steamed bao buns

Learn how to make soft fluffy Chinese Steamed Buns. All the tips you need to know to make very smooth soft steamed buns with this recipe.

Soft Fluffy Chinese Steamed Buns Recipe (Baozi/Mantou)

gr all-purpose flour

60 gr Wheat starch (about 1/2 cup (unsifted),

gr Instant yeast (About 1 1/4 tsp, see note 1,2,3)

gr sugar (5 Tbsp, you can cut down on the sugar or add more to your taste)

Tbsp cooking oil

tsp salt

Start with 150 ml (about 2/3 cup) of milk

Place all of the flour, cornstarch/wheat starch/potato starch, instant yeast, sugar, salt, and oil in a mixing bowl. If you are using a stand mixer, use a dough hook attachment. Add cold milk or room temperature water. If I use cake flour, I need less liquid, but if I use combination of all-purpose flour and cornstarch, I need close to 200 ml of liquid. So, start with 150 ml and add more until you can form a dough. You will most likely need to add more milk/water if the dough is still a bit dry. I would rather you start with the lowest amount of liquid and add more teaspoon by teaspoon until the dough comes together and continue to knead for 5 minutes

Prepare the dough with a machine:

Place the all the flour, cornstarch/wheat starch, instant yeast, sugar, salt, and oil in a mixing bowl. Start with 150 ml of liquid, most likely you will need more liquid than called for in the recipe. Mix until you get a rough dough (it&#039;s not going to be smooth yet). Cover and rest it for 15 minutes. Then go back and knead it. You&#039;ll be surprised by how easier it is to knead it now. Knead until the dough is smooth and pliable, about 10-15 minutes. At any point during kneading, you can always stop and rest the dough if you find it hard to knead. This is to relax the gluten. Then go back to knead again and you&#039;ll be surprised by the difference it makes by just resting the dough before kneading again. It&#039;s easier for you too

Prepare the dough by hands:

Cover and rest the dough for 15 minutes. This is not to proof the dough. It shouldn&#039;t double in size. This is to relax the gluten for easier shaping and rolling the dough, then proceed to next step that&#039;s applicable to you

Rest the dough (to relax the gluten, not to proof the dough):

Divide the dough into 12 equal portions. Lightly dust the work surface with some flour. Work with one dough at a time. Knead the dough a few times to push out any air bubbles (if any). Flatten the dough with your palm and then use a rolling pin to roll it out to form a circle about 4-5 inches, with a slightly thicker middle part. This is to support the weight of the filling. Don&#039;t roll the dough too thin. If you roll the dough too thin, the filling might make the steamed buns &quot;wrinkle&quot; later when you steam. Place the filling at the center and then gather the sides to enclose the bun and pinch to seal. Flip the bun so the seam side is down now

Cup the dough with both palms and move the dough in a circular motion to shape it taller. This part is important so your steamed buns come out tall instead of spreading to the side after steaming. Repeat with the rest of the dough. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and proceed to proofing

If you are going to make steamed buns with filling:

Divide the dough into 12 equal portions. Lightly dust the work surface with some flour. Work with one dough at a time. Knead the dough a few times to push out any air bubbles (if any)

Then pull and tuck the dough so the seams are at the bottom and the surface is smooth and round. Roll the dough into a smooth round ball in between the palm of your hand or as I did in the video. REALLY make sure the dough is smooth.

Cup the dough with both palms and move the dough in a circular motion to shape it taller. This part is important so your steamed buns come out tall instead of spreading to the side after steaming

Place on a piece of parchment paper. Lightly dab the surface of the bun with some milk using your finger to smooth the surface. Loosely cover with clean kitchen towel to prevent drying. Work with another dough and do the same. Proceed to proofing after that

If you are just making plain steamed buns with no filling (round shape):

Roll the dough into a long log and use a dough cutter to cut into 8 equal portions using serrated knife is best so it won&#039;t squish the dough down. Lightly dab the surface of the bun with some milk using your finger to smooth the surface. Proceed to proofing step below

For mantou shape:

Let the dough rise at room temperature or at a warm place.  If it&#039;s winter where you are, you can use your oven &quot;bread proof&quot; function to let them proof in there, or simply turn on your oven to the lowest temperature and then turn off and after 15 minutes, place the shaped buns in there to let them proof. They won&#039;t necessarily double in size, but at least puff up to about 50% of the original size. This may take about 30 mins to 1 hour at a warm temperature. Don&#039;t go by the time however

For active dry yeast and fresh yeast, you may need a bit longer for it to proof compare to instant yeast. If you use more sugar in the recipe, you may need to proof a bit longer too. Do not overproof your dough however

