Lately, I've been experimenting a lot with making steamed buns with a combination of fillings, and a variety of additions to the dough itself. Maybe it's because now that I'm not working, I have a lot of time to make things that in the past, I would not even consider making at all. Those 3 hour daily commutes and 10 hours work days (sometimes 12!) usually zapped the energy out of me by the end of the day.
But with work out of the way, I'm now finding that creating and testing different combinations of bao dough and filling is quite fun!
From my experiments, there were certainly duds, but some successes, like the turmeric carrot curry beef bao bun that I shared, or the vegan purple sweet potato bao buns also previously shared here. My latest creation is a spinach bao dough paired with a pork and spinach filling with a surprise chunk of Chinese sausage. As you can see from the pictures, the amount of filling is quite generous. I LOVE my bao buns that way, but to my surprise, most people actually like the dough!
I had shared my bao buns with my sisters and parents and they all complained that while they were tasty, there's too much filling. So if you are a dough person, then my recommendation is to make only half the pork filling recipe, but the same amount of dough for 12 Spinach Pork Sausage Bao Buns.
Mix, Knead and Rise Dough. Divide into 12 pieces
Mix Together Filling Ingredients & Cut Chinese Sausages into 12 Pieces
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| Pork and Spinach filling |
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| Chinese sausage |
Filling the Bao Buns
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| Flatten dough. Add pork filling. Top with sausage. |
Forming the Bao Buns
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| Gather sides of the dough and pinch to seal in the fillings |
Steaming the Bao Buns
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| Look at these fluffy buns after steaming! These are the four best looking ones that I set aside for a photo. I could just stop there... BUT I'm not gonna lie to you... |
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| Most of them look bumpy and ugly like these! I guess I have to be more patient to let the buns "set" in the steamer for the full 3 minutes with the heat OFF. |
Yields 12 buns
Ingredients for dough:
- 1/4 c frozen chopped spinach, thawed and water squeezed out
- 2 c and 2 T bread flour or all purpose flour
- 1 T sugar
- 1 t yeast
- 2/3 c water
- 1 T olive oil
- ¼ t baking soda
- ¼ t salt
Ingredients for Pork and Spinach filling*:
- 1 lb 85% lean ground pork (you can use fattier pork too if you like a juicier meat, but I'm trying to eat healthier)
- 1½ c frozen chopped spinach, thawed and water squeezed out
- 2 t grated ginger
- 1 t salt
- ½ t ground black pepper
- 1 t sugar
- 1 t garlic powder
- 2 t soy sauce
- 1 t mirin
- 2 T dried chopped onions
- 2 t cornstarch
- 3 Chinese sausages cut into 12 pieces (I used the Kam Yen Jan brand of Chinese style sausage that they actually sell at my Costco)
* This makes a lot of filling. Make only half recipe for the pork spinach filling if you like a larger dough to filling ratio
Procedures:
1. Thaw the spinach and squeeze out the water.
2. If you have a bread maker, add all the dough ingredients to the bread maker and set it to the dough setting so that the bread maker will mix, knead, and rise the dough for you. If you don’t have a bread maker, then mix all the dough ingredients together in a bowl until combined. Then knead the dough for 15 minutes until smooth. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and allow it to rise for 45 minutes, or until approximately double in size.
3. While the dough is rising, make the filling by mixing all the ingredients for the Pork and Spinach filling EXCEPT for the Chinese sausage. Set aside until the dough is ready.
4. After the dough is done rising, place the dough on a lightly floured surface and divide the dough into 12 equal pieces.
5. Flatten each piece of dough and place a large heaping spoonful of pork spinach filling in the middle. Add a piece of Chinese sausage in the middle. Pinch the bun closed, and round it out with the palm of your hands. Place the seam side down onto a cupcake liner or a piece of square parchment paper. Repeat until all 12 pieces of dough are used up.
6. Cover the filled buns with a clean cloth and allow them to rest for 15 minutes.
7. Steam the buns for 18 minutes on medium heat. When the 18 minutes are up, turn off the heat and crack the steamer lid open on one side, being careful not to let any water drip onto the buns. Allow the buns to "set" for 3 minutes in the steamer, then remove from the steamer and enjoy hot or at room temperature. You can also freeze these and steam them or microwave them to warm up.