Food of the Month May 2019: Chinese Crepes from Little Wu Jianbing

While we know crepes as a popular dessert option, have you tried savoury crepes? Chinese crepes in particular are a savoury treat and a popular street food in Beijing called Jianbing. Thanks to Little Wu Jianbing, we can enjoy this delectable snack at the Old Bus Depot Markets.

“I really liked Chinese crepes when I was in China and I ate them a lot,” says Owner Miya Wu. “And when I first came back to Canberra, I couldn’t find this kind of food anywhere. That’s why I was thinking that I can just make the food and introduce it to Canberrans.”

As opposed to French crepes, Chinese crepes have quite different ingredients. Whereas the dessert crepes mix sugar in the batter, these savoury crepes are made from plain flour with a mix of mung bean flour and cornflour together. They don’t put any seasoning in the batter but can put other ingredients such as black sesame seeds.

“I can just make the food and introduce it to Canberrans”

Eggs aren’t mixed in the batter either, but can be added as a choice of filling. Fried wonton skins give add a crunchy texture. Together with the soybean paste, it can sum up to create the classic jianbing product. Other filling can be added on such as bacon, cheese, avocado, and roast beef not necessarily all together.

The crepes are served with different varieties depending on your choice of filling. The classic Chinese crepes are available at $10. Adding a choice of filling is an extra $1 to $2.

An addition to their menu are what’s called Youtiao. They’re deep fried savoury donuts that are a bit more akin to churros. Like Jianbing it’s a very popular street food in China with similar delicacies found in East and Southeast Asian cuisines.

Taste Chinese crepes at the Little Wu Jianbing stall on Sundays at the Old Bus Depot Markets. Miya welcomes your feedback any ideas you want to share for their menu. You can stay in touch with Little Wu Jianbing via their Facebook page @LittleWuJianbing.

Keep up with all the food in the Markets by following us on Facebook @OldBusDepotMarkets.