Chinese steamed fold over buns with ribs
soft and airy buns that will make you come back for seconds
There is such thing as spontaneous bread
When thinking of a great fun dinner, the Chinese steamed fold over buns are a great option that doesn't take much preparation. These soft and tender buns can be filled with any kind of meat, fish, chicken, or seafood you have in your house, and they'll gladly take any gravy and sauce.Chinese steamed fold over buns - the method
Making the bun dough is quick — it's a basic dough that can be the base of many Chinese buns. Making the basic dough takes about 5 minutes and proofing it takes about 2 hours. Not bad for spontaneous bread. The real bonus, though, is the fast cooking time — steaming takes just 5–9 minutes depending on the bun size.The filling
Chinese steamed fold over buns are best with succulent, tender meat that will complement the buns and let them absorb all the juices. For these buns I used thin rib, which I oven-roasted for hours, then gave it a quick sear in the pan, cooking it in its own fat (there's plenty of it).
Method
- 1
Making the steamed buns dough· 5-7 minutes
Prepare a stand mixer with the hook attachment. Pour the warm water into the mixer bowl, add the sugar, oil and yeast, let rest for a few minutes, we want small bubbles to appear. Add the flour, baking powder and salt and mix for a few minutes until the dough is sticky and elastic. Move the dough to a floured counter and hand knead for 2 more minutes. Place the dough back in the mixer bowl and cover with a plastic wrap. Proof the dough for 2 hours until it doubles its size.
- 2
shaping the steamed buns
Place the dough on a floured counter and divide into 2 equal parts. Roll each part into a log shape and cut each log into 5-6 pieces. Roll each piece of dough into a small ball and flatten it with your rolling pin into an elliptic shape Brush each elliptic dough with the cooking oil and fold over. Use your rolling pin to flatten each folded dough a bit more (very gently), use just little pressure, we don't want the buns to open up in the steamer.
- 3
steaming the buns· 20 minutes
Prepare small squares of parchment paper in the steamer and place buns on top Cover the buns in the steamer for a final rest of 10 minute (no heat yet). Fill a large saucepan with water and place over high heat, place the steamer above it. We don't wait for the water to boil before we place the steamer above the saucepan, it's on it from the first moment so heat is gradually building in the buns. When water reached boiling point, we reduce it to low and steam the buns for 5-9 more minutes, depending on the buns size. When time is up, turn the heat off and let the buns rest in the steamer for 2 more minutes, we want the temperature to gradually reduce.
- 4
choose your filling (ribs of beef in this case)· 5 minutes
Cut the ribs meat lengthwise (parallel to the fibers), place in the bun with your favorite vegetables and sauce and serve immediately.
Jaron Kimhi
Jaron Kimhi — self-taught home cook from Tel Aviv, writing and cooking every recipe on this site himself. 20+ years of tinkering in the kitchen, leaning toward slow cooking, classic technique, and honest ingredients.
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