This is the kind of street food I crave - and just writing this post up now has made me throw out the idea of what we were going to have for dinner (which was steak fajitas btw) and replace them with this. I HAVE to eat them again. These are pretty large Bao buns (you can see in the pic below that they completely fill my hand), so one is probably enough for dinner. But we’re a little greedy, so I’ll be making extra, with some leftovers for lunch tomorrow.
I first made bao buns early last year for Neff. I have one of their steam ovens, which makes steaming these buns really easy. However, I’ve written (and tested) this recipe using my steam pan.(<– affiliate link). If you don’t have one, I thoroughly recommend getting yourself one. I use mine all the time for steaming veggies. They’re stack-able, so you’re saving hob space too - which is very useful when you’re making something with multiple dishes - like a good old roast beef dinner. Let’s get back to the Gua Bao! You can check out the full recipe in the recipe card at the bottom of this post, but here’s the run-through with some pictures to help: I start off making dough for the buns: Then steam in a steam pan for 15 minutes:
I normally start slow cooking the pork when the buns are going through their first prove:
Then pile that sticky pork into the bao buns with lots of fresh coriander (cilantro), spring onions (scallions), strips of chilli, sesame seeds and chopped cashews:
You can also make mini versions of these buns - dividing the dough into 20 buns, or even 30 buns for bitesize ones. They’re great for a party food or as part of a buffet.
Other fillings for steamed bao buns:
Chicken Satay Skewers with Spicy Peanut Sauce Thai Fish Cakes - with a drizzle of the chilli dipping sauce that comes with this recipe Katsu Pork with Katsu curry sauce Asian Chicken from my Asian chicken lettuce wraps Chinese Crispy Chicken with Honey Garlic Sauce Korean Beef Bulgogi from my bulgogi bowl Sesame Chicken - my favourite Asian chicken recipe
Other Asian Street Food Inspired Recipes:
Pad Thai with king prawns Chicken Lo Mein - super easy to throw together Special Fried Rice - this is my masterclass post - taking you through it from start to finish - including how to boil the rice perfectly Asian Sticky Chicken Wings - or cauliflower wings for a vegetarian version Kway Teow - another vegetarian option Malaysian Mee Siam - ready in 30 minutes!
The Gua Bao Recipe:
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