Bethany: Yummy Steamed Buns

Hello again!

Today I woke up and decided that I wanted to make some steamed buns. I've made them a couple of times before and although they tasted ok, neither my husband or I were too crazy about them. This time, I decided to try and make my buns better. Steamed buns are something that my husband grew up eating all the time, mostly for breakfast or as a snack. Because he is accustomed to his mother's bread, I hated to disappoint again.

All that to say, this time I was quite pleased with my changes and even my husband thought they tasted good. Store bought frozen steamed buns do still taste a little better and sweeter, but I would rather make them myself for cheaper. Although I do not intend to make this a food blog, I thought that I would share my recipe and some pictures with you all.

So, here you go.

Steamed Buns

Ingredients:

4 cups flour
1 tsp yeast
1 tsp baking powder
2 1/2 tsp sugar
pinch of salt
1 1/4 cup water (use room-temperature, not cold)

* For these buns, I used all purpose flour and they came out pretty good. But talking to my mother-in-law today, she says that using Hong Kong flour (you can find it at asian grocery stores) makes the color and texture better.

Instructions:

Mix all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Slowly add water and stir contents until the mixture thickens into chunks.
Next use your hands to knead the chunks into smooth dough.
Set dough in large bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Allow dough to sit until it doubles in size.
Remove dough from bowl and cut into about 10 pieces (or according to your preference).
I place my buns on wax paper to prevent the bottom of the buns from getting soggy.
Boil water and steam the buns for about 15 minutes over high heat (or steam them in the rice cooker like I did).
Take the buns out, and enjoy either warm or cold.