How do you know if your buns have proofed ? They will be about 50% bigger than their original size AND when you lift them up, they should feel lighter. If not, let them proof a bit longer. They won&#039;t visually look bigger. Use a finger test too. When you gently push on the dough, it will leave an indentation but it will spring back slowly. This dough is perfectly proofed. If it springs back right away, it needs to be proofed a bit longer. If it never springs back, then you have over proofed the dough. Loosely cover them with a plastic wrap and put the overproofed buns in the fridge to slow down the proofing while waiting for the steamer

Proofing:

Most likely your steamer won&#039;t be able to accommodate steaming all buns at one go, unless you have something like this 3-tier food steamer (which I really love). You may need to steam in 2-3 batches, which means, the rest of the batches will sit longer and continue to proof while waiting for the steamer. Not good for the buns! Here&#039;s what you can do: Make sure to cover them with plastic wrap and then place them in the refrigerator to slow down the yeast activity or halt it all together until they are ready to be steamed

Bring the water in your steamer to a boil. Wrap the lid of your steamer with a kitchen towel to prevent moisture dripping back on the steamed buns as this will create &quot;burn&quot; spots

LOWER THE HEAT TO MEDIUM. Place the buns in there, leaving about 1-inch space in between. Cover with a lid but leaving it about 1/4-inch gap for some steam to escape. Steam on medium heat for 15 minutes for plain medium-large buns with no filling, 20 minutes for large buns with raw meat filling. This is especially important if you see that you have overproof the steamed buns (the steamed buns have doubled in size and they have widened to the side). As long as you steam them like this, the buns will not wrinkle and collapse later when you take them out from the steamer

After steaming, turn off the heat. DO NOT OPEN THE LID of the steamer. Let the buns sit there for 5 minutes or longer like this. The buns will not sink or wrinkle due to the sudden change in temperature

Steaming:

Immediately remove the buns to wire rack to let them cool down. This is to ensure the bottom of the steamed buns will not be wet and soggy

Cooling:

If you make extra and plan to store them, let the already steamed buns cooled down completely and then place them on a baking sheet, not touching each other, and then put the entire tray inside the freezer for about 1 hour. They will harden, but not completely frozen yet. Transfer to a freezer bag and they will not stick to each other anymore. Try not to keep for more than 1 month

Storing:

They can go straight from freezer to steamer when you ready to eat them. Steam on high heat for 5 minutes and they are as good as new

Reheating:

https://content.jwplatform.com/videos/3luE64It.mp4

Soft Fluffy Chinese Steamed Buns Recipe (Mantou)

Traditional Chinese steamed pork bun recipe (char siu bao). Each soft and tender bun is filled with sweet and savory barbecue pork. You don't have to leave home for some dim sum!

Steamed Pork Bun (Char Siu Bao)

barbecue pork (¼-inch dice, char siu)

oyster sauce

sugar

peanut oil

sesame oil

shallots (minced)

all-purpose flour

chicken stock

soy sauce

water (warm (105°F))

dry yeast

lard (or shortening)

whole milk (warm (105°F))

vegetable oil

baking powder (mixed with 1 ½ tablespoons water)

For the filling base heat the oil over medium heat and sauté the shallots 2 minutes or until light brown. Add the flour, stir to combine, and cook 1 minute.

Add the chicken stock, stir well, and cook 2 minutes. Add soy sauce and cook one minute.

Remove from heat and stir in cut pork and seasoning ingredients (oyster sauce, sugar, peanut oil, and sesame oil). Chill until very firm.

Filling Base

Dissolve sugar in warm water, sprinkle yeast over; let stand 2 to 3 minutes and then stir to mix well. Let set until it starts to foam, 10 minutes.

Sift flour and make well in the center. Whisk together the lard, sugar, yeast mixture, and milk. The fat will not completely dissolve into the liquid.

Combine liquid mixture with the flour; gradually incorporate the flour with the liquid to make the dough. Knead the dough for 10 minutes, sprinkling with flour as necessary.

Use the oil to grease the outside of the dough; cover and let rest in warm area 1 ½ hours or until double in size.

Punch dough down and flatten out to about ¾-inch thick. Spread the baking powder mixture evenly on the dough (this acts as a stabilizer). Roll the dough up and knead about 10 minutes, or until smooth and satiny. The dough should be firmer than regular white bread dough. Cover and let rest 30 minutes.

Dough

Divide the dough into four equal parts. Roll one piece by hand to form a rope approximately 9-inches long and 1 ¼-inch in diameter. Mark into 6 equal parts, 1 ½-inch long.

Holding the dough with one hand, grip at the first mark with the thumb and index finger of the other hand and tear away to break off a small piece. Continue breaking until you have 24 pieces.

Dough Breaking

Flatten each piece of dough with your palm. Using a rolling pin, roll each into a round disk, making a quarter turn with each roll.

Roll to leave the center thick; thinner edges are easier to pleat.

Dough Rolling

Place about 1 tablespoon of filling at the center of each dough round, flat-side up.

