Cooking 101: Char siu bao

Daniel Pfyl, hospitality management lecturer at Otago Polytechnic, shares some professional techniques to make your cooking easier.

In this series he shares recipes from a recent trip to his family in Switzerland, by way of Hong Kong.

Char siu bao from Hong Kong (steamed pork buns)
Serves 6-8

For the buns:
cup white sugar
1 cups lukewarm water
1 Tbsp active dry yeast
6 cups flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
2 Tbsp shortening such as butter, lard or duck fat

F or the filling:
500g finely chopped roast pork
1 Tbsp white sugar
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp oyster sauce
1 cup water
2 Tbsp cornflour
2 Tbsp water
1 tsp sesame oil tsp ground white pepper

1) To make the bun dough: dissolve cup white sugar in 1 cups water then add the yeast and allow it to sit for 10 minutes or so until starting to sponge and froth.

2) Sieve the flour and baking powder. Break the butter into pieces and rub into the flour with your fingers or a mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the yeast mixture, mix then knead for about 10 minutes.

3) When the dough is soft and springy, place in an oiled bowl, roll around so the surface is covered with oil, cover with cling film and leave in a warm place to double in size for an hour or two. Note, there is no salt in this dough - the salt in the butter is enough for this sweet dough.

4) When the dough has risen well, sprinkle flour over the top, punch down and knead for about five minutes.

5) Cut into 12 pieces, sprinkle with flour and allow to rest under a damp cloth for about 20 minutes.

Make the sauce:
1) Mix white sugar, oyster and soy sauce, a cup of water. Bring to the boil then add the cornstarch dissolved in 2 tablespoons of water. When thickened, add the sesame oil and remove from heat. 

2) Dice roasted char siu pork and mix into the sauce.

3) Cut small squares of greaseproof or baking paper to rest the buns on in the steamer. You can use a stainless steel steamer or traditional Chinese bamboo steamers to cook the buns.

4) Roll each piece of dough into a circle with the edges thinner than the centre. Place a teaspoon or two of filling in the centre , fold up the edges and pleat together into a purse shape, using a little water to help them stick if needed.

5) Place on a square of paper in the steamer basket but do not crowd so the steam can get through.

6) Allow to rest again for 10 minutes or so, then place the steamer basket on a pot of boiling water and steam for 12 minutes. They will be well risen and shiny on top when done.

 

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Write to Cooking 101, Editorial Features, Otago Daily Times, PO Box 181, Dunedin or email odt.features@odt.co.nz with cooking 101 in the subject line.

To check earlier Cooking 101 columns visit: www.odt.co.nz and search for "cooking 101". More information on cooking from the Otago Polytechnic can be found on www.otagocookeryl4.blogspot.com

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