Ingredients

Check off ingredients as you go

For 20 baos

For the bao buns

• 500g all-purpose flour, sifted (4 cups)
• 250ml warm water (1 cup) (or half water-half soy milk)
• 1 tablespoon dry yeast (10g) or 25g fresh yeast
• 2 tablespoons sugar (preferably brown)
• 2 tablespoons neutral oil
• 1/2 tablespoon fine salt

For the filling

• for shredded goose see the recipe
• for shredded beef (assado) see the recipe
• see filling suggestions at the bottom of the article

If you change the number of serving, consider adjusting cooking times!

The word Bao refers to these little Chinese buns that are now an integral part of Taiwanese street food and have become quite trendy worldwide in recent years! Once you taste them, you’ll understand why! Here’s a step-by-step photo recipe to make these delicious buns at home. It’s not difficult, just a bit time-consuming. They’ll be a hit as an appetizer, for lunch, or for a Chinese meal!

Preparing the Bao Buns

1. In a small bowl, mix the yeast with the water and sugar. Let sit for a few minutes until the sugar dissolves and the mixture becomes foamy.

2. In a large bowl or stand mixer bowl, pour the flour, salt, and yeast-water-sugar mixture. Add the oil. Knead for 5-6 minutes until you get a soft and elastic dough that pulls away from the sides.

Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rise for about 1h30 to 2h in a warm place (I put it in the closed oven) or until the dough doubles in volume.

It will look like this:

(You can use this time to prepare your filling)

Divide the dough into 20 balls (about 38g per ball), cover and let rest for 15 minutes.

Shaping the Bao Buns

In principle, the dough doesn’t stick at all, so there’s no need to flour your work surface. Roll out the dough into an elongated oval shape (about 8cm wide by 16cm long or 3x6 inches), place a square of parchment paper (or lightly brush with oil) in the middle and fold to close like a mouth - I use a chopstick to make a small mark. Cover (so they don’t dry out) and let rise again for about 30 minutes.

Cooking the Bao Buns

Arrange the baos with plenty of space between them as they will puff up (I cook them 3 at a time in my bamboo steamer as it’s not very large, with a small piece of parchment paper).

Cook in a covered steamer basket (or ideally bamboo) for 10 to 15 minutes from boiling (reduce to medium heat). Once cooked (the baos will be nicely puffed), place on a plate for a few moments before filling.

Possible Fillings

You now have delicious bao buns ready to be filled as you like!

My favorite fillings:

• with shredded goose or duck (you can substitute chicken)
• and in an express version with breaded chicken cutlets Breaded chicken cutlet - schnitzels or chicken tempura with hot sauce, cucumbers and fresh cilantro.
• with chicken in satay sauce
• with shredded beef, like assado
• in a vegetarian/vegan version with smoked tofu, mushrooms, tempura vegetables… The possibilities are endless as these buns are so good.

With your favorite condiments: spicy mayo, Sriracha hot sauce, sweet and sour sauce…

A fresh herb, chopped: cilantro, Thai basil, parsley….

a crunchy touch with crushed peanuts for example.

Eat with your fingers!

Tips and Variations

• If 20 baos seems like too many, you can certainly halve the quantities, but know that these steamed buns freeze very well, unfilled, after cooking! You’ll just need to reheat them in the microwave or steamer for 3 minutes and fill them for a quick delicious meal!