Youtiao is a deep-fried pastry of Chinese origin.
Also called a Chinese cruller or Chinese oil stick, youtiao is made from wheat-flour dough that is stretched into long strips and fried until golden brown. The two joined sections are usually pulled apart before eating, giving the pastry its familiar paired shape.
Youtiao is especially associated with breakfast in China. It is commonly served with rice congee, soy milk, or sweetened milk, and it can also be tucked into a shaobing flatbread or wrapped in a rice-flour roll. Its name literally refers to an “oil strip,” describing its appearance and cooking method.
A common mix-up is treating every regional version as a separate invention. Related fried doughs appear across East and Southeast Asia under names such as cakwe, cakoi, and pathongko, but these are local names or adaptations of the Chinese pastry. In Thailand, “pathongko” became the usual name through a historical naming confusion involving another dessert.