Baozi are Chinese steamed buns that can be filled with a variety of ingredients and dressed with different sauces. Making them involves two steps: making the dough and making the filling. The dough is made by proofing yeast, adding warm water, salt, sugar, and flour, and kneading it until smooth. The filling can be made with a range of ingredients, from meat to vegetables to sweet pastes. Once the dough has risen, it is cut into pieces, filled, and steamed for 10 to 20 minutes. Baozi can be served immediately, refrigerated, or frozen.
Baozi are Chinese steamed buns that are commonly offered in dim sum parlors and some Chinese restaurants. Many people love this Chinese delicacy, which can come in a variety of flavors, and luckily they’re quite easy to make at home. Thanks to the variety of fillings and sauces that can be used with baozi, it’s usually possible to make something for every taste, and this dish can be a big hit at potlucks and dinner parties.
There are two steps to making baozi: making the dough and making the filling. In some cases, these buns are simply steamed as-is, without any fillings, but they can also be filled with things like red bean paste, mushrooms, vegetable mixes, chicken, barbecued pork, lotus flowers, and an assortment of other ingredients. Depending on the filling, the baozi can be savory or sweet and can be dressed with chili sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, and a variety of other ingredients to taste.
To prepare the baozi dough, start by proofing a packet of yeast in half a cup of warm water with two tablespoons of sugar. When the yeast has expanded, add one cup of warm water and one-half teaspoon salt and whisk rapidly to mix. For sweet dessert baozi, you can add another spoonful of sugar. Next, add four cups of the flour, one at a time, beating well as you do. You may need to add slightly more or slightly less flour; the goal is to create a cohesive ball of dough.
Once the dough is made, it should be kneaded on a floured board or counter until smooth, which takes about 15 minutes, then it should be left to rise, covered with a damp towel, for an hour or until it has doubled in bulk. While the dough is rising, you can prepare the filling. If you’re using something like ground bean paste or prepared candied lotus, the filling doesn’t require much work, of course, so you just set up the package. For things like barbecued chicken and pork, the filling will need to be cooked through; many Chinese markets sell pre-cooked meats that can be used for this purpose, or you can make your own ahead of time. Vegetables like bok choy, water chestnuts, carrots, mushrooms, and anything else you can imagine only need to be chopped and lightly seasoned, as they will cook when the baozi is steamed.
After the baozi dough has risen, turn it out onto a floured counter and push it into a disc shape. Sprinkle a teaspoon of baking powder over the dough and knead it again until smooth, before cutting it into 12 equal pieces. Cover the pieces with a damp towel as you work so they don’t dry out.
To make an individual filled sandwich, take a piece of dough and press it into a slightly thicker disk in the middle. Cup the puck in your hand and press a spoonful of filling into the center. Using the other hand, bring the edges of the disc together and twist them to seal the sandwich, then place it on a piece of parchment paper. Continue this process until all the buns are done, then set them on for an hour, covered with a damp towel.
Once the baozi have risen, steam them for 10 to 20 minutes, depending on their size; you may want to open one and test it. The finished steamed buns can be served immediately, refrigerated for a few days, or frozen, as needed; to reheat, simply steam the baozi again.
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