Xianbing

As a Beijing worker commented, at best a hamburger is the equivalent of xianbing, a type of Chinese pancake with meat inside, which no one would treat as a daily meal.

Niangao, Xianbing, Doufunao and Wandouhuang, all freshly made, are laid on the counter.

We also had sweet and spicy pine nut crispy fish (I devoured the head for the cheeks and eyes) and a cumin lamb quesadilla called xianbing, super-crunchy with an almost Mexican-tasting filling.

An Die An Niang This no-frills Shandong eatery at Chaoyang Park West Gate makes great down-home zhou (rice porridge), stuffed pies (xianbing) and some of the biggest baozi in town.

Field notes: Cousin to xianbing (餡餅), which are wider (palm-sized), flatter and often stuffed with meat, chives or eggplant.

Grain or bean salads, boiled dumplings, savory muffins and even Beijing snacks such as xianbing or shaobing are worth consideration.

…xianbing 餡餅 / Think of xianbing (literally “stuffed pancake”) as big, portable potstickers.[…]Xianbing are common throughout northern China, particularly in Chinese-Islamic communities, where fillings made from beef or lamb mixed with onion are common.

An inordinate number of street food legends begin with Emperor Such-and-Such sneaking away from the palace for a forbidden snack. Xianbing is no exception.[…]The tale of xianbing must be true, since it’s the only filled pancake in the Chinese universe of filled pancakes to earn the literal name xianbing, or “filled pancake.”[…]When he finally got up to the front, the aroma was so intoxicating that he bought up all of the xianbing.