VEGETABLE AND PORK STEAMED BUNS
Rice is king in the Vietnamese kitchen, but wheat also plays a role in foods such as these steamed buns. A classic Viet riff on Chinese bao, the buns encase a hearty vegetable-and-meat mixture, with a creamy wedge of hard-boiled egg in the center. Traditional bao are made from a yeast-leavened dough, but many Vietnamese Americans leaven the dough with baking powder. This New World innovation is faster and the dough is easier to manipulate. The buns are also more stable in the steamer than the yeasted version, which can sometimes deflate during cooking. Viet delis sell soft ball-sized bánh bao, but I prefer more manageable baseball-sized ones. I use bleached all-purpose flour, which yields slightly lighter-colored buns than unbleached flour. Like all bao, these buns are great for breakfast, lunch, or a snack. They will keep in the refrigerator (stored in an airtight container) for a few days and are easily reheated, making them a great homemade fast food. For additional flavor, serve them with a simple dipping sauce of soy sauce and freshly cracked black pepper.
Yield makes sixteen 3-inch buns, to serve 8 generously
Number Of Ingredients 22
Steps:
- To make the filling, in a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, salt, white pepper, and water and stir to dissolve the sugar. Set this flavoring sauce aside. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes, or until soft and fragrant. Add the pork, breaking it into small pieces, and cook and stir for about 2 minutes, or until half done. Add the mushrooms, cabbage, carrot, and peas, stir to combine, and then pour in the flavoring sauce. Sauté for 5 to 6 minutes, or until the vegetables are cooked and only a little liquid remains. Add the Chinese sausage and Char Siu Pork and stir to combine. Add the cornstarch and stir for 1 minute to bind the filling. Transfer to a bowl and set aside, uncovered, to cool completely.
- To make the dough, in a bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, and baking powder. Make a well in the center, pour the oil and milk into the well, and use a rubber spatula to stir the ingredients to form a soft, ragged mass. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 1 to 2 minutes, or until it is a relatively smooth, yet slightly sticky ball. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rest for 1 hour.
- Fill the steamer pan halfway with water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Lower the heat until you are ready to steam.
- Have ready sixteen 3-inch squares of parchment paper. Remove the dough from the bowl, cut it in half, and then re-cover one-half with the inverted bowl while you work with other half. On your work surface, shape the dough into a log and cut into 8 equal pieces. Loosely cover 7 of the pieces with a dish towel to prevent drying. To make a bun, place a piece of dough, cut side down, on a lightly floured work surface and shape it into a disk. Imagine a quarter-sized circle in the center, what the Chinese call the belly of the wrapper. You want to roll out the disk into a flat, round wrapper that retains a thick belly, so that there won't be more dough on the bottom of the bun than on the top. With this in mind, start rolling out the disk from the center to the rim, keeping the belly 1/4 inch thick. (An Asian-style rolling pin, which is essentially a 1-inch wooden dowel, is ideal for this job.) Lift and rotate the dough frequently to make sure it doesn't stick to your work surface. Aim for a wrapper about 5 inches in diameter and 1/8 inch thick at the edge.
- Pick up the wrapper and hold it in a slightly cupped hand. Use your free hand to spoon a heaping tablespoon of the filling into the center of the wrapper. Gently press on the filling with the back of the spoon to create a well. Add a wedge of egg, curved white side up. Mound another tablespoon of filling on top. The wrapper will seem very full; your cupped hand should naturally close a little more to keep the bun's shape.
- To enclose the filling, use your free hand to pleat the rim of the wrapper. Pick up the rim of the dough circle between the tips of your thumb and index finger, stretching it a bit and pinching the dough together to form 1/4- to 1/2-inch pleats. Keep gathering and pleating the rim in an accordion pattern. As you pleat, use the thumb of your cupped hand to tuck the filling inside the wrapper. After you have pleated all around the rim, there will be a small fluted hole at the top. Twist and pinch it closed; if there is an excessive amount of dough, pinch some off and discard. Place the bun, pleated side down, on a parchment square. Repeat with the other dough pieces. Then cut and shape the remaining half of the dough for 8 more buns. Place as many buns in the steamer trays as possible, spaced 1 inch apart and 1 inch away from the edge where condensation collects. Leave the remaining buns out, covered, until a tray is available.
- Return the water in the steamer pan to a rolling boil. Loosely cover 1 of the filled trays with parchment or waxed paper to prevent drying. Place the other tray in the steamer, cover, and steam the buns for 20 minutes, or until they have puffed up and look dry. Turn off the heat and wait for the steam to subside before lifting the lid, and then lift it away from you carefully to avoid condensation dripping onto the buns. Remove the tray and use a metal spatula to transfer the buns, on the parchment, to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. Steam the second tray the same way. Put the remaining buns in the empty tray and repeat.
- Arrange the buns, still on the parchment, on a platter and serve. Remove the parchment before eating the buns out of hand.
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