If you love Char Sui Bao, the Chinese BBQ pork buns, then making this delicious steamed pork bun recipe is definitely worth the effort. Don't be intimidated, making your own steamed buns does take a little prep work but the recipe isn't difficult. You will soon be enjoying Char Siu Bao like those from your favorite dim sum restaurant at home, made by your own hands!
For quick prep these homemade buns are made with ground meat rather than Chinese barbecue pork belly. If you are looking for fun Asian recipes to celebrate Chinese New Year, this would be an excellent choice.
What is Char Siu Bao?
Char Siu Bao (also referred to as Steamed Chiniese Pork Rolls) is a classic Chinese dish that is both delicious and easy to make. It consists of a savory pork filling wrapped in a soft, fluffy steamed bun.
How to Make Chinese Steamed Pork Buns
Here I will walk you through making steamed pork buns, complete with pictures. Jump down to the printable recipe card at bottom of article if you prefer.
The recipe makes 16 Chinese pork buns.
Prep time: 30-40 minutes | Steaming time: 12-14 minutes
Ingredients Needed
Here is everything you need to make the dough and filling for the buns.
Ingredients Char Siu Bao Dough:
- 2 cups bao flour or cake flour
- 1 cup warm water
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil (any flavorless oil such as canola oil or avocado oil)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
Ingredients BBQ Pork Filling:
- 1 pounds ground pork
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, finely minced
- ⅓ cup water
- 1 ½ tablespoons corn starch
- 1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- ½ tablespoon fresh ginger, finely grated (optional)
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions:
Start the bao dough, by sifting flour into a large mixing bowl.
Add water, sugar, oil, baking powder and dry yeast to the flour. Mix with a wooden spoon until well combined.
Knead the dough with your hands for about 5 minutes. The dough shouldn’t be sticky. If it’s a little sticky, add a little bit of flour. Keep kneading and folding and make a ball. Yes, feel free to use a stand mixer with dough hook, if you have one.
Cover the dough with a damp kitchen towel and put in a warm place. Allow to rise for about 20-30 minutes.
While your dough is rising, prepare the filling.
Pour oil into large deep skillet over medium high heat. Once it is hot, add your diced onions and minced garlic. Sauté for about 2-3 minutes.
Reduce heat to medium. Add hoisin sauce, soy sauce, oyster sauce, ginger (if using), sugar, sesame oil, salt, water and cornstarch to the pan and let it simmer for about 2 minutes, until the mixture has thickened.
Then add your ground pork to the pan and make sure it’s completely cooked. This can take about 7-10 minutes. Remove from heat once the meat is fully cooked and let it cool off.
Return to your dough. Sprinkle some flour to your work table and put your risen dough on the floured surface.
Fold and flatten with a rolling pin a few times until you have a long rectangle. Then roll up and cut dough into 16 even pieces.
Using your rolling pin, roll out each individual piece of dough until you have a 3 inch circle.
Put 1-2 tablespoons of the pork mixture on each dough circle and start folding the edges towards each other, all the way around until the filling is enclosed.
Line bamboo steamer (or steamer pan) with parchment paper. Arrange the BBQ pork buns in steamer, leaving about an inch between them. Do not overcrowd them they will expand quite a bit while steaming.
Add about ¼ inch water to a pan and bring to a boil. Then place the bamboo steaming rack in the pan and let it steam for about 12-14 minutes. Make sure there is always water in your pan. You can add a little more if all the water has reduced.
Tip: If you have to steam your buns in batches, keep the remaining buns on a parchment lined baking sheet in the fridge to avoid over proofing. Also cover the uncooked pork buns with plastic wrap to avoid them drying out.
Remove the char siu bao buns from the steamer and serve warm. Garnish with thinly sliced green onions if you like.
Enjoy the tender steamed BBQ pork buns with your favorite Asian dipping sauce. Personally, I like a mixture of soy, vinegar, sesame oil and hot pepper. The Asian dipping sauce served with my Candied Walnut Shrimp makes an excellent char siu sauce.
