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Sekai Gohan
Martabak Manis: Thick Folded Peanut Pancake from Brunei Night Markets
Ingredients
| Ingredient | Amount | Role |
|---|---|---|
| All-purpose flour | 1¾ cups (225 g) | The structure of the batter |
| Cornstarch | 3 tbsp (23 g) | A crisp-tender, springy bite |
| Salt | ½ tsp | Seasons the batter |
| Granulated sugar | ¼ cup (50 g) | Sweetness in the batter |
| Egg | 1 | Binds the batter |
| Vanilla extract | ½ tsp | Aroma |
| Water, for the batter | 1¼ cups (300 ml) | Liquid for the batter |
| Water, for the leavening | ¼ cup (60 ml) | Dissolves the leaveners |
| Baking powder | ½ tsp | Bubbles |
| Baking soda | ½ tsp | Bubbles and browning |
| Granulated sugar, for sprinkling | 2 tbsp, or more | 1 tbsp per pancake, scattered in the pan to make the bubbles pop |
| Unsalted butter | 5 tbsp (66 g), or more | 2 tbsp per pancake for spreading, ½ tbsp per pancake for the top |
| Roasted peanuts, crushed | 1 cup (130 g), or more | Filling, half per pancake |
| Chocolate sprinkles | ¾ cup (120 g), or more | Filling, half per pancake |
| Sweetened condensed milk | Generously, to taste | Filling |
Steps
1Mix the batter and keep whisking
Sift the flour, cornstarch and salt into a large bowl. Add the sugar, the egg, the vanilla and the 1¼ cups (300 ml) of water, and whisk until combined. Then keep whisking for another 10 minutes; this long beating gives the pancake its chewy spring. Stop when the batter is smooth, pale and free of any lumps.
Ten minutes, by the clockIt feels like too long. Keep going anyway: the extended whisking is what turns a soft pancake into one with a springy, chewy crumb.
2Rest the batter and heat the pan
Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and leave it for at least 1 hour. Keep the baking powder and baking soda aside; they are not mixed in yet. As the rest ends, set the heavy 9½-inch (24 cm) nonstick pan over medium-low heat to warm through. The pan is ready when the whole base is evenly hot.
Heat the pan properlyAn underheated pan barely makes holes. Give it time to come up evenly over medium-low before the first pour.
3Add the leavening and pour
Dissolve the baking powder and baking soda in the ¼ cup (60 ml) of water and stir it into the rested batter until fully mixed. Pour half the batter into the hot pan straight away. Swirl the pan so the batter climbs all the way to the rim, which is what gives the edge its crisp frill.
Leavening goes in lastMix the baking powder and soda into the batter only when the pan is hot and you are about to pour. Their bubbles are what build the honeycomb, so they need to be fresh in the pan.
4Watch the bubbles and add the sugar
Leave the pancake alone and watch the surface. Bubbles rise and break, and the top turns into a honeycomb of open holes. When the pancake is about half cooked, scatter 1 tbsp of sugar evenly over the surface. The sugar should land on a top that is pitted all over with holes.
5Cover and cook until the top is dry
Put on the lid and turn the heat to low. Cook until the surface is no longer wet anywhere and the edge and underside are golden brown. Keep an eye on the base and lift the edge to check; it should brown, never burn. The pancake is done when the top is dry with the honeycomb set and the rim is crisp and golden.
6Halve, butter and fill
Slide the pancake onto a cutting board and cut it in half while it is still hot. Spread at least 2 tbsp of butter over the cut halves. Scatter half the peanuts and half the chocolate sprinkles over one half, then run condensed milk over generously. The butter should be melting down into the holes as you work.
7Fold, cut and make the second pancake
Lift the plain half onto the filled half. Spread ½ tbsp of butter over the top, and cut into 8 wedges. Pour the remaining batter into the hot pan and repeat from the swirl in step 3 through this step. You finish with two pancakes and 16 wedges, the filling showing in every cut face.