If you’ve been to a Chinese restaurant at least once, you must have tasted the magnificent Chinese steam buns. They are prepared without filling and served with first courses or instead of bread. But most often they are made with various fillings. It turns out very tasty. Steam cakes are just a dream for a healthy dieter. No margarine or other fats in the dough, as well as frying in oil. Let's learn to cook Chinese steam buns together.
First difficulties
And here the owners have a logical question: how do cooks get such an amazing dough? It is smooth, white and finely porous. Having tried to cook something similar in their kitchen, many suffered a fiasco. A couple's yeast dough got wet and became completely unpresentable.
While the lid is closed, the buns still proudly rise with a hat. But it is worth taking it off, and your products seem to lose their basis, turning into something shapeless. So, Chinese steam buns - this is a dish with a secret that must be solved.
The casket just opened
Indeed, many recipes simply miss an important detail. When you start a yeast dough, it is filled with dozens of bubbles. This is what ensures the rise in the oven. But here it will be prepared in a humid environment, and it is necessary that the dough has a dense structure. Therefore, Chinese steam buns need to be cooked from well-beaten dough. No more bubbles should remain in it. This is the key to your success.
Basic recipe
Chinese steam buns are literally baked from nothing. You yourself will see that cooking them is a pleasure. You will need to take products:
- Flour - 500 g.
- Water - 220 g.
- Yeast - 8 g.
- A pinch of salt.
But the method of preparation may differ from how you usually start the dough. The easiest option is called mantou - Chinese steam buns without toppings, which are served instead of cakes for the first and second courses.
Dough preparation technology
First you need to take half the water and dilute the yeast in it. Mix with flour and gradually add the rest of the water. Knead until all flour is absorbed. The dough turns out cool - it's hard to knead. But do not add more water. Delicate dough is completely useless to you. Leave it to rest for 15 minutes.
The second approach is to knead the dough very carefully and leave to rise. It will take one to three hours. It should double in volume. And now the most important point. For the dough to turn out as it should, you need to knead it well. So that all the air bubbles come out. You can use the noodles cutter, passing the layer through it 5-6 times. If it is not on the farm, then it will be enough to roll out the dough with a rolling pin, fold and repeat the procedure again.
The dough turns white and the resulting ball has no bubbles. After this, the dough is stretched into a long bundle and cut into 16 parts. They must be left for proofing. To do this, you can use the board or immediately lay them in the grid of a double boiler, covering the bottom with baking paper.
Cook at home
Bamboo steamers are traditionally used. That is, those baskets that put on the pan. You can use a conventional multi-cooker in a suitable mode. Cooked on a small steam for about 15-20 minutes. Here, too, there are subtleties that are comprehended in the cooking process. Do not open the lid until the buns are cooked. When the time is up, you need to turn off the fire and do not look under the lid for another 5 minutes.
It is recommended that they cool completely. On hot buns, the center is sticky, like on hot bread. Classic mantou can be served as bread, greased with butter for morning coffee. They go well with jam or condensed milk. Here the field for experiments is very wide.
Buns
Try cooking them with spring onions. It turns out not just tasty, but incredibly tasty. Moreover, the cost of the dish is quite low, and the result is simply wonderful. The dough is kneading in a classic way. As a filling, chopped green onions are used. Spices will not be superfluous. Chinese steam burgers are very fond of the following mixture:
- Star anise is the basis, it will take about 20 g.
- Sichuan pepper - 20 g.
- Caraway seeds and cinnamon - 10 g each.
- Dried Garlic - 8 g.
The dough needs to be rolled into a layer, top with green onions. Sprinkle with seasoning mixture and twist a tight roll. Cut it into pieces. Now you can form a bun. The easiest way is to blind both edges so that the filling remains inside.
But Chinese cuisine is a bit complicated. For molding, wooden sticks are used. Take the workpiece and press it on top with a stick. Now pierce it with a stick from one edge, roll up a bun and pierce the other edge. Connect them and the wand can be pulled.
Delicious baozi
Gradually becoming popular in Russia. In the eateries you can buy this hearty and original pie. Bao Tzu Chinese steamed buns are cooked with meat, so they are great as a lunch. For the filling you will need:
- Stuffing - 500 g.
- Bulbs - 3 pcs.
- String Beans - 250 g.
- Soy sauce - 3-5 tbsp. l
Stuffing is not necessary dry, always with a portion of fatty pork. Beans for the filling should be boiled in boiling water for 15 minutes, discarded in a colander and doused with cold water. After that, chop the beans into small pieces, add soy sauce and a couple of tablespoons of sesame oil. Leave to marinate until the dough fits. You can pour a couple of tablespoons of ice water to make the dish more juicy, but do not overdo it. If the liquid settles in the meat, the buns may become too moist from such a filling.
The subtleties of cooking
When the dough comes up, you need to pinch off a piece of it and roll it out. Try to keep the middle thicker and the edges thinner. Diameter is about 12 cm. Then the most interesting. Put the filling in the middle, and pinch the edge with two fingers. Now rotate this edge and place it on your finger. Pinch the next piece clockwise and put the pin on top of the one on the finger. Finish to the end and pull out your finger. Now you can put the products in a double boiler.
If you are not sure about the quality of your double boiler, then it is best to play it safe. Make baking paper squares and oil them. Now we plant buns on each of them. Then they are guaranteed not to stick.