sourdough discard sesame flatbread (taiwanese shaobing 燒餅)

crispy and studded with sesame seeds on the outside, soft and layered on the inside, this adaptation of a taiwanese breakfast favorite uses sourdough discard instead of yeast.

formula

dough

180 g all purpose flour
4 g sugar (1 tsp)
105 g warm to hot water
35 g sourdough starter discard (80% hydration)
13 g neutral oil (1 tbsp)
2 g salt (1/2 tsp)

oil paste

35 g neutral oil (2.5 tbsp)
30 g all purpose flour
5 g cornstarch

topping

toasted white sesame seeds
black sesame seeds (optional)

method

prepare dough

mix flour, sugar, and 100 g water together in a medium sized bowl until it forms a cohesive dough. it should be pretty stiff. cover and let rest for 30 minutes.
with wet hands, mix in the remaining water and dough ingredients. knead well until it forms a soft, smooth dough, about 5-10 minutes by hand.
cover and let rest on counter for at least 4 hours, and up to 12 hours.

prepare oil paste

sift flour and cornstarch together in a small bowl.
heat oil in a pan on medium heat until hot. stirring constantly, add the sifted mixture into the oil, until the paste is darkens slightly and is toasty smelling (mmmm), about 5-10 minutes.
the paste should be smooth and spreadable, and should have the approximate consistency of tahini. if it is clumping, add more oil. if it seems too thin, add a little more flour.
pour into a small bowl, and set aside to cool.

assemble

preheat oven to 425°F.
on a lightly floured surface, dump out your dough. flour your rolling pin, and roll out dough into a roughly 10 x 16 in rectangle.
orient the rectangle such that the long side is facing you, and the shorter sides are on your left and right.
leaving about 1/2 in at the top, spread the oil paste to cover the surface area of the rectangle. you could do this with a spatula or your fingers!
like you would a cinnamon roll or a scallion pancake, slowly roll the dough up. pinch the seam at the top to close.
use a bench knife to divide the roll into 6 even sections.

shape

take one chunk of dough. fold the dough so you can pinch the cut ends together, forming a seam. if it starts to come apart a little, no worries! repeat for each piece.
take your first piece and orient it such that the seam side is up and is pointed towards you. using your rolling pin, flatten the dough it into an oval. the seam should be perpendicular to the rolling pin.
then, create a little dough envelope by first folding the top third of the oval down, and then folding the bottom third of the oval up.
repeat this process with each piece of dough until you have 6 dough envelopes.
repeat this rolling and folding procedure a second time for each piece, making sure you are always rolling perpendicular to the seam and folding the seam side in.
cover and let rest for 5-10 minutes to let the dough relax. in the meantime, prepare your sesame seed topping and line a large 18x13 in baking sheet or two smaller cookie sheets with parchment paper.

bake

take a roll of dough and press the smooth side into the sesame seeds. if the dough doesn't feel sticky, you can first brush or spritz the surface of the dough with a little bit of water before pressing into the seeds.
with the sesame seed side facing up, roll the dough out into a rectangle about 5-6 in long, and 3 in wide. set the completed flatbread sesame-side face up onto the baking sheet.
repeat with each piece of dough. these don't really spread, so don't worry about putting them close together.
bake for about 12 minutes, until they start to get golden brown on top but before they turn fully golden.
let cool on cooling rack for a couple minutes before digging in. to fill, slice along the side, or cut open with scissors.