• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Tiny Urban Kitchen
  • About Me
  • Travel
  • Recipes
  • Michelin
  • Subscribe
  • Taiwanese
menu icon
go to homepage
  • About Me
  • Travel
  • Recipes
  • Michelin
  • Subscribe
  • Taiwanese
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • About Me
    • Travel
    • Recipes
    • Michelin
    • Subscribe
    • Taiwanese
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Cuisine » Asian » Chinese

    Homemade Baos (Steamed buns)

    Published: Aug 8, 2010 · Modified: Oct 27, 2014 by Jennifer Che

    _1030540

    There are so many variations for making steamed buns, and they vary in their complexity. Some use shortening, others use butter; some require making a dough starter, while others use regular flour. Some add milk, some even use Bisquick (!) as a starting material! Finally, some preparations take multiple days, while others can be done in an afternoon.

    I've actually tried the Bisquick method, which works great if you're super short on time (no need for yeast!) but the results are only so-so. I decided this time I would actually try to make a yeast-based bun from scratch.

    The cookbook I was using had two methods: a home kitchen method that only took a few hours and only had 6 ingredients; and a bakery/restaurant method that not only seemed to have twice as many ingredients, it took multiple days and required making a dough starter.

    Since this was my first time making steamed bread, I decided not to be too ambitious and decided to try the "home kitchen" method. The book said that the home version would create steamed bread with larger air bubbles, and thus less the buns would be less refined. The restaurant version, on the other hand, would result in a super light and delicate bun "with a delicious flavor".

    I found this home method to be pretty do-able, although it still involved several steps, a reasonable amount of equipment, and quite a few hours.


    Homemade Steamed Buns (Baos)

    Ingredients
    ¼ cup sugar
    1 ¾ cup warm water
    6 cups all-purpose flour
    2 T shortening
    1 T yeast
    1 T baking powder

    _1030291
    Yeast + sugar + warm water after about 10-15 minutes at room temperature

    Dissolve sugar in warm water and add the yeast. Let the liquid stand at room temperature for about 10 minutes, or until it becomes foamy (see picture above). Sift flour into a separate bowl. To the flour add shortening, the yeast/sugar mixture, and baking soda. Mix well. Knead the dough until smooth and elastic. Add additional flour or water as necessary to make the dough the right consistency (smooth yet pliable).

    MakingBaos
    Top left and Top right: kneading dough. Bottom left: dough in plastic wrap left to warm. Bottom right: dough after rising for about 2 hours

    Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap let it rise in a warm place for about 2 hours or until it has tripled in bulk.

    MakingBaos2
    Top Left: Post risen kneaded dough. Top Right: dough logs and sliced dough. Bottom Left: dough discs with a dab of sesame oil. Bottom right: half moon buns for making gua bao

    Knead the (now tripled in size) dough until smooth. Shape into logs and slice into about 20 pieces. If you are just making steamed bread (mantou), proceed to the next step with the sliced pieces. If you want to make gua bao or other sorts of sandwich buns, lightly flatten each piece, brush with sesame oil, and fold it over on itself like a half moon.
    _1030535
    To prevent sticking, I like to place each bun on a square of wax paper. Let the buns rest at room temperature for 10-30 minutes. Do not let them rest for longer than 30 minutes or else they will start to deflate. 
    _1030534
    Steam the buns in a steamer (ideally a bamboo steamer) over boiling water for ~8 minutes. If you don't have a bamboo steamer, you can use double layered pasta cooker (see how I've improvised with parts from both the steamer and my pasta maker?).
    _1030536
     If you are making plain steamed buns (mantou), you can just serve with other condiments. If you are making steamed bun sandwiches (like gua bao), fill with desired fillings and then serve.

    _1030545

    Final Thoughts
    This "home cook" bun definitely pales in comparison to any restaurant version, or any frozen supermarket version. It's much less refined, and frankly, isn't nearly as good. It's a bit chewier, a little less fluffy. I almost think it's not worth all that effort when you can get much better ones in the freezer section of your local Asian supermarket. The flavor is decent, but you aren't going to get that nice fluffy and delicate texture that you see in the restaurant versions.

