Vegetable steamed bao buns (baozi)
Fluffy steamed buns filled with cabbage, shiitake, glass noodles and tofu
Baozi are breakfast across China: commuters in Shanghai, Beijing and small towns alike queue at steaming stalls for a couple of buns and a cup of soya milk. Vegetable baozi (su cai bao) are a standard on every counter, usually filled with greens, mushroom, tofu and glass noodles. Making them is a weekend job, but they freeze beautifully and reheat in 10 minutes. Chef's tip: let the shaped buns rise until they look puffy and feel light before steaming; under-proved buns come out dense and wrinkled.
- Total time
- 120 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the dough
For the filling
Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Mix 1 ⅛ lb plain flour, ¼ oz fast-action dried yeast, 1 oz sugar and 1 tsp baking powder. Add 1 cup lukewarm water and 1 tbsp vegetable oil and knead for 8–10 minutes until smooth and slightly tacky. Cover and leave in a warm place for 1 hour, until doubled.
Step 2: While it rises, toss 14 oz Chinese leaf (napa cabbage) with 1 tsp salt, leave 10 minutes and squeeze hard in a cloth. Common mistake: skipping this; wet cabbage soaks the dough and the buns tear.
10 minStep 3: Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil in a wok and stir-fry 6 dried shiitake mushrooms, 5 ½ oz smoked or five-spice firm tofu and 1 carrot over a medium-high heat for 3 minutes. Cool, then mix with the cabbage, 1 ⅜ oz mung bean glass noodles, 1 tbsp fresh ginger, 1 ½ tbsp light soy sauce, 1 tbsp vegetarian oyster sauce (mushroom-based) and 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil.
3 minStep 4: Knock back the dough, roll into a log and cut into 12 pieces. Roll each into a 10 cm circle, thinner at the edge than the middle.
Step 5: Put a heaped spoonful of filling in the centre. Pleat the edge around it, turning the bun as you go, and twist the top closed. Set each on a square of baking paper.
25 minStep 6: Cover the buns and leave for 20–30 minutes, until puffy and light when lifted.
25 minStep 7: Steam over boiling water, with space between them, for 12 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave the lid on for 3 minutes before opening, so cold air doesn't make the tops wrinkle.
15 minStep 8: Eat warm. Freeze cooled buns in bags; steam from frozen for 10–12 minutes.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 230 kcal
- Protein
- 7 g
- Carbs
- 42 g
- Fat
- 4 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does vegetable steamed bao buns (baozi) take?
- About 120 minutes in total: 80 minutes to prepare and 40 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of fast-action dried yeast?
- Fresh yeast, three times the weight.
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