Here's a recipe for a basic steamed bread dough and some fillings for
steamed buns. These are all easy and tasty. If you don't want to
hassle with making the dough, you can use frozen bread dough and get
good results ++they're better baked than steamed, though. I do that
a lot.
The sausage buns are quite good when baked. Also, if you have a bread
making machine that can be set to stop at a certain point in the
process, that would save time too.
Any of these ingredients can be had at an Asian grocery and in many
supermarkets these days.
Steamed or Baked Bun Dough
Yield: 2 dozen buns
1 ea cake of fresh compressed yeast 1 3/4 c warm water 3/4 c sugar 1 t
baking powder 6 1/2 c unsifted all purpose flour
TO MAKE THE DOUGH:
Dissolve 1/2 yeast cake with sugar in warm water. Immediately add
baking powder and then the flour. The dough will be fairly firm and
a bit on the dry side. Knead on board or 20 minutes (you should not
need to flour the board) until dough becomes elastic and smooth.
Place it in a big mixing bowl, cover with a damp cloth and leave in a
dry, warm place (away from drafts) until dough doubles in bulk.
(Every kitchen is different. My dough usually takes about 2 1/2 to 3
hours to double in my electric oven, which I slightly preheat to a
warm setting for 2 or 3 minutes then turn off.) Now punch down dough
and knead again for 5 more minutes. It is no ready to be stuffed with
fillings.
Comments: This is just a basic yeast dough with perhaps a bit more
sugar added. For those of you who do not care to make this from
scratch, you may use frozen bread dough as a substitute.
FILLING AND COOKING THE BUNS:
Wrapping:
Divide filling into 24 portions. Divide dough into 24 balls.
Slightly flatten each ball then roll out into 4-inch discs, leaving
the center of the disc twice as thick as the side. Place 1 portion
of the filling in the center of the dough. Gather up the sides
around the filling and twist dough to seal. Place on a 2 inch square
piece of wax paper, twist side down. Put the wrapped buns at least 2
inches apart on a cookie sheet and allow the buns to rise in a
draft-free place (the oven) for another hour.
Steaming:
Steam for 15 minutes. Turn off heat and let steam subside before
lifting cover. [If you don't have an Oriental steamer, you can
improvise by setting a plate on an upside down bowl or can with the
ends cut out in a big kettle or stock pot. Fill the pot with water
up to the bottom of the plate, but not so high that the boiling water
slops over the edge. S.C.]
Baking:
Preheat oven to 350F. Set buns 2 inches apart on cookie sheet.
Brush with a mixture of 1 beaten egg white, 1 teaspoon water and 1/4
teaspoon sugar. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.
Brush with melted butter.
