Steamed bao buns (包子), a complete guide

Step 1

Mix flour, yeast, sugar and oil in a bowl. Pour in water little by little while mixing.

Step 2

Combine and knead with your hands until a very smooth dough forms (see note 4).

Step 3

Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place until doubled in size (It will take between 40 minutes to 1.5 hours depending on the room temperature).

Step 4

Put pork, soy sauce, oyster sauce, salt and Sichuan pepper/Chinese five-spice in a mixing bowl.

Step 5

Swirl constantly while gradually adding water/stock until no more liquid can be seen.

Step 6

Brief stir fry grated carrot and onion in oil until softened. Add to the pork along with chopped coriander.

Step 7

Knead the dough until it goes back to its original size.

Step 8

Divide it into 12 equal portions. Roll each piece into a disk-like wrapper.

Step 9

Place some filling in the middle of a wrapper then fold into a bao shape.

Step 10

Leave all the assembled buns to rest for another 15 minutes or so.

Step 11

Place the buns (with parchment paper underneath each one) in the steamer basket (see note 5). Leave 2cm space between the buns and the side of the steamer.

Step 12

Start cooking with cold water over a high heat. Turn the heat down to medium-low when the water starts boiling.

Step 13

Cook for 15-18 minutes.

Step 14

Serve them warm, on their own or with some dipping sauce (find inspirations in my post Six dumpling sauces).

Step 15

You can freeze cooked buns. Leave to defrost in the fridge then steam for 8 minutes to warm up, or steam for 15 minutes without defrosting.