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Steamed bao buns with pork close up
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5 from 2 votes

Steamed bao buns with pork

These steamed buns are a delicious combination of tender, flavorful pork and crunchy veg wrapped in a tender bao bun.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time1 hour
Course: Appetizer/Starter, Main Course
Cuisine: Chinese
Servings: 8 buns (serves 3-4)
Calories: 222kcal
Author: Caroline
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Ingredients

For pork

  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • ½ teaspoon Chinese five spice
  • 1 ½ tablespoon honey
  • 1 ½ tablespoon hoisin sauce
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon sunflower oil
  • 1 lb pork tenderloin

For quick pickled carrots

  • 2 carrots (medium)
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ tablespoon sugar
  • 2 tablespoon rice vinegar
  • ¼ cup water

For bao buns

  • 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon sugar (plus a pinch)
  • ⅓ cup warm water 80ml (note just above lukewarm, not boiling)
  • 1 ½ tablespoon milk
  • ½ teaspoon instant yeast
  • ½ tablespoon sunflower oil or vegetable oil
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder

To serve

  • 4 stems cilantro (approx)

Instructions

Marinading pork - done ahead (2 ½ hrs before eating/overnight)

  • Trim any silverskin from the pork; it would be a kind of white sinew on top of the meat.
  • Put the sugar, Chinese five spice, honey, oyster sauce, soy sauce, and oil in a freezer bag and mix together.
  • Place the pork in with the marinade, rub it all over, then seal up and refrigerate at least two hours. Overnight is good.

To make quick pickled carrots (can be done day ahead or while pork cooking)

  • Peel the carrots, then cut them julienne (in thin slices then cut the slices into small strip into medium-sized lengths). Put them in a bowl, and add the salt and sugar. Rub the salt and sugar into the carrots until you start to draw liquid and the carrots start to feel a bit more bendy. Add the vinegar and water, and leave to pickle slightly. You can make the carrots a day or two ahead of time.

To make bao buns - start approx 3hrs before eating

  • Mix together the flour and sugar. Mix warm water, milk, yeast, oil, and pinch of sugar in a jug then add to flour.
  • Form the mixture into a ball, adding a little more water if needed. Then, either knead it for around 10 minutes with a stand mixer or 5 minutes by hand.
  • Put the dough in a clean bowl, cover, and leave it to rise in a warm, draft-free place for around 90 minutes until it doubles in size.
  • Turn the dough out onto a clean surface, flatten it out, then sprinkle the baking powder over the top. Fold in the sides, then knead for around 5 minutes.
  • Roll the dough into a log and cut into 8 even pieces.
  • Form each piece into a ball, roll it out into an oval, and brush the top with oil. Fold over one side on top of the other, then put it on a lightly oiled piece of parchment paper (or a muffin liner) and put in a bamboo steamer.
  • Repeat with the rest of the dough balls. Make sure there is a little space between them in the steamer or hold back others on a baking sheet, covered, to steam in batches. Leave them to rise again, once again in a warm place, around 1 hour until doubled in size.
  • Prepare a pan large enough to hold the steamer basket over the top with around 1 inch/3cm of water at the bottom, bring it to a boil. Steam the bao buns for around 10 minutes until soft and fluffy - they will go slightly translucent.
  • Let them rest a minute, remove from paper, then open them up and fill.

To cook pork (during bao buns 2nd rise)

  • Preheat oven to 350F/175C. Remove the pork from fridge to come to room temperature.
  • Shake excess marinade from pork but do not discard the marinade. Place the pork on a rack over a baking sheet.
  • Put the remaining marinade in a small pan and bring to a simmer. Cook for around 3-5 minutes until it thickens a little.
  • Once oven is ready, bake the pork for approx 30 minutes until it reaches an internal temperature of 145F/63C, basting with some of the extra marinade half way through cooking.
  • Let the pork rest a couple minutes before slicing relatively thinly.
  • Make up the bao buns by filling each with some pickled carrots (drained), a few slices of pork and a couple cilantro leaves. I'd recommend brushing the inside top of the bun with some of the extra marinade for additional flavor.

Notes

You'll need an 8-9in (21-23cm) bamboo steamer to fit 3 or 4 buns in a layer. With a smaller size, you may only get 2 in at a time. You can also use a metal steamer, if that's what you have. With both, take care that the buns don't touch the steamer itself as they are likely to stick.

Nutrition

Calories: 222kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 37mg | Sodium: 363mg | Potassium: 333mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 2581IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 2mg
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