Steaming Pork Buns: Bamboo Steamer Secrets

Pork buns are a staple in Chinese cuisine and are often served as a snack or as an accompaniment to a main meal. The soft, airy texture and elasticity of the buns make them irresistible and perfect for various cooking applications. While pork buns are traditionally cooked using a bamboo steamer, there are alternative methods to cook them without one. This paragraph will discuss how to cook pork buns in a bamboo steamer, as well as some alternative methods for cooking steamed buns.

How to make the dough for pork buns

The dough for pork buns is soft, elastic, and easy to work with. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to make it:

Ingredients

• Active dry yeast powder
• Warm water
• Sugar
• Vegetable oil
• Plain flour (all-purpose)
• Cornflour/cornstarch
• Baking powder

Method

• Activate the yeast by mixing it with sugar and warm water in a small bowl. Set it aside for about 10 minutes until it becomes foamy.
• In a stand mixer bowl fitted with a dough hook, combine plain flour, cornflour, and sugar. Mix briefly to combine.
• Add the yeast mixture, oil, and remaining warm water to the dry ingredients. Mix on low speed for 3 minutes until a smooth ball of dough forms. The dough should be soft, elastic, and not too sticky. Adjust the consistency by adding a small amount of flour or water if needed.
• Cover the dough with cling wrap and place it in a warm, dry place for about 2 hours, or until it doubles in volume.
• After proofing, remove the cling wrap and sprinkle the dough with baking powder. Return it to the stand mixer and mix on low for 2 minutes.
• Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead it lightly to form a smooth round disc.

Now that your dough is ready, you can start making the buns! Roll the dough into an even log and cut it into pieces. Take one piece of dough, cover the rest to prevent drying, and roll it into a thin round, making the edges thinner. Place the dough in your hand and add the filling. Pinch and pleat the edges to seal the bun, then gather the pleats together and twist to close. Repeat this process until you have formed all the buns.

How to make the filling for pork buns

To make the filling for pork buns, you'll need ground pork, ginger, onion, wine, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, white pepper, sesame oil, and cornstarch.

Start by adding the ground meat to a large mixing bowl and stirring in 3 tablespoons of water until well incorporated. Preheat a wok or cast-iron pan until it starts to smoke lightly, then add 3 tablespoons of oil, along with the minced ginger and diced onion. Cook over medium heat until the onions soften.

Next, add the ground pork and turn up the heat, stirring to break up any large chunks. Cook until all the pork turns pale and opaque—there is no need to brown or crisp the meat.

Now, add the wine, dark soy sauce, sweet bean sauce, ground bean sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, white pepper, and sesame oil. With the heat on high, stir everything together until well combined. Taste the filling and adjust the seasoning if needed.

Cook for a couple of more minutes to cook off any remaining liquid. Then, stir in the cornstarch and water mixture, allowing everything to bubble together for 30 seconds to a minute. Turn off the heat and let the filling cool uncovered. Once the filling has cooled, mix in the chopped scallions.

How to assemble pork buns

To assemble pork buns, start by rolling out your dough into a thin round shape, making the edges thinner than the centre. The dough should be about 4.5 inches in diameter. Next, place the dough in the palm of your hand and add a heaping tablespoon of filling to the centre.

Now, you have the option to either pinch and pleat the edges of the dough or simply pinch the edges together to seal the bun. If you choose to pleat the dough, use one hand to hold the filling and dough, and the other hand to pleat the edges of the dough disk like an accordion. Make around 8 pleats around the edges, then gather the pleats together and pinch to seal. If you choose to simply seal the bun, just pinch the edges of the dough together tightly.

Finally, place the assembled bun on a small piece of parchment paper and put it directly onto your steaming rack. Repeat this process until all of your buns are assembled. Let the buns proof, covered, for another 15 minutes before steaming.

How to cook pork buns in a bamboo steamer

Ingredients

• 1 tsp active dry yeast powder
• 1/4 cup / 65 ml warm water
• 1 tbsp white sugar
• 1/2 cup /125 ml warm water
• 4 tbsp /70g white sugar
• 2 cups / 300g plain flour (all-purpose)
• 1 cup / 155g cornflour / cornstarch
• 1/4 cup / 65 ml vegetable oil
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup finely chopped white onion
• 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 1/2 tbsp oyster sauce (can sub Hoisin)
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp cornflour dissolved in 1 tbsp water
• 1 1/2 cups Chinese Barbecue Pork, diced