    I would be curious to know if anyone else has tried a better home steamed bun recipe? Do you really have to use a multi-step dough starter method to achieve that glorious refined bakery-like texture? I've seen the Momofuku recipe but haven't tried that version.

    In any event, it was fun to try, but for now, I may just stick to buying bakery buns and filling it with my own braised pork belly instead of slaving away at inferior buns!

    Having said that, making buns is still a fun activity at home, and the buns still taste decent. It's definitely not a bad activity to do with kids at home. As kids, my sister and I had tons of fun making steamed bun versions of turtles, snowmen, and all sorts of characters. You can never replicate that in a restaurant. 🙂

    Related posts
    Gua Bao

    ©2009-2014 Tiny Urban Kitchen
    All Rights Reserved

    More Appetizer

    • Miso Eggplant
      Miso Glazed Eggplant -Nasu Dendaku
    • Japanese Potato Salad
      Japanese Potato Salad
    • Instant Pot Chinese Pumpkin Cake [Pressure Cooker] Plus VIDEO!
    • Nasi Lemak - Malaysia's national dish

    Recent Posts

    • Restaurant Virtus Paris March 27, 2023
    • NE/SO Paris (Neso Paris) March 24, 2023
    • Les Enfants du Marche Paris March 18, 2023
    • Wong Kee Restaurant 旺記打冷小菜館 March 14, 2023
    • Frenchie Wine Bar (Frenchie Bar à Vins) March 13, 2023
    • Dublin Ireland Trip Report March 12, 2023
    • Palazzo Parigi Milan, Italy March 9, 2023
    • Ricard Camarena Valencia Spain February 28, 2023

    Reader Interactions

    Trackbacks

    1. Gua Bao with Five Spice Pork Ribs | Kitchen Convivial says:
      March 14, 2015 at 4:35 pm

      […] Homemade Baos (Steamed Buns) […]

      Log in to Reply
    2. Taiwanese Salt & Pepper Gua Bao – forktrails says:
      December 3, 2016 at 10:51 pm

      […] You need gua baos ready beforehand to make this dish. You can learn to make Gua Bao here. […]

      Log in to Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Jennifer Che Tiny Urban Kitchen
    Jennifer Che Tiny Urban Kitchen

    Hi, my name's Jen and welcome to my cooking, eating, and travel site! I am an expat who moved from Boston to Hong Kong 5 years ago. Born and raised in Ohio to Taiwanese immigrant parents, I am a chemistry nerd, patent attorney by day, blogger by night, church musician on weekends, and food enthusiast always. Feel free to explore away, maybe starting with the Recipe Index or one of the travel pages! I hope you enjoy this site!

    More about me →

    Explore

    • Recipe
    • Restaurant
    • US Travel
    • World Travel

    Popular Posts

    • peas tart
      Restaurant Virtus Paris
    • NE/SO Paris (Neso Paris)
    • Les Enfants du Marche Paris
    • Wong Kee Restaurant 旺記打冷小菜館

    Recipes

    • Appetizer
    • Snacks
    • Meat
    • Vegetables
    • Soup
    • Salad
    • Seafood
    • Noodles

    Recently Traveled

    • Hong Kong
    • France
    • Belgium
    • Boston
    • California
    • United Kingdom
    • Germany
    • Spain

    Support Us

    Recognition


    Featured on the front page
    of the FOOD Section: 2015

    Best Food Blog Awards:
    Restaurant & Dining 2012

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • About Me
    • My Equipment
    • In the Press
    • Project Food Blog
    • Privacy Policy

    Eating Guides!

    Eating & Travel Guides
    Trip Reports
    "Kawaii" (Cute Foods)
    Around the World

    • Pinterest
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
    • LinkedIn
    • YouTube
    • Mail
    • RSS Feed

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Shop at Amazon

    Copyright © 2022 Tiny Urban Kitchen