This winning combination of the savory bacon and pancakes with the refreshing salty sweet of the cured cucumbers.

Braised Bacon

Serves 6

3 pounds Slab Bacon (we like North Country)

3 cups chicken stock

2 ounces Smoked Maple Syrup (we recommend Sugar Bob’s Finest Kind)

2 ounces soy sauce

3 pieces star anise

4 cardamom pods, cracked

1 teaspoon black peppercorns

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

Method:             
Score the fat side of the bacon. In a large saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, toast all of the spices over low heat until aromatic. Add soy sauce, chicken stock and maple syrup. Nestle bacon into pan, skin side up - it should be about halfway covered with liquid.  Bring to a simmer and cover, letting meat cook for 3-4 hours on the stove top. Alternatively, you could also cook the bacon in a 350 degree oven.  Flip and baste occasionally being careful to not tear the meat. The bacon is ready once it is fork-tender. Remove from the liquid and let rest on a rack. Reduce remaining liquid until it is thick and has a nice sheen. Be careful to not over-reduce or it may become salty. Slice to desired thickness.

Cured Cucumbers

1 English cucumber, sliced ¼” thick

2 Lemon cucumbers, sliced ¼” thick

Method:

Place cucumbers in a bowl and season with 2 teaspoons smoked salt and 1 tablespoon sugar. Let sit in fridge for at least 1 hour before use.

Scallion Pancakes

Serves 6

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting work surface

1 cup boiling water

1/2 cup sesame seed oil

2 large bunches scallions, thinly sliced

Method:

Put the flour in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Turn the paddle on low and slowly stream in the boiling water until its fully mixed and the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and forms a ball.

Turn mixer off and shape the dough into a nicely rounded ball. Put back into mixing bowl and cover with a damp towel, and let sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes.

Cut dough into 3 even pieces and roll each piece into a ball. Flatten slightly with your hand, then roll out with a rolling pin. Brush the rolled-out dough with sesame oil and season generously with salt and pepper.

Roll the dough up like a cigar, then coil it into a tight spiral. Press down slightly on the spiral, and then roll out the dough again. Brush it with the sesame oil again, season with salt and pepper, and sprinkle with as many scallions as you think the dough can hold.

Roll the dough up again like a cigar and coil it and roll it flat one last time.

Repeat the above steps with each dough ball, and then heat up a skillet with some canola oil and place the pancake in the pan. Cook on both sides until golden brown then transfer to a paper towel to drain.

Season the pancake with salt and pepper one last time then cut into wedges and serve with the bacon alongside the cured cucumbers.