This homey pancake—simply lots of thinly sliced, finely chopped, or shredded vegetables held together by eggs and strands of noodles—is a great thing to make for lunch, supper, appetizer, or snack. It’s so full of vegetables that it won’t hold together like an omelet (less eggy), but that’s part of what makes it so good. Our Simplest Sauce is more delicious than you might guess.
When you’re scrounging around in your refrigerator and find a couple of baby bok choy, the last inner stalks of a head of celery, an ear of corn, or one carrot, don’t keep passing them by until they’re fit only for the compost pile, just turn to this recipe. Other vegetables are also delicious: mushrooms, spinach, broccoli, cabbage, red or green bell peppers, carrots, zucchini, and bean sprouts. Use about 2½ cups of finely sliced, chopped, or shredded vegetables total.
Yields one 10- or 12-inch pancake
Serves 2 to 4
Time: 35 minutes
3 ounces Korean sweet potato vermicelli* or other Asian noodles (1 cup cooked)
4 large eggs
¼ teaspoon salt
⅓ cup thinly sliced scallions or chopped fresh chives
⅓ cup thinly sliced celery
1 cup fresh corn kernels or thawed frozen corn kernels
1 cup thinly sliced yu choy** or baby bok choy leaves and stems
¼ cup pure maple syrup
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
¼ cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon olive oil
Sliced scallions
*Korean sweet potato noodles are translucent with a unique texture—pleasant, light, and springy. They’re always used in the Korean stir-fry dish, Jap Chae. Dang-myeon in Korean, sometimes called glass noodles in English, they’re made from sweet potato starch.
**Yu choy is a flowering brassica with flat leaves, slender stalks, and small yellow flowers, usually picked when 9 to 12 inches long. Its flavor is fresh and mild, a little grassy.
Cook the noodles according to the package directions. Drain and set aside to cool.
In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs until evenly colored. Mound the cool cooked noodles on a cutting board and cut every 2 inches or so, for pieces 2 to 4 inches long. Add the noodles, salt, scallions, celery, corn, and yu choy to the bowl and stir well.
Make the sauce: In a small bowl, mix together the maple syrup, vinegar, and soy sauce. Set aside.
Warm the olive oil in a 10- or 12-inch skillet on medium heat. Pour the egg-noodle-vegetable mixture into the skillet and spread it out evenly. After about 4 minutes, when the bottom is beginning to brown, cut the pancake into wedges and flip each over. The pancake is full of veggies and some may break loose at the edges—that’s OK.
When the pancake is cooked through and both sides have browned, serve the wedges straight from the skillet. Pass the sauce at the table. Garnish with sliced scallions.
Hot-and-Sour Mushroom Soup or Chilled Pineapple-Mango Soup nicely complements this dish.