Corn Pancakes (玉米烙)

'Lok' Pancakes from Chaozhou.

Yumilao (玉米烙) is a corn pancake seen in the Chaozhao region of the Guangdong province.

The yumi (玉米) in yumilao refers to ‘corn’, but the lao ‘烙” is a bit more interesting. It refers to the pancakes of the Chaozhou region, which lean on specifically root vegetable starches for their batters. The most famous lao is likely haolao - oyster pancake - which is a favorite not just in Chaozhou, but in neighboring Fujian (and Taiwan) as well.

But that lao tradition doesn't stop there - besides oyster there's also corn pancake - our personal favorite. There's also taro, sweet potato, pumpkin, seafood, cucumber… basically anything you want you can turn it into a lao.

There’s two primary approaches here - the dry coating method and the batter method, and we’ll cover each in turn.

Dry Coating Method

• Corn, one ear.

• Seasoning:

  Sugar, 1 tbsp.

  Instant custard (吉士粉), 1 tbsp (optional).

• Tapioca starch (木薯粉) -or- sweet potato starch (红薯粉) -or- potato starch (土豆淀粉), ~60g. Or about ~9-10 tbsp.

• Oil, ~2 cups. For frying.

• Water, ~½ tbsp. For sprinkling.

Process:

Slice one ear of corn, rinse, then blanch for two minutes. Rinse to stop the cooking process, then toss in a strainer to let dry for ~5 minutes.

Add one tablespoon sugar and an optional one tablespoon instant custard to the blanched corn. Mix, then - one tablespoon at a time - add in ~60g (or 9-10 tbsp) of tapioca starch, sweet potato starch, or potato starch until everything is loose and coated. You might need a little more or a little less depending on how wet your corn is.

Two pans - one of them non-stick - over two burners. In one, heat ~2 cups of oil up to 200C and keep it around that temperature until you're ready to add it in with the pancake. In the non-stick pan, add the corn and pack it in. Use a spatula to press in the sides to form a nice pancake. Sprinkle ½ tbsp of water on. Then, swap the flame to high. Swirl the hot oil around the edges.

Flame still on high, fry the pancake for ~4 minutes until it floats, and the edges are ever so slightly golden brown. Remove, let it strain for a couple minutes.

Cut into eight pieces.

Batter Method

• Luffa gourd (丝瓜/秋瓜) or Zucchini (西葫芦), 1 large, ~350g.

• Toasted (or roasted) peanuts, 15g.

• Seasoning:

  Sugar, ¼ tsp.

  Fish sauce (鱼露), 1 tsp.

• Egg, 1. Whisked.

• Tapioca starch (木薯粉) or sweet potato starch (红薯粉) or potato starch (土豆淀粉), ~60g.

Process:

Slice one large luffa gourd or zucchini (~350g) into matchsticks, and roughly chop 15g of toasted or roasted peanuts. Whisk one egg until no stray strands of egg white remain.

Mix together the gourd, the peanuts, the seasoning - ¼ tsp sugar, 1 tsp fish sauce - one whisked egg, and ~60g of tapioca starch, sweet potato starch, or potato starch. Do not waste time before moving to the next step.

Flame on medium high, add 1 tbsp of oil to a non-stick pan. Add the batter and spread the pancake even.

Cook for three minutes on one side, flip, then go three minutes on the other. Garnish with cilantro, serve alongside some fish sauce to dip.