Method

• Activate the yeast by placing the yeast, sugar, and water in a small bowl. Mix and set aside for 10 minutes until it becomes foamy.
• Place flour, cornflour, and sugar in a stand mixer bowl fitted with a dough hook. Mix briefly to combine.
• Add the yeast mixture, oil, and water. Mix on low speed for 3 minutes until a smooth ball of dough forms. It should be soft and elastic, not sticky. Adjust with a touch of flour/water if required.
• Cover with cling wrap and place in a warm, dry place for 2 hours until it doubles in volume.
• Remove cling wrap, scatter over baking powder, and return to the stand mixer. Mix on low for 2 minutes.
• Turn the dough out onto a work surface, sprinkle with flour, and knead lightly to form a smooth round disc.
• Cut the dough into 4 pieces. Take one piece, roll into an even log, and cut into 3 pieces (so 12 pieces in total).
• Take one piece of dough, cover the rest with cling wrap or a tea towel.
• Roll into a 4.5" / 11 cm round, making the edges thinner.
• Place the dough in your hand, put 1 1/2 tbsp of filling in the centre, and pinch 8 pleats around the edges. Then, gather the pleats together, bringing them together to seal the bun at the top.
• Repeat with the remaining dough to make 12 buns in total.
• Cover the buns loosely with cling wrap and leave in a warm place for 15 minutes.
• Line a large bamboo steamer with parchment paper punctured with holes.
• Place 6 to 8 buns on the paper, cover with the steamer lid.
• Pour about 4 cm / 1.5 inches of water into a wok / pot (the steamer should not touch the water) and bring to a rapid simmer over medium-high heat.
• Place the steamer in the wok and cook for 12 minutes. Check the water level halfway through and top up if required.
• The buns are ready when they spring back when touched and have formed a smooth skin.
• Remove the steamer from the wok and serve warm!

Tips

• If you don't have a bamboo steamer, you can use a metal steamer, or even make your own using a bowl, plate, and wok.
• Make sure the bottom rim of the steamer is submerged in water at all times, or it will start to char.
• Don't let the floor of the steamer touch the water, or the buns will get drenched.
• If using a metal steamer, cover the lid with a kitchen towel to prevent condensation from dripping onto the buns.

How to cook pork buns without a bamboo steamer

If you don't have a bamboo steamer, you can still cook delicious pork buns at home. Here's a guide on how to do it:

Prepare the ingredients and the filling

Firstly, gather and prepare your ingredients for the dough and the filling. For the dough, you will need active dry yeast, sugar, warm water, plain flour or all-purpose flour, cornflour or cornstarch, vegetable oil, and baking powder. For the filling, you can use Chinese Barbecue Pork (Char Siu), which can be store-bought or homemade. If you're making it yourself, you'll need time to marinate the pork—at least 24 hours. You can also use other fillings such as chicken, beef, duck, or vegetables.

Make the dough

Activate the yeast by mixing it with sugar and warm water. Wait about 10 minutes until it becomes foamy. Then, in a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, add in the flour, cornflour/cornstarch, and sugar. Mix briefly, then add the yeast mixture, oil, and remaining water. Mix on low speed until a soft, elastic dough forms. Cover the dough and let it rest in a warm place for about 2 hours, or until it doubles in size.

Make the filling

If you're making your own Char Siu, marinate the pork in a mixture of soy sauce, oyster sauce or hoisin sauce, sesame oil, and other spices and flavours you like. Then, cook the pork until it's no longer pink. If you're using other fillings, cook them according to your preference. Let the filling cool before assembling the buns.

Assemble the buns

After the dough has proofed, turn it out onto a floured surface and knead for a couple of minutes to get rid of any air pockets. Cut the dough into pieces—the number of pieces will depend on how many buns you want to make and how much filling you plan to use in each. Roll each piece into a thin round, making the edges thinner than the centre. Place some filling in the centre of each dough round.

Pleat and seal the buns

This is the tricky part! Pleating the buns takes practice, but you can also simply pinch the edges of the dough around the filling and seal tightly. If you want to try pleating, hold the dough and filling in one hand, and use your other hand to pleat the edges like an accordion. Make about 8-15 pleats, gathering them together and sealing the bun at the top.

Prepare your steamer

If you don't have a bamboo steamer, you can use a metal steamer or even a pot or pan with a lid. You'll also need something to line the steamer with, such as parchment paper, cabbage leaves, or silicone/cloth liners.

Steam the buns

Arrange the buns on the parchment paper or liners, leaving some space between them as they will expand while steaming. Place the steamer basket(s) in the pot or pan, making sure the water doesn't touch the bottom of the basket(s). Bring the water to a simmer and steam the buns for about 12-15 minutes.

Serve and enjoy!

Once the buns are cooked, remove them from the steamer and serve warm. You can also store them in an airtight container and refrigerate or freeze for later. To reheat, simply microwave for a minute or two, or steam again for 5-8 minutes.

There you have it! Homemade pork buns, no bamboo steamer required.

Frequently asked questions