difficulty spreading the batter, you need to add a bit more liquid - Preheat the pan over low heat
This is to make sure we can easily spread the batter. The pan should be just warm - Don’t use too much oil
Just smear a thin layer of oil with an absorbent paper towel to prevent sticking. If you use too much oil, the crepe ends up being pan-fried instead - Control the heat
Make sure the pan is not too hot when you first pour the batter. The batter will solidify instantly if the pan is too hot. Preheat over low heat and then pour the batter and swirl the pan to spread the batter across the pan evenly - Don’t add eggs too early
Wait until the bottom of the crepe has cooked and set before you add the egg. Otherwise, the crepe will tear when you flip it over to cook the other side
How to make jian bing guo zi at home
- For convenience, I use store-bought thin wonton wrappers/skin. Cut two slits in the middle. Preheat some oil over medium heat and then fry the wonton skin until crispy and golden brown on both sides. These can be made ahead and kept in an air-tight container for 2-3 days
- Combine all the dry ingredients and then gradually add the liquid and whisk until they are combined. Strain the batter to remove any lumps if necessary. The batter should be in a thin consistency. Every flour may have a slightly different liquid absorbent capacity. So you may need to adjust by adding more liquid if needed. You can test this by cooking one later and see if you need to add a bit more liquid to adjust
- I recommend resting the batter for about 15 minutes. This allows the flour to hydrate and the consistency will get a bit thicker after resting. Transfer the batter to a large measuring cup so it’s easier for you to pour. Alternatively you can always use a ladle too
- Crack all the eggs in a bowl and whisk to beat the eggs. Set aside. Preheat the non-stick pan over low heat. It’s important that your pan is not too hot because when you pour the batter on the pan it gets solidified too quickly that you can swirl the pan to spread the batter
- Rub a thin layer of oil on the pan using a paper towel. This is to prevent sticking. If you use too much oil, you end up frying the crepes and the crepes may tear when you flip over later. I lift the pan off the stove and another hand holding the cup of batter and slowly pour the batter (about 50-60 ml of batter for 8-inch pan seems reasonable) while swirling the pan to spread the batter to cover the surface of the pan. If the batter is too thick and won’t spread, you know that you may want to add a bit more liquid, one tablespoon at a time or your pan may be too hot is possibility too
- Once the batter is evenly spread, you can increase the heat to medium to let the crepes cook, otherwise the batter may start to get sticky if the pan is not hot enough
- If you can loosen the edges and see the bottom has dried and set, you can pour in 1/8 of the beaten egg. If you add the egg too early and the bottom of the crepe is not set yet, it will tear when you flip it over. Alternatively, you can crack in one egg per crepe. Then use a spatula to break the yolk and spread it on top of the crepe. I find it easier to use beaten eggs and pour instead
- Sprinkle black sesame seeds and chopped scallions while the egg is still wet. Cook for another 10 seconds and then gently flip over
- Spread the sauce using a pastry brush on the surface of the crepe.
- Add toppings of your choice and then break one to two pieces of crackers on top
- Fold the two sides over and then fold over and remove from the pan. Continue with the rest of the batter and filling. Make sure to give the batter a stir each time before you pour it as some flour may have settled to the bottom and the crepes won’t turn out right. Also make sure the pan is not too hot so you want to turn the heat back down to the lowest and wait for about 3 minutes before pouring the next batter
- Serve the jiang bing as soon as possible for the best result
To make ahead
You can pretty much have jian bing anytime you want with these make-ahead tips:
- You can prepare the crepe batter ahead, cover it, and keep it in the fridge for up to 24 hours. Mix the batter the night before and you can cook it by morning
- You can also cook the crepe ahead without the egg. Let them cool down completely. Stack them on top of each other. Cover tightly with a cling wrap or put in an air-tight container and store in the fridge for about 2 days max for the best result. When you ready to serve, take one crepe and then pour or crack an egg on top and follow the recipe instruction for the rest
Did you make this jian bing guo zi recipe?
I love it when you guys snap a photo and tag it to show me what you’ve made 🙂 Simply tag me @WhatToCookToday #WhatToCookToday on Instagram and I’ll be sure to stop by and take a peek for real!
