steam bun

Nikuman is Japanese steamed buns filled with delicious savory pork, shiitake mushroom, cabbage, and scallion. Learn how to make this favorite snack at home!

Nikuman (Steamed Pork Buns)

oz all-purpose flour

Tbsp sugar ((20 g; See Notes 2))

salt

tsp baking powder

instant yeast

Tbsp neutral-flavored oil (vegetable, canola, etc)

water ((See Notes 3))

shiitake mushrooms

water ((120 ml))

green onion/scallion

cabbage ((180 g))

¾ lb ground pork ((340 g))

ginger

tsp sugar

Tbsp sake

soy sauce

Tbsp sesame oil (roasted)

Tbsp potato starch/cornstarch

black pepper

Gather all the ingredients.

Put 11 oz flour, scant 2 Tbsp. sugar, ½ tsp. salt, 1 tsp. baking powder, 1 tsp. instant dry yeast and 1 Tbsp. oil in a large bowl. While mixing the mixture with chopsticks or a wooden spoon, slowly pour 160-170 ml water into the mixture and mix until incorporated.

Lightly dust your hand with flour to keep the dough from sticking too much. Use your hand to knead the dough, pressing it down and reshaping it. Form it into a ball.

Sprinkle the working surface with flour. Transfer the dough onto the surface and start kneading. This is how I knead. First, press the top half of the dough, pushing forward slightly. Then pull it back and fold it in half and press it forward again with the heel of your hand twice. Then turn the dough slightly and repeat this process for 10-15 minutes or until the dough becomes smooth and silky. Sprinkle the dough with a little bit of flour at a time to help decrease the stickiness.

Form the dough into a smooth, round shape, gently tucking loose ends underneath. Coat the bottom of the bowl with oil and place the dough in the bowl. Cover it with plastic wrap and put it in a warm place until the dough doubles in size, about 30-60 minutes.

While you’re waiting for the dough to rise, make the filling. First, soak the dried shiitake mushrooms in ½ cup water. Place something heavy on top so the whole shiitake will be submerged. Set aside for 10-15 minutes.

Thinly slice the scallion. Remove the tough core of the cabbage and chop into 1” (2.5 cm) pieces.

Sprinkle the chopped cabbage with 1 tsp. salt to draw out excess water.

Once shiitake mushrooms are hydrated, squeeze the liquid out, cut off the tough stem, and mince the mushroom tops.

In a large bowl, combine ground pork, scallion, and shiitake mushrooms. Squeeze the excess water out from the cabbage with your hands and add it into the bowl.

Grate ginger and add all the seasonings (1 tsp. sugar, 1 Tbsp. sake, 1 Tbsp. soy sauce, 1 Tbsp. sesame oil, 1 Tbsp. potato/corn starch, and freshly ground black pepper).

Knead the mixture well until it is well combined and looks pale and sticky. Set aside (or cover with plastic wrap and keep in the fridge) until the dough is ready.

Once the dough has doubled in size, dust the working surface with flour and divide the dough in half and then roll each piece of dough into a log. Cut each log into 5 even pieces and then cut each piece in half (See Note 4). Form each piece of dough into a ball and dust the dough balls with flour to avoid sticking to each other. Space each ball apart and cover loosely with a damp kitchen cloth to avoid drying out. Let them rest for 10 minutes.

Take a ball of dough and flatten it with your palm. Then roll it with a rolling pin into a round sheet. Here’s how I roll the dough. Hold the top of the dough with the left hand and use a rolling pin to roll out the dough with the right hand. You only need to roll up and down on the bottom half of the dough. After rolling 1-2 times, rotate the dough about 30 degrees with the left hand. Repeat this process until the dough becomes thin. The center of dough should be thicker than the edge.

Scoop 1½ Tbsp of filling (with a 1½ Tbsp. cookie scoop) and place in the center of the dough.

Hold the dough with the left hand and seal the bun using the right index finger and thumb. First, pick up a corner of the dough with your right index finger and thumb and pinch together (left picture). Without moving your thumb, use your right index finger to pick up the dough and pinch it with your thumb while rotating the dough clockwise with your left hand (right picture).

Repeat this process about 10-12 times (=10-12 pleats) until you seal the last part of the dough by pinching it tightly. Here are some tips: your left thumb should hold down the filling and use your left fingers to turn around the wrapper. Use your left index finger to help to pleat. Also, lift up the pinched pleats slightly while you make the new pleat so the filling stays inside the dough.