Gather the edges by first pleating counterclockwise, and then twisting to seal securely. Place the bun round-side up on a square piece of parchment paper (2.5 X 2.5 inches). Let buns rest, covered for at least 30 minutes.

Steam on high heat for 8 to 10 minutes. Do not uncover the steamer any time during the steaming. If a flat lid steamer is used, wrap the lid in a kitchen towel to prevent condensed steam from dripping on the buns.

Assembling

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGAFL345GKc

Traditional Chinese steamed pork bun recipe also called char siu bao. Each soft and tender bun is filled with sweet and savory barbecue pork. You don't have to leave home for delicious dim sum!
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✅ INGREDIENTS:
---Seasoning
• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 4 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon peanut oil
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
---Filling Base
• 4 tablespoons peanut oil
• 4 teaspoons shallots, minced
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 12 tablespoons chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
---Bun Dough
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• ¼ cup water
• 2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons lard, or shortening
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon baking powder

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Chinese Steamed Pork Bun Recipe

How to make the perfect, fluffy and soft steamed bao buns in Instant Pot with a video recipe. With lots of tricks and tips you can make the perfect bao buns in your own kitchen.

INSTANT POT BAO BUNS 3 WAYS

Electric stand mixer

Instant pot

Bambo steamer

Parchment paper or white large cupcake cases or wrappers

Long toothpick or bamboo skewers

plain flour

tbsp. caster sugar

yeast

baking powder

milk

rice vinegar

milliliters water

An easy recipe for fluffy steamed vegan bao buns filled with sticky jackfruit. This Asian inspired vegan dish is healthy and tasty. It's an instant crowd-pleaser and the perfect meal to serve your family and friends.

Vegan Jackfruit Bao Buns

all purpose flour

9.80 fl oz water

tsp caster sugar

salt

jackfruit*

ginger

garlic

tbsp olive oil(or sesame oil)

tbsp rice vinegar

brown sugar

mirin

In a bowl, mix

In a bowl, mix the flour, warm water, yeast, sugar and salt together.

Knead the flour until

Knead the flour until your dough becomes smooth and easy to handle.

Place the elastic dough

Place the elastic dough in a bowl and cover with a damp towel. Allow to proof for 40 minutes or until double in size.

In the meantime, make

In the meantime, make the sticky jackfruit filling. Remove jackfruit from the can and drain.

Place the jackfruit in

Place the jackfruit in a cloth and squeeze all the water out of it. Twist and squeeze as much as you can.

In a deep frying

In a deep frying pan heat up a little olive oil. Add the ginger and the garlic cloves and fry for 2-3 minutes until fragrant.

Add the jackfruit, soy

Add the jackfruit, soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar and mirin and mix.

Cook for 5-7 minutes

Cook for 5-7 minutes until the sauce has reduced. Mix often so the jackfruit doesn't stick to the pan. Set aside in a bowl to cool.

Line a steamer basket

Line a steamer basket with parchment paper.

When the bao dough

When the bao dough has risen, remove from the bowl and place onto a lightly flowered surface.

Press on the dough

Press on the dough to remove any pockets of air. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces.

Roll each piece into

Place some of the

Place some of the jackfruit in the centre of the disk and fold into a bao shape. I like mine smooth but you can make all sort of beautiful folds.

Place the assembled buns

Place the assembled buns into the steamer basket. Let them rise for 20 minutes.

Steam the buns for

Serve hot with dipping

Serve hot with dipping sauce on the side.

How to make Vegan Jackfruit Bao Buns

Steamed Bao Buns (Baozi, 包子) are amazing. A popular street food in Asia and now in the US and are such a fun change up to your bread game!

Steamed Bao Buns (using a bread machine)

Instant (Bread Machine yeast¹)

baking powder (double-acting)

whole warm milk²

Vegetable/olive oil (for brushing)

Place on ingredients together, according to your bread machine (mine has me putting the sugar, salt, milk, and baking powder in first. Then the Flour, and last the yeast).

Set to the dough setting, and let the machine do the rest.

Once the dough is done, roll it out onto your countertop/table. Knead the dough a couple of times to create a nice size ball. It shouldn&#8217;t be too sticky, but if it is, add a little flour as you kneed it until it is no longer too sticky. You should be able to work it with your hands without issues.

Weigh out the bao into 48-gram pieces, then roll them into balls (you might have to do a pinch at the bottom and roll).

Taking one at a time, using your rolling pin, roll out small circles about 4 inches (8 cm) in diameter.

Then brush olive oil onto one side and fold in half (the oil side is the inside of the fold).

Place onto the lined steamer basket. Repeat this process (roll circles, oil, fold, etc) until you fill the trays.

Get your water boiling, into your wok³ and carefully place your steamer basket into the water (I highly recommend using silicone oven mitts).

Take off the wok/pan (use silicone oven mitts for this step).

You can eat them right away, they will be HOT! Otherwise, lift the lid and give them a couple of minutes to cool.

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Top Tags

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