Hello and Nyob Zoo Foodies!

STEAM BUNS! One of my guilty pleasures because one is never enough! There’s so many ways to make steam buns and so many versions all over the world. In Hmong, we like to call these Kas Las Paus, galabao and in Lao, baozi/mantou in Mandarin, Bánh Bao in Vietnamese and so on. This version is made with a yeasted dough unlike my previous recipe which only uses baking powder. It’s so fluffy, soft, and doesn’t stick to the roof of your mouth. The textures pairs perfectly with the savory filling. The filling is made with pork, some wood-ear mushrooms, onions, and seasoned perfectly just the way I like it. Add a slice of Chinese sausage and a piece of hard boil egg inside for some added texture and flavor. This version steam buns is common in Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. This one is worth making so I hope you can give it a try.

Happy Cooking! 🙂

Main Ingredients

The dough: This is a yeasted dough with baking powder also added for more leavening. It’s soft, fluffy, slightly sweet and also chewy, and really good paired with the savory pork filling.

This recipe calls for RED LOTUS SPECIAL FLOUR: This is a indeed a special flour as it creates a super soft steam bun. The flour is very fine and soft, which results in a much softer dough. Pretty much similar to the qualities of cake flour. This flour is available online or check your local Thai, Vietnamese, or any big Asian grocery stores.
Bloom the yeast to get it activated before adding in the other dry ingredients. This will insure your yeast is working so you can actually have a risen dough 🙂 Mix the dough in a mixer with a hook attachment for 10 minutes. It should be smooth after mixing.
Place it into a oil spray bowl, cover well with plastic wrap and allow it to proof until it has doubled in size. Usually 1 hr up to 1.5 hrs.
Make the pork filling: The filling can be made with any protein of your liking. Pork is the most common. Mix and individually portioned the filling into 12 equal parts.
Prepare hard-boil eggs and slices of Chinese sausages
After the dough has proof and doubled in size, portion it out
Individually portion them into 12 equal parts Roll and round them out Let it proof again before flattening out with a rolling pin. When rolling them flat, make sure to keep the center a little thicker than the outside. This will help even out the dough as it steams with all the filling etc.
Fill and crimp the dough and place it on parchment paper
Let it proof inside the steamer for 30 minutes and then steam

NOTE: After steaming for 20. Turn off the heat and allow it to sit for 5 minutes before opening the lid. If you open the lid instantly, the dough may collapse. So leave it on for that 5 minutes.
Enjoy while they’re warm. The dough is a lot softer and the filling a still juicy when eaten warm. If you have any leftovers, let it cool before wrapping it in plastic wrap. It can stay in the fridge for 4-5 days or in the freezer for 3 month. Just take them out, reheat them in the microwave or steam it again when you want to enjoy them.
Enjoy!

-Cindy Her (C.HerCreations)

Steam Buns w/ Pork Filling

This version is made with a yeasted dough and filled with a savory pork filling. It's so fluffy, soft, and doesn't stick to the roof of your mouth.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Course Appetizer, Main Course, Snack

Cuisine Chinese, Hmong, Lao, thai, Vietnamese

Servings 12 each

Equipment

• 12 parchment paper squares
• 1 Steamer

Ingredients

  

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For the dough

• 230 ml warm water (100'F to 115'F water works best)
• 1 Tbsp yeast (13g)
• 1 Tbsp sugar (13g)
• 425 grams Red Lotus Special Flour
• 2 tsp double acting baking powder (7g)
• 1/4 cup sugar (55g)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 Tbsp vegetable oil (55g)

For the filling

• 1 lb ground pork (57g)
• 1/3 cup chopped wood-ear mushrooms (57g)
• 1/2 cup diced yellow onion (148g)
• 1/2 cup sliced green onion (55g)
• 1 tsp fish sauce (6.5g)
• 1 Tbsp oyster sauce (26g)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground black pepper or white pepper (4g)
• 2 tsp sesame oil (9g) [optional: If you don't like the flavor of sesame oil you can omit]

Other ingredients

• 3 whole boiled eggs (quartered)
• 3 links Chinese sausage (sliced)

Instructions

 

For the dough

• Place the yeast, 1 Tbsp sugar, and warm water into your mixing bowl. Let it sit for 5 minutes to allow the yeast to activate and bloom.
• Then add in the flour, baking powder, salt, & 1/4 cup sugar to the yeast mixture.
• If you have a KitchenAid or dough mixer, mix the dough with a hook attachment until you get a shaggy dough consistency. Then slowly add in the oil.
• Mix the dough for at. least 10 minutes on medium low. After 10 minutes, the dough should be nice and smooth. If you don't have a dough mixer, you can also do it by hand. Knead it for 10 minutes until you get a smooth dough. Remove the dough and finish kneading it on your counter surface to get a smooth rounded ball. Spray either your mixing bowl or a big bowl with cooking oil or brush with vegetable oil and place the dough in. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise for at least 1 hr to 1.5 hrs or until it has doubled in size. I like to place the dough in my oven with the lights on to let it proof. DO NOT TURN OVEN HEAT ON just the lights on to help give some humidity so that the dough can rise if you live in a colder region.
• After 1 to 1.5 hrs, remove the dough and divide them into 12 equal balls. I weighed each ball to about 64 grams (64-65grams is okay since you will have a little bit of dough leftover). For each portion, tuck and roll to get a smooth surfaced ball. Cover with a damp towel and let it rest for 10 minutes before rolling them out.
• After the dough balls have rested for 10 minutes, it's ready to roll out flat. With a rolling pin, roll out each ball flat big enough to be able to fold and cover the filling. When rolling the dough, make sure the middle part is thicker than the outer parts. Roll the outer parts a little bit thinner so you can be able to cover the filling and allow the bottom to be thick enough to support the filling. Since we're folding most of the outer part of the dough to the center, it's best to have it be thinner so when it meets, it'll even out in thickness with the bottom.

For the filling

• Mix everything into a bowl and portion out into 12 equal parts. I used an ice cream scooper to measure each portion. Set aside or place it in the fridge until you're ready to use it.
• Have ready 3 hard boil eggs peeled and cut into quarters and as much Chinese sausages cut into slices

To finish

• Place the filling, egg slice, and a few slices of Chinese sausage into the center of the dough and crimp the sides around the filling until all the dough covers the filling. Seal the top and then place it on the square parchment paper. Repeat until all the buns are filled.
• Place the buns into your steamer and cover. Let it rest and allow it to proof for at least 30 minutes before steaming. After 30 minutes, place it over boiling water and let it steam for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, turn off the heat and let it sit for 5 minutes with the lid still on. Lifting the lid instantly will cause your buns to deflate, so wait 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, remove the buns and enjoy while they're still warm! They're soft and best warm.
• If you have leftovers, cool it, plastic wrap it, and place it in the freezer. Rewarm it by steaming again or microwaving it. It can keep in the freezer for a good 3 month or in the fridge for 4-5 days.

Notes

The filling can be made with chicken if you don't like pork.

Keyword steam bun, steam buns

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