Steamed Buns
These Steamed Buns are soft and delicate, great for on the go snacks as well as parties and potlucks!
Servings: 24 buns
Calories: 74kcal
Ingredients
- 1 cup warm water 105-115°F (41-46°C), divided
- 2 tsp active dry yeast 1 envelope or ¼ oz
- 3 tbsp sugar divided
- 2 tbsp milk
- ¼ tsp salt fine salt
- 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour see note
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp oil canola or similar
Instructions
Dough
- In a medium-large bowl, whisk together ¼ cup warm water, yeast and a large pinch of the sugar. Set aside for 10 minutes (see note).
- While waiting, cut parchment into 24 squares about 3-inch (7 cin size.
- Whisk in the remaining ¾ cup water, sugar, salt and the milk until dissolved.
- Using a large wooden spoon, stir in the flour cup by cup until it forms a sticky dough that starts to pull away from the bowl (see note).
- Turn dough out onto a floured work surface.
- Knead the dough for 5 minutes by hand or 1-2 minutes using a mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add small amounts of flour to help the dough become elastic.
- Form dough into a ball and place in a large oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a tea towel and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until double in size, about 90 minutes.
- Punch down the dough and transfer back to floured work surface.
- Add baking powder to center of dough and fold in outer edges of the dough to seal.
- Knead dough for several minutes more until baking powder is incorporated.
- Return dough to the oiled bowl loosely covered and let rest 10 minutes.
Steaming
- Shape the dough into a long about 1-foot (30 cby 3 inches (7 cm).
- Slice into 1-inch (2.5 cthick pieces and place onto cut parchment squares. Optional: forms the pieces into a ball shape if desired (see note).
- Place the buns in a bamboo steamer ½-inch (12 mapart. Rest 20 minutes loosely covered.
- Fill wok or steaming contraption one-third full with water and bring to a boil.
- Add the bamboo steamer and steam for 12-15 minutes until puffy.
- Remove cooked buns from steamer. Repeat steaming in batches for remaining buns.
Notes
- The yeast mixture should puff up and become frothy. If it doesn’t for any reason, start over with fresh ingredients.
- The amount of flour may be slightly more or less than 3 ½ cups depending on flour brand and humidity. Stop adding when the dough pulls away from the bowl.
- You can also stuff with a filling such as custard or BBQ pork by rolling it into a 5-inch (12 cm) round, bringing the edges together and pinching them to seal.
Nutrition
Serving: 40g | Calories: 74kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 1mg | Sodium: 26mg | Potassium: 75mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 5IU | Calcium: 26mg | Iron: 0.9mg | Net Carbs: 15g