Char Siew Pau ~ Steamed Barbecue Pork Bun

I have been searching for the illusive char siu pau recipe which is soft and fluffy without having to use expensive specialised pau or bleached flour or long preparation time of a few days. I am pleased to say I have found it.


A combination of plain and high grade flour is used for this recipe which does not require a long or complicated proving time after the pau is pleated.

I am not very good at the pleating which could explain why my buns 'loose' the pleat pattern after steaming. The buns turned out with only a slight tinge of yellow. They were delicious. I am all right with it not being pure white , the texture was what I was after.

For testing purposes I ate a cold char siu pau a few hours after it was steamed. It was still soft though normally I prefer my pau hot or at least warm and would zap them in the microwave to reheat.

You can rest assured you will not end up with rock hard buns with this recipe. The dough is very forgiving.

Makes 12 buns

Ingredients
150 gm plain flour
250 gm high grade/bread flour
50 gm sugar
30 gm milk powder
1 Tbsp shortening
2 tsp Surebake yeast
250 ml warm water (50C)
1 tsp Edmonds baking powder

char siu filling recipe


Method
1. Add shortening and warm water into breadmaker pan to soften shortening.

2. Add the rest of the ingredients except baking powder. Turn the breadmaker to dough setting and mix for 5 minutes.

3. Add baking powder and continue with the dough cycle.

4. Let rise until at least double in size (about 1-2 hours). (Mine was overproofed (fig 1), it more than doubled in size but the final texture was not affected - it is a very forgiving dough)

5. Divide the dough into 12 pieces.

6. Flatten and wrap with about a tablespoon of filling of your choice and seal.

7. Place onto greaseproof paper and leave to rest for another 10 mins only.

8. Steam over high heat for 10 mins.

9. I like to peel the outer skin before eating.



Notes on shaping and pleating the pau :
1. Once the dough is formed into 12 balls (fig 2), I flatten all of them with my palm and cover them with a cloth. This helps to relax the gluten and makes it easier for the next stage.


2. Make the center of the dough thicker than the edge (fig 3). I do not use the rolling pin at all as the dough is pliable enough to be thumped and pulled into shape with the palm and fingers.

3. Do not wait for the buns to double in size, rest for 10 minutes only before they are put into the steamer (fig 5). They will expand and double in size when they are steamed (fig 6).


This is a 1 minute video of how I pleat the pau. Music excerpt from Fishing Junks at Sunset by Jean Michel Jarre.

Note :
1. This recipe is not suitable to proof overnight as it contains double acting baking powder.
2. The steamed pau freezes well. To defrost, take the pau out from the freezer a few hours earlier. It is not so suitable to defrost in the microwave as the meat and pau defrost at a different rate.
3. Edmonds baking powder is a double acting baking powder.

Recipe : The Bread Book by Bernard Clayton (adapted)