Best Flour for Char Siu Bao
When it comes to making the perfect Char Siu Bao, or Chinese steamed pork buns, the type of flour you use can make a big difference, especially in the texture of the buns. Bao flour is of course ideal for making the steamed buns, but other flours can also be used.
Cake flour is also a good choice and makes light fluffy dough, perfect for steaming. All-purpose flour (plain flour) has more gluten, which creates a more chewy dough. Some prefer to use a mixture of the two.
Variations on the Recipe
Here are a few simple changes you may like for the recipe. It is also important to suit the tastes of you and your family when cooking.
- Make the Chinese steamed buns with ground chicken or ground turkey if you prefer.
- Try adding a teaspoon of Chinese five-spice powder to the char siu bao filling along with the other seasonings.
What to Serve with Steamed BBQ Pork Buns
The Char Siu Bao recipe pairs wonderfully with a wide array of Asian dishes. I like to serve mine with simple steamed or stir fry veggies, sauteed asparagus, or Lemon Curry Roasted Cauliflower. A brothy soup such as miso or my Lemon Oyster Mushroom Soup also go great with the tender stuffed buns.
For nice cold sides Asian Cucumber Salad and Pickled Daikon Radish are great choices.
Glazed meats such as my Asian Chicken Drumsticks, Marmalade Chicken Stir Fry or Mongolian Beef Recipe also pair well with the char siu bao.
I hope you enjoy making your own homemade char siu bao!
Chinese Steamed Pork Buns (Char Siu Bao)
Equipment
- bamboo steamer or steaming pan/appliance
- Parchment paper
- stand mixer with dough hook attachment optional
Ingredients
Bao Dough:
- 2 cups bao flour or cake flour
- 1 cup warm water
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil any flavorless oil such as canola oil or avocado oil
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
BBQ Pork Filling (Char Siu):
- 1 pounds ground pork
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic finely minced
- ⅓ cup water
- 1 ½ tablespoons corn starch
- 1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- ½ tablespoon fresh ginger finely grated (optional)
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Start the bao dough, by sifting flour into a large bowl.
- Add water, sugar, oil, baking powder and dry yeast to the flour. Mix with a wooden spoon until well combined.
- Knead the dough with your hands for about 5 minutes. The dough shouldn’t be sticky. If it’s a little sticky, add a little bit of flour. Keep kneading and folding and make a ball. Yes, feel free to use a stand mixer with dough hook, if you have one.
- Cover the dough with a damp towel and put in a warm place. Allow to rise for about 20-30 minutes.
- While your dough is rising, make your meat filling.
- Pour oil into large deep skillet over medium high heat. Once it is hot, add your diced onions and minced garlic. Sauté for about 2-3 minutes.
- Reduce heat to medium. Add hoisin sauce, soy sauce, oyster sauce, ginger (if using), sugar, sesame oil, salt, water and cornstarch to the pan and let it simmer for about 2 minutes, until the mixture has thickened.
- Then add your ground pork to the pan and make sure it’s completely cooked. This can take about 7-10 minutes. Remove from heat once the meat is fully cooked and let it cool off.
- Return to your dough. Sprinkle some flour to your work table and put your risen dough on there.
- Fold and flatten with a rolling pin a few times until you have a long rectangle. Then roll up and cut dough into 16 even pieces.
- Using your rolling pin, roll out each individual piece of dough until you have a 3 inch circle.
- Put 1-2 tablespoons of the pork mixture on each dough circle and start folding the edges towards each other, all the way around until the filling is enclosed.
- Line bamboo steamer (or steamer pan) with parchment paper. Arrange the buns in steamer, leaving about an inch between them. Do not overcrowd them.
- Add about ¼ inch water to a pan and bring to a boil. Then place your bamboo steamer in the pan and let it steam for about 12-14 minutes. Make sure there is always water in your pan. You can add a little more if all the water has reduced.
- Remove the bao buns from the steamer and serve warm.
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