You can easily make bao buns at home. Nothing complicated about making these buns. These are marvellously soft and gorgeously white and every bite satisfies you to a comforting level of deliciousness. The recipe calls for very less ingredients, which are easily available. It’s the technique/the process you have of master for making good baos at home. I have covered all the essential points in the recipe below, which will help you get it right. A good bao is soft, fluffy, and almost pillowy as you bite into it. The stuffing can be altered as per your choice.
In this post, I am only focusing on bao buns, giving you all the tips and techniques. Once you get them right, you will be making them over and over again, because everyone at home will love them. This comes with the benefits of you trying out/experimenting with different fillings and customising them as per your choice.
They are pronounced as Bow, also popular with the name steamed buns. You will find them on the menu of many restaurants with the name Bao Buns. Some recipes make them into balls, which are stuffed. And some recipes make them like a book fold, just as I did today. I find the book fold method more convenient because you can easily store them and can again use them by quickly steaming them for 2-3 minutes. They will taste fresh and delicious. The stuffing can be kept in the fridge and can be heated, as and when required.
Steamed bread is bao bun. It is as simple as it sounds. So all the basic precautions we keep in the mind while doing a bread are to be considered when doing a bao. Now, if you have a bread dough kneading machine, you are saved from the hard work. You just have to get the ingredients together in the machine and shape them and steam them. Kneading the dough by hand is really not that complex work. It is similar to doing a dough for making roti at home. Just needs a little more kneading time, so the gluten is developed which is essential in holding the air pocket as we steam the buns. Which results in creating a softer interior. If you are new to these terms, just go through this article, where I have explained the reason and the method well.
Yeast is an important ingredient in any kind of bread. I prefer active dry yeast at home. It is the most convenient to use. Just make sure to check on the expiry dates on the pack, or it loses the potential to raise the bread. Which will result in a doughy disaster. You can know more about yeast in this article, where I have shared the types of yeast and its uses.
Throughout the process of kneading and shaping the bao, be watchful not to tear the dough. Try constructing the gluten strands. Don’t know, if these two lines made any sense to you, but you can always watch a YouTube video of kneading the dough for bread by hand. Tip: leave the dough after kneading for 10 minutes, and let it rest for 4-5 minutes. Restart again with clean dry hands. This helps in forming an elastic soft dough.
Here is another tip: always add liquid gradually to your flour, when kneading. Some flours have more absorbency levels and some have less. That totally depends on the quality of the grain, the grinding process and how and under what temperature it was stored. We have absolutely zero control over these things. We just buy a pack of flour to use. The smartest thing is to add liquid gradually when kneading, so we can see and feel the texture, and decide accordingly.
When you use a cookie cutter or a sharp-edged bowl to cut the baos, be gentle. The top of every bao should be seamless. It should be smooth and should not carry any pleats or joints. That will create a door for the carbon dioxide to leak out and the baos won’t fluff up well.
Use separate pieces of the parchment paper to hold the baos. This is an easier way to lift them and put them into the steamer. As shown in the video.
The steaming time will also vary, as per the size of the baos. The smaller size will take approximately 10 minutes. A bigger bao will take 12 minutes or so.
My steamer had space for five baos at a time, so I steamed them in batches. With the measure of ingredients mentioned in the recipe, I made 12 baos, small sized.
You got to be really gentle when handling the shaped baos. Once you fold the baos in half, gently press the folded side with your rolling pin. You don’t have to roll it, just a slight press, this helps in maintaining the shape, when in the steamer. If you simply fold and steam, a few of them might open, and a few might rise like protruded lips. That kind of looks funny. Still delicious though.
Like other bread recipes, bao buns also require proofing. Proofing is a process, where the kneaded dough is covered and kept in a warm place. And the yeast starts to work, it feeds on sugar and burps out carbon dioxide. The external structure of the kneaded dough, which is formed by gluten strands is strong enough to keep those burs inside. A beautiful structure of tiny little holes is crafted, which makes the bread soft and fluffy.
Allowing the dough to rise twice results in finer gluten structure, and results in the smaller crumbs, preventing huge gaping airfoils in the bread.
The first proofing is done after the kneading, in a bowl. It takes approximately an hour for the dough to rise and get double in size. It might take a little more or less time, depending on the temperature of your place. So take your judgement, your clue is, that when the dough is doubled in size, you can move with the next steps.
The second rise, is after the shaping, after the book fold. Cover again and give it at least half an hour. You will see a rise in buns.
Make sure the steamer is hot, it should have a lot of steam rising up when you put in the shaped baos. This helps in creating a bounce to the buns.
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In a bowl add the all-purpose flour, salt, sugar, and active dry yeast. Make sure that the yeast and salt are not sitting beside each other. Salt reduces the potential of yeast. So just keep them at a distance. Make a space in the centre and pour in oil, water and some milk. Start kneading and gradually add the rest of the milk, to knead further. Keep your judgments awake, to see if the dough requires more liquid.
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Transfer the briefly kneaded dough to your kitchen counter and start kneading further. This dough requires at least 15-20 minutes of kneading. As you knead, the dough will become less sticky, more pliable, and smooth.
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Once you achieve the smooth, elastic dough ball. Put it in a bowl which is brushed with some oil. Cover and keep in a warm place. Wait till the dough gets double in size. This will take around an hour.
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After an hour, take the dough out and briefly knead it to get a seamless dough ball. Sprinkle a little dry flour on the kitchen counter and use a rolling pin to roll out the dough into a 1 cm thick disc.
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Use a cookie cutter or a sharp edge bowl to cut as many as possible smaller discs from it. Brush some oil on the top side of all the smaller discs, and fold them into half. As shown in the video. Roll out the leftover scraps of the dough and repeat the process of shaping them into baos.
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Gently press the folded ends of each bao with the rolling pin. Carefully place them all on cut pieces of parchment paper. Place all the shaped baos on a tray. Cover and keep them in a warm place. Let the shaped baos sit for another 20-30 minutes. Prepare your steamer and carefully place the baos on the steamer, lifting them with the help of parchment papers. Be gentle with them, making sure your fingers should not make any impressions on them.
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Steam for 12 minutes and take them out on a wire rack. Remove the wet piece of the parchment from the base and let them cool on the wire rack.Add the filling of your choice along with some greens in the centre and enjoy.
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