Jianbingguozi is famous street food in Tianjin and hailed as "one of China's most popular street breakfasts”. Tianjin people and Hebei people take it as breakfast. It consists of mung bean, eggs, and Youtiao (fried dough sticks) or crispy “dragons”, served with sweet bean sauce, diced green onion, and chili sauce (optional).^[1]

Jianbingguozi originated in the Northeast of China. Its history can be traced back 2,000 years to Shandong province during the Three Kingdoms period (220–280 AD). According to legends, Chancellor Zhuge Liang encountered the problem of feeding his soldiers after they lost their woks. He ordered the cooks to mix water with wheat flour to make batter, and then spread it on shields, or flat copper griddles over a flame. The dish raised the soldiers’ morale and helped them win the battle. After that, jianbingguozi was passed down through generations in Shandong province and gradually spread to different parts of China.^[2][3]

1. Pour a large spoonful of batter onto a round heated iron plate.

2. Spread the batter evenly with a small shovel.

4. Spread the eggs evenly with a shovel.

5 Take three grams of green onion and sprinkle it evenly on the cake.

6. Turn the pastry over with a shovel.

7. Apply a small brush to the sweet sauce.

8. Add the hot sauce as appropriate.

9. Take two pieces of tweezers or two pieces of fritters, cut or folded, and place them in the center of the cake.

10. Stack the dough around, wrap it, and put it in a plastic bag.^[4]

Jianbingguozi from Shandong province tastes crispy and harder as its batter is formed from the flour mixture that mainly contains coarse grains such as corn, sorghum and millet. In the old days, people had Shandong-style jianbingguozi mainly by rolling it with scallions or serving it with meat soup. Nowadays, the varieties of fillings are richer and differ according to one’s preference, for example, sweet potatoes, lettuce and pork are also used as fillings.^[5]

Shanxi jianbingguozi uses wheat flour^[6] and the practice is roughly the same as that of Tianjin jianbingguozi.