Jian Bing Guo Zi (Chinese Breakfast Crepes)
Ingredients
Option 1:
- 60 gr all-purpose flour
- 40 gr mung bean flour or soy bean flour (kinako)
- 280 gr chicken or beef broth or more as needed, see notes
- ¼ tsp salt
Option 2:
- 80 gr all-purpose flour
- 40 gr millet flour
- 280 ml chicken or beef broth or more as needed
- ¼ tsp salt
Option 3:
- 80 gr all-purpose flour
- 40 gr fine cornmeal
- 190 ml chicken or beef broth or more as needed
- ¼ tsp salt
Sauce ingredients:
- 2 Tbsp Hoisin sauce
- 1 Tbsp sweet bean paste
- 1 tsp red fermented tofu
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 Tbsp chili paste of your choice I use lao gan ma chili paste
Crispy crackers:
- Thin wonton wrappers
- cooking oil
Toppings:
- Black sesame seeds
- 2 stalks green onion finely chopped
Filling:
- 4 large eggs beaten
Additional filling of your choice: (you can use whatever you want)
- Deli meat or luncheon meat
- Pickled mustard greens
Instructions
Things to prepare:
- I use a non-stick 8-inch pan. I find this size more manageable for me as I can easily flip the crepes over without tearing the crepes. If you use larger pan and having trouble flipping, just slide the crepes over from the pan to a plate first and then gently flip it back on the pan 🙂 Not professional, but it gets the job done!
- Combine all ingredients for the sauce. If it's a bit too thick, you can add a bit of water to loosen a bit so it's easier to spread the sauce later
Prepare crispy crackers:
- For convenience, I use store-bought thin wonton wrappers/skin. Cut two slits in the middle. Preheat some oil over medium heat and then fry the wonton skin until crispy and golden brown on both sides. These can be made ahead and kept in an air-tight container for 2-3 days
Prepare the batter:
- Since we don't own a crepe maker and spreader, the batter needs to be in a thin pourable consistency. So the consistency of the batter is different than the one you see sold on the street. Their batter is thicker and they use crepe spreader to spread on the pan
- Combine all the dry ingredients and then gradually add the liquid and whisk until they are combined. Strain the batter to remove any lumps if necessary. The batter should be in a thin consistency. Every flour may have a slightly different liquid absorbent capacity. So you may need to adjust by adding more liquid if needed. You can test this by cooking one later and see if you need to add a bit more liquid to adjust
- I recommend resting the batter for about 15 minutes. This allows the flour to hydrate and the consistency will get a bit thicker after resting.
- Transfer the batter to a large measuring cup so it's easier for you to pour. Alternatively you can always use a ladle too
- Crack all the eggs in a bowl and whisk to beat the eggs. Set aside
Cooking the crepes:
- Preheat the non-stick pan over low heat. It's important that your pan is not too hot because when you pour the batter on the pan it gets solidified too quickly that you can swirl the pan to spread the batter
- Rub a thin layer of oil on the pan using a paper towel. This is to prevent sticking. If you use too much oil, you end up frying the crepes and the crepes may tear when you flip over later. I lift the pan off the stove and another hand holding the cup of batter and slowly pour the batter (about 50-60 ml of batter for 8-inch pan seems reasonable) while swirling the pan to spread the batter to cover the surface of the pan. If the batter is too thick and won't spread, you know that you may want to add a bit more liquid, one tablespoon at a time or your pan may be too hot is possibility too
- Once the batter is evenly spread, you can increase the heat to medium to let the crepes cook, otherwise the batter may start to get sticky if the pan is not hot enough. If you can loosen the edges and see the bottom has dried and set, you can pour in 1/8 of the beaten egg. If you add the egg too early and the bottom of the crepe is not set yet, it will tear when you flip it over. Alternatively, you can crack in one egg per crepe. Then use a spatula to break the yolk and spread it on top of the crepe. I find it easier to use beaten eggs and pour instead. Sprinkle black sesame seeds and chopped scallions while the egg is still wet. Cook for another 10 seconds and then gently flip over
- Spread the sauce using a pastry brush on the surface of the crepe. Add toppings of your choice and then break one to two pieces of crackers on top. Fold the two sides over and then fold over and remove from the pan
- Continue with the rest of the batter and filling. Make sure to give the batter a stir each time before you pour it as some flour may have settled to the bottom and the crepes won't turn out right. Also make sure the pan is not too hot so you want to turn the heat back down to the lowest and wait for about 3 minutes before pouring the next batter
Serving:
- Serve the jiang bing as soon as possible for the best result
