Garlic Chive and Sesame Bread

bread you don't need an oven to make + shacha aioli!

I think it is a safe bet that my pau pau has never once turned on her oven. The range in my grandparent’s kitchen was always topped with big soup pots and a wok ready to be fired up, the oven was filled with more pots and pans - it essentially was just another cabinet. In my first cookbook, I wrote about how Chinese baking in the modern sense, like using an oven to make milk bread, is a relatively new thing. Ovens are not historically prevalent in Chinese home kitchens. Even my relatives who still live in Hong Kong don’t have ovens in their apartments, they are operating with a toaster oven at most. That is why steamed cakes and buns and skillet fried doughs are much more common. I thank the lack of ovens for the gifts that are char siu bao, malay cake, and this fluffy chive and sesame bread!

I truthfully turn on the oven almost every day for recipe testing and I also have an obsession with roasted Japanese sweet potatoes and a slight aversion to using my microwave. But you know, it’s nice to change things up every once in while! This big-round-fluffy-scallion-pancake-like thing is called a da bing which means flatbread. It has origins in Shanghai and is often eaten for breakfast. The dough is yeast risen to give it it’s light and fluffy texture. I included an option for adding sourdough discard, which gives the bread a great nutty texture. I’m always to find new ways to use up my discard. The bread is typically filled with scallions or green onions but I’m in the season where I’m all about Chinese garlic chives at the moment.

Not Your Average Chive

Chinese garlic chives are not like the typical chives you find at the grocery store, think the once you would add to ranch dressing or a baked potato, these are heartier in texture with a stronger garlic flavor. I’m using the flowering variety but you and also use the flat leaf garlic chives (no flower buds) or even substitute with green onions or garlic scapes, which are prevalent in markets in the spring!

Cooking Bread Without an Oven

I cooked my bread in a Le Creuset braiser, but you absolutely don’t have to. Any non-stick or cast iron pan with a fitted lid will do the trick. You’re essentially creating a concentrated bread oven with the pan and lid. I start off by warming up some oil in the pan over medium-low heat. It’s important to keep your temperature on the low side so that you don’t burn the crust of your bread before the center gets fully cooked. Confidently transfer the bread into your pan and cook until the underside has a nice lightly golden brown color. Then you’re going to add some water and cover the pan with a lid. The steam is going to help your bread fully cook. This is the same method you would do for making potstickers. Eventually the water evaporates but the oil still in the pan will re-crisp up your bread. Then flip the bread, add a little more oil if you think it needs it, and cover the pan back up with a lid to allow the bread to fully crispy on the bottom and cook through. In total, this process takes about 20 minutes - so 10 minutes on each side, but timing might differ based on your set up so just keep an eye on your bread and adjust the temp or time if needed!

Introducing you to Shacha Aioli

Before we get to the bread recipe I also wanted to share a little bonus recipe for the newest jar in my fridge. While snacking on the bread I discovered one of the greatest flavor combinations I’ve experienced: garlic chive and sesame bread + shacha aioli + pork floss = lift changing!

Aioli/Mayo and Shacha Sauce are some of my favorite condiments and it just made sense in my brain that they would be great combined. I was right. Shacha is a condiment made from dried seafood (like shrimp and scallops) and aromatics like garlic, shallots, and ginger. My Shacha Roast Chicken recipe from Chinese Enough is one of my favorite recipes of all time. For the aoili, I blended up eggs with avocado oil, lemon juice, my beloved shrimp paste, garlic, and ginger. In about 30 seconds I new I wanted to dip everything in this spread. Recipe is below if you’re a paid subscriber and if you’re interested in more ways to use up shrimp paste, I love the pasta below!

Garlic Chive and Sesame Bread

makes a 10-inch round flatbread