Char Siu Bao
Char Siu Bao
No dim sum is complete without char siu bao: Chinese bbq pork steam buns. These fluffy buns are filled with char siu pork in a sweet and salty glaze; steamed in a bamboo steamer basket. This recipe is definitely more difficult then most of the recipes on stonedsoup.net. Just to make the char siu require a 3 day process. You will also need a standing mixer, rolling pin, and a lot of patience. All the effort will pay off and make many bellies happy. Unless you decide to eat all of the steam buns. It’s possible.
Equipment
- standing mixer with dough hook attachment
- rolling pin
- parchment paper
- bamboo steamer basket
Ingredients
Dough
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 2 tsp active dry yeast
- 4 tbsp sugar
- 1 2/3 cup cake flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp lard
Char Siu Filling
- 1/4 cup chicken stock
- 2 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 2 tbsp oyster sauce
- 2 tbsp shaoxing cooking wine
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 garlic clove grated
- 1/4 tsp 5 spice powder
- 1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch dissolved into 2 tbsp cold water
- 2 cups char siu diced
Instructions
- Let the yeast activate with the sugar and warm water at the bottom of the standing mixer bowl for 5 minutes.
- Add in the cake flour and baking powder.
- Slowly increase speed up to 6 out of 10. Knead for 10 minutes.
- Add in the lard and knead for 5 more minutes.
- Cover the dough ball with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm placd for 2 hours.
- While the dough is rising, add the stock, oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, shaoxing cooking wine, sugar, garlic, and 5 spice to a small pot over medium heat for 5 minutes.
- Stir in the cornstarch slurry. Cook for 30 seconds.
- Stir in the char siu. Cook for 2 minutes, then turn off the heat.
Char Siu Bao Assembly
- Lightly flour a clean surface. Roll out the dough and cut it into 12 equal pieces.
- Roll each piece into a ball. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough to a 4” disc.
- Place a heaping tbsp of the char siu filling in the center of the dough.
- Pinch the left and right side tips together; then do the same to the top and bottom side creating a shape like so.
- Pinch the opposing corners together to form a bun.
- You should yield a dozen steam buns. Line them on parchment paper.
- Place 6 buns per layer in a bamboo steamer.
- Steam over medium heat for 20 minutes.
Char Siu (Chinese BBQ Pork)
If I was put on death row and asked what the last thing on Earth that I'd like to eat, my final meal, char siu would be on the top of the list. I have loved this bbq pork ever since I was a little kid. My family would order everything with bbq pork in it from the Chinese restaurant that we got take out from. I love this pork so much, I snuck some of the pork in the picture into the movie theatre in a ziplock bag.Char siu is typically made out of pork shoulder. It can be made out of pork sirloin, pork loin, or tenderloin; but they tend to be less juicy than pork shoulder. Fat is a good thing here. You will want a 3lbs. piece of boneless pork shoulder. I purchased a whole bone in shoulder and processed out the coppa roast and the flat iron, If the coppa roast was a beef cut, you'd know it as a chuck eye roast. You don't have to go to this extreme. You can use any part of the shoulder. I just happen to know how to cut these muscles out of the shoulder and use them. Cut the pork shoulder into 2" in diameter chunks with the grain. The char siu gets its color from the red bean curd. If you've ever seen this pork really red, the color will be coming from red food coloring. But I want to avoid food coloring as much as possible. The red color in the bean curd comes from a natural fungus. This pork needs to marinate for at least 3 days.When ready to cook the pork, preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Yes, 400 degrees. Normally when you think of cooking pork shoulder, you cook it low and slow. Not here. It will be tender. Trust me. I was skeptical the first time I tried making this. Roast this for 15 minutes. Pull it out of the oven and brush on the glaze. Roast for 7 minutes. You want to do this for 3 times total. The honey will caramelize the outside while the bean curd juice will give it a nice red color. Once done roasting, let sit for 10-15 minutes before slicing.
Ingredients
- 3 lbs boneless pork shoulder
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 3 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 3 red bean curd cubes + 2 tbsp liquid
- 1 1/2 tbsp Chinese 5 spice powder
- 3 tbsp honey
- 3 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
- 3/4 tsp white pepper
- 1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 3 garlic cloves minced
Pork Glaze
- 3 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp red bean curd liquid
- 1 tbsp cooked marinade
Instructions
- Take a 3lb. piece of pork shoulder and cut it into a few long chunks with the grain. Each piece should be around 2″ in diameter. In this picture, I cut out the coppa roast and the flat iron. The coppa roast is the center muscle of the shoulder. If this was beef, you’d know it as a chuck eye roast.
- Mix together the soy sauce, hoisin sauce, red bean curd cubes and liquid, 5 spice powder, honey, cooking, wine, white pepper, sesame, oil, and garlic cloves. Mash the bean curds into a paste. Mix everything thoroughly.
- Add the pork shoulder pieces and the marinade to a gallon sized ziplock bag. Marinate for 72 hours. Turn the bag over every 12 hours.
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Lay the pork shoulder pieces on a rack onto of a foil covered baking sheet. Add a couple cups of water to the baking sheet to prevent smoking. Roast the pork for 15 minutes.
- While the pork is roasting, mix together honey, red bean curd liquid, and some of the marinade. Make sure to cook the marinade in the microwave for a few seconds before mixing in. Now you have your pork glaze.
- After the first 15 minutes of roasting, take the pork out of the oven and brush on the pork glaze. Don’t worry about getting the bottom. Put the pork back in the oven and roast for 7 minutes. Repeat this step 2 more times, for a total of 3 glazes.
- After the final glazing and roasting, let the pork rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing.
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