Fun with Steamed Buns

I did it! I have finally convinced myself that I am able to make these Chinese steamed buns. I have been wanting to make these for ages but I don't seem to be able to find a cookbook that clearly explains how to go about making the doughs and steaming the buns. Most recipes simply state 'steam buns in steamer for XX mins', without giving the specific details. I am no good with anything that has got to do with the stove top, and so I really need clear instructions. Some recipes yield too many buns, I don't have to feed a village, so they have never been shorlisted in my to-do list.

Thanks to a recent trip to the library, I picked up a book by chance...the title "三杯面粉" (3 cups of flour) on the cover first caught my attention. A quick flip through the pages I was delighted to discover it was something that I have been looking for, forever! This book is all about Chinese pastries, snacks and buns, it even comes with a chapter on baking breads and simple cookies!

I check out the book right away and it took me no time to grasp the basic idea of bao-making. I plunged in and ended my procrastination!

I started off with the basic dough recipe to make buns with red bean paste as fillings...or what we call tau sar bao (豆沙包) over here in this part of the world. Making the dough is not very much different from making bread dough. You mix flour, sugar, yeast, baking powder, oil and water to form a dough. Although the dough was quite easy to knead by hand as it was not wet and sticky, I still took around 20mins or so to get it well kneaded. The recipe uses vegetable oil (I used canola oil) instead of the usual shortening which I thought is a healthier choice. The extra ingredient...baking powder, helps to leaven the dough to make the buns fluffy. As it is not stated whether double-acting baking powder is required, I used single-acting ones. Most recipes require the use of double-acting powder, but the usual baking powder I used appeared to work just as fine. The only thing I don't agree with this book is that the dough is to be left to proof for only 15mins. I did it my way and let it proof close to an hour till the dough doubled in size.

I followed the instructions to make a bunny bun by sniping off a pair of ears and a tiny tail with a pair of kitchen shears.When the buns were ready, my younger child came into the kitchen and exclaimed,"Cutie cats!"; then his brother came along and chided him, "What cats?! They are mice lah!" "Ummm...these are rabbits leh." I told them sheepishly ^_^'

With those short pointed ears, these buns do look more like some big fat cats. I found out later that it has got to do with the angle when holding the scissors to snip the ears, the scissors has to be positioned as close to the surface of the dough as possible in order to make a long snip.

I was quite satisfied with the texture of the buns. The inside was very soft and fluffy and I like it that it didn't stick to the roof of you mouth. The store-bought red bean paste is not too sweet, although I feel that the amount is too little :)

On my second attempt a few days later, I made these buns again...specially for my DH who was coming home. I gave up on making bunnies and tried my hands at making piggies instead.

I am not sure whether it was the steaming or the extra flour I dusted while shaping the dough, after steaming these piggies suffered from a major breakout...tiny little bumps developed all over the skin and there were very noticeable crater like dents on their heads ;'(

Anyway it was fun making these buns and they were certainly as delicious as the first batch I made.

I am dedicating this post to MH over at My Home Kitchen. I have to thank her for opening the doors to making Chinese buns. I was very inspired by the mouth-watering char siew baos she made. She has shared with me her recipes and also showed me how to turn my wok into a steamer by using a cheap steam rack. Without her regular prompting and nudging, I double I would ever make this step forward. Thank you MH!

If you happen to be like me, end the procrastination and give this a try. If I can make these, I am sure you can do even better!


Steamed Buns with Red Bean Paste

Ingredients:
(makes 12)
300g Hong Kong pau flour
3g baking powder
3g instant yeast
30g caster sugar
160ml water
15g vegetable oil

240g red bean paste

Method:

1. Sieve Hong Kong pau flour and baking powder into a mixing bowl. Add yeast, caster sugar and mix well.
2. Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture, add in water and mix to form a dough. Transfer dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead dough until it becomes smooth (about 5 mins). Knead in the vegetable oil and continue to knead for another 10-15 mins or until the dough becomes smooth and elastic.  Take a piece of dough  (about the size of a table tennis ball) and stretch it, you should be able to stretch it  to a fairly thin membrane without tearing off easily, if not continue to knead for another 5 to 10mins.
3. Roll dough into a smooth round, place in a lightly greased mixing bowl, cover with cling wrap and let it proof for about 1 hr or until it doubles in bulk 15mins. (Updated: it is not necessary to proof for 1 hour or until double in bulk for this stage. Just leave it to rest for 15 mins will do.)
4. Punch down the dough and give a few light kneading to release the trapped air bubbles. Divide the dough into 12 portions (about 40g each). Roll each portion into a smooth round.
5. Flatten each dough into a small disc with your palm or a small rolling pin, make the edges thinner and the centre portion thicker. Wrap each dough with 20g of red bean paste. Pinch and seal the seams. Place dough seam side down on a square piece of parchment paper. Cover loosely with cling wrap and leave buns to proof for 20-25 mins.
6. Place buns in a steamer* and space them apart so that they do not touch one another. Steam at medium to high heat for 12mins (make sure the water is already boiling before steaming). When ready, remove the lid carefully to prevent water from dripping over the buns. Remove immediately and serve warm. Keep any leftovers in fridge (covered with cling wrap or store in airtight containers) and re-steam till hot before serving.

Note: I placed the buns on a steam rack and steam them using my wok.

Recipe source: adapted from 三杯面粉 by 連愛卿