Once you finish sealing the last part of the dough, twist the pleats further with your right index finger and thumb to maintain a tight seal. If you’re left-handed, reverse the directions.

Easy Alternative Option: Wrap the filling by bringing the dough up around the meat to the top, forming little pleats with the excess dough, then slightly twisting the dough to close it and pinching it firmly to join the edges.

Place the bun on a piece of parchment paper that fits the bun (for small size, 3” x 3”). Cover the finished buns with plastic wrap and repeat this process with the rest of the dough. Let the buns rest for 20 minutes.

Bring water to boil and set a steamer. Once the water is boiling, place the buns and parchment paper in the steamer tray leaving about 2” between each bun (buns will get larger while being steamed). Close the lid and steam over high heat for 10 minutes (10 for small buns, 13 for medium, 15 for big). If you use a regular pot for steaming, wrap the lid with a kitchen cloth to prevent the condensation (formed on the lid) from dripping onto the buns. Enjoy immediately.

The buns keep well in the fridge till the next day and freeze well after steaming. Wrap them in plastic wrap and then pack them in freezer bags (I suggest to consume in 1 week). To reheat, steam frozen buns for a couple of minutes.

Making these soft, light, spongy Japanese steamed cake (Mushi-pan) is surprisingly easy. You can enjoy them as a healthy breakfast or after-school snack. &nbsp; Choose savory or sweet based on the ingredients you use.

Steamed Cake

all-purpose flour (plain flour)

egg (50 g w/o shell)

Tbsp milk

Tbsp sugar

Tbsp neutral-flavored oil (vegetable, rice bran, canola, etc)

corn

cheese

½ Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

Tbsp chocolate chips

Cover the lid with a kitchen towel to prevent condensation (please don’t skip!). Fill a large frying pan with water about ½ inch (1.3 cm) deep. Cover the pan with the lid and slowly bring water to a boil. STEAMER: You can also use a regular steamer, but the cooking time will be slightly longer than my method here. Please read the storage and reheating information at the end of the recipe.

Gather all the ingredients. You will also need 4 6-oz ramekins and cupcake liners.

In a medium bowl, combine all-purpose flour and baking powder and whisk well to combine (shortcut for sifting).

In a small bowl, whisk the egg, milk, sugar, and vegetable oil together until combined and sugar is dissolved.

Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture and mix until just combined and smooth. Do not over mix.

Put a cupcake liner in glass ramekins and divide the batter into the cupcake liners.

Place the glass ramekins in the boiling water and cook covered on the lowest heat for 8 minutes.

They&#039;re done when a skewer inserted comes out clean without wet batter.  Turn off the heat and remove the ramekins from the pan and let them cool on a wire rack.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

For Basic Steamed Cake

Add corn and cheese and mix until combined.  Put a cupcake liner in glass ramekins and divide the batter into the cupcake liners.

Place the glass ramekins in the boiling water and cook covered on the lowest heat for 12-13 minutes.  They're done when a skewer inserted comes out clean without wet batter.

Turn off the heat and remove the ramekins from the pan and let them cool on a wire rack.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

For Corn &amp; Cheese Steamed Cake

In a medium bowl, combine all-purpose flour, baking powder and cocoa powder, and whisk well to combine (shortcut for sifting).

Add chocolate chips and mix until combined.  Put a cupcake liner in glass ramekins and divide the batter into the cupcake liners.

Place the glass ramekins in the boiling water and cook covered on the lowest heat for 8 minutes.  They&#039;re done when a skewer inserted comes out clean without wet batter.  Turn off the heat and remove the ramekins from the pan and let them cool on a wire rack.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

For Double Chocolate Steamed Cake

You can store the steamed cakes in the airtight container for up to 2-3 days or freeze them for up to 1 month. You can reheat the steamed cake with one of 2 methods. 1) Cover the steamed cake with a damp paper towel and reheat in the microwave (but be careful not to overheat; it&#039;ll become very hard). If you reheat the frozen steamed cake, defrost first before microwaving. 2) Use the same steaming method above or a steamer or to reheat refrigerated/frozen steamed cake till warm.

To Store &amp; Reheat

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Nikuman (Steamed Pork Buns)

Steamed Cake

Top 2 steam bun recipes from across the web

The most viewed steam bun recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Nikuman (Steamed Pork Buns)

Steamed Cake

The most viewed steam bun recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine