Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Baked Char Siu Bao (Baked Roast Pork Bun)



Char Siu (Char Siew) is a popular chinese roast pork often found in Chinese restaurants, eaten with rice or noodles. Personally I prefer Siew Yoke (Crispy Roast Pork) than Char Siu. I especially am not a fan of Char Siu if they are reddish in colour.



You are probably asking " What is she talking about?? Char Siu is reddish in colour!!!" Ok, precisely why I don't prefer it. Something about food coloring and extreme sweetness of the meat that is not to my liking but if I can find char siu which is baked and caramelized well to dark brownish...hmmm I prefer that a lot better. :)

The Char Siu I find here is Dallas are mostly reddish in colour. The taste is pretty ok but I would opt for "siew yoke" anytime. Just the other day, Hubby-D and I decided to order take-out of Siew Yoke for dinner, however as most Chinese Restaurant goes, Siew Yoke typically goes out by lunch time. Furthermore, it is better to order Siew yoke for lunch since it will be at its best, fresh and crispy out of the oven. Ok, no Siew Yoke so we order Char Siu instead. We only managed to finish half of the 1 lb portion so the next day, I decided to surprise Hubby-D with some baked Char Siu Bao.

We usually order this when we have dim sum so I thought it would be nice to attempt it at home and see how it turns out.

A quick search on the Internet and looking at various recipes, gave me a rough idea on how to make it.

Simple Ingredients :
Ingredient A : Char Siu Mix
1. 500gm of Char Siu (cut fine)
2. 1 large onion (Diced fine)
3. 1 TBSP of oyster sauce
4. 1 TBSP of Hoisin sauce
5. 1 TSP of Sesame oil
6. 1 TSP of light soy sauce
7. 1 TSP of dark soy sauce
8. 1 TBSP of Chinese Rice Wine
9. 1 TBSP of corn starch mixed in a bit of water

Ingredient B : Sweet Bun Dough Mix
1. 250gm of All Purpose Flour or Bread Flour
2. 7gm or 1 packet (1/4oz) Instant Yeast
3. 100gm of cold Water and 10gm of milk
4. 4gm of Salt
5. 50gm of Sugar
6. 1 Egg
7. 30gm of Butter (1/4 stick)

Simple Steps :
1. Dice Char Siu into small cubes and also dice the onion.



2. In a pan with a bit of oil, saute the diced onions first for 5 minutes. The add the char siu on top.



3. Add all the seasonings of oyster sauce, sesame oil, hoisin sauce, chinese wine, light and dark soy sauce. Mix well and let it saute for 10 minutes in low heat until all ingredients are well mix. Add, a bit of water if your ingredients are too dry. Add corn starch mix last to thicken the sauce. Set it aside to cool.



4. For the sweet bun dough mix, add all the dry ingredient into mixer and mix on slow speed for 1 minute. Add eggs and water and mix on medium speed for 5 minutes. Add butter and mix for further 10 minutes on medium speed until dough if fully developed. Ferment for 1 hour until dough doubles in size.

5. Scale the dough into 8 - 10 pieces of ping pong sized balls (about 50 - 60gm)and round up with the palm of your hand on table.



6. Rest dough for 10 minutes and then flatten dough (edges flatter). Take a spoonful of filling and wrap onto dough. Turn upside down for smooth surface.



7. Place of baking tray and prove for 1 hour.. Brush eggs on the surface and bake at 350'F for 15 minutes until buns turn golden brown.




What do you think? :)

51 comments:

A Little Yumminess said...

love char siu pao - cannot dream of making it at home. these look GOOD. i am hungry

Lawyer Loves Lunch said...

I love how perfect the bread looks. Even my plain rolls never come out this perfectly- forget stuffing em! :)

Baking Barrister said...

i want i want i want. so is char siu also a specific cut of pork? i've been wanting to make these (preferably steamed) but can't figure out what to buy.

mysimplefood said...

A Little Yumminess - Thanks. Surprisingly it was not difficult to make.

Lawyer Loves Lunch - Thanks. dear. I have my hits and misses. Oh! You don't want to see my misses on bread. I feel like strangling the "yeast" when the bread does not prove properly. But then I can't.

Baking Barrister - Char Siu can be made from pork butt or pork shoulder or even more sinful but delicious - pork belly :) Steamed version is nice too.

tigerfish said...

I absolutely dislike the artificial red coloring of Char Siu too! But I adore your Baked Char Siu Bao. YUms!

mysimplefood said...

Tigerfish - Thanks. I agree. I totally dislike the red coloring...yikes!

MaryMoh said...

I wish I can have some to eat now! Looks perfect and delicious. Looks challenging to me. I'm sure it's worth all the effort.

Nancy said...

I've never been lucky enough to try these. But I can't resist stuffed pastries/buns either sweet or savory. They look so fluffy and delicious. Thanks for sharing your mouth watering recipe..

Belinda @zomppa said...

I LOVE these!! I haven't one in ages and you are making me so hungry. WOW. Maybe I'll psych myself up to make them. I love the roast pig too.

Little Inbox said...

Hmm...I must first learn how to roast char siew first. :)
I have no guts to try making buns yet.

Belly Good Cooking said...

Looks yummy. I do love char siew pao.

vialentino said...

oo la la...look at those pork meat...so yummy ler...

mysimplefood said...

Mary Moh - It's pretty easy as the bun is the sweet bun dough which can be used with any fillings.

Spicie Foodie - You should be able to find this easily in a dim sum restaurant. Try it out.

Belinda - Hi!! Let me know how it turns out when you make them.

Little Inbox - It a sweet bun dough recipe. if the yeast acts nice, the bun will turn out well. :)

Belly Good Cooking - Hi!!! Thanks for dropping by. Bravo on your new blog.

Vialentino - Thanks for dropping by. :)

Christine Ho said...

This is my favourite dim sum. Your fillings are very moist and look delicious.
I also tried to bake it at home. Yummy.

Unknown said...

Wow, that looks absolutely delicious. I don't think I could make the roll as round and beautiful.

Angie's Recipes said...

You even made char siu yourself! How cool! The bao looks delish!

pigpigscorner said...

Not a huge fan of reddish char siu to. I like the ones wih caramelised crust. Your baos look so good!

TasteHongKong said...

Congrats on such success if this is the first time you making them. Colored char siu is what I would also avoid eating.

mysimplefood said...

Christine - Thanks. It was my first attempt. It turned out well. First time lucky.

The Mom Chef - You are too kind. I am sure you can make it better.

Angie - I just tried making dark caramelized CharSiu last weekend. For the charsiu bao, it was bought and that it why I made charsiu bao cos the charsiu was so red.

pigpigscorner - Yeah I really like the dark and caramelized charsiu. I don't find it here though in Dallas restaurants.

Taste Hong Kong - I am always first time lucky. Somehow, my second attempts don't turn out as well, I wonder why??!!

vialentino said...

my pleasure...

so pity...how come no mooncake celebration this year?

Unknown said...

oh man these look so good, too!

mysimplefood said...

Vialentino - Hi! First year in USA so don't think I will get good mooncakes here.

Squeaky Gourmet - Thanks dear for dropping my blog.

Lena @ Miss Lucky Piggy said...

they look good,,, i must try it :D

Saraplicious! Kitchen said...

I just discovered your blog. I'm going to try this sometime. My daughter loves the Filipino version of it - Siopao but I haven't made it myself. Thanks for sharing the recipe!

Carolyn Jung said...

Home-made ones are always the best. Plus, you get a whole lot more filling when you stuff them yourself. ;)

mysimplefood said...

Lena - Do try it. Hope it turns out well.

Saraplicious kitchen - Thanks for dropping by. I hope your daughter likes this version.

Carolyn - You are right. Homemade is always good cos you can adjust the taste yourself, lower the sodium, reduce the butter all to make it healthier :)

3 hungry tummies said...

You believe this! I had two of this today, shop bought of course lol They look fantastic!

mysimplefood said...

3 hungry tummies - I also can't resist everytime I go to the dim sum restaurant cos they put the some shiny on top that seems to call out at you...buy me buy me...

ann low said...

I love Baked Roast Pork Bun a lot. Must bookmark this delicious snack.
Thanks!

mysimplefood said...

Anncoo - Am sure it will turn out great when you make it :)

~Lisa~ said...

These are amazing! You did a fantastic job. And I agree I'm not a fan of food coloring either.

vialentino said...

oic...u r there for studying...no wonder no chance to eat mooncake...pity u...hehehe....my aunt just back from austin texas to malaysia for short visit....

Sook said...

Oh I love these! I have never made them at home but they look so good!

Shirley said...

Your baked roast pork bun looks good! :)

If you want get good mooncake, get HK's Maxim mooncake. They should be available soon in our Asian supermarkets. :)

Jason Phelps said...

Just had these for dim sum this week. Recipe in hand and I can now make them at home!

Jason

Unknown said...

Beautifully done. Making these looks like a labour of love.
Hope you are having a wonderful weekend.
*kisses* HH

Noob Cook said...

it's one of my fave bao. yours look fantastic :D~

mysimplefood said...

Lisa - Thanks. Say no too food colouring but I am still looking for ways to make red velvet cupcakes without the red colouring.???

Valientino - Hopefully I get to see some nice mooncakes here. As long as they are fresh!! I will buy some. :)

Sook - Thanks much for dropping by.

Shirley - Thanks for the tip!! Great! And if it is from Maxim's oooh I am sure it will be great!! hope I see them.

Jason - Tell me how it when when you bake them :)

Heavenly Housewife - You are so sweet and absolutely right. I bake for my Hubby-D and he appreciates it so. Hope you are having a great weekend too!

Noobcook - Thanks dear. I can't resist buying them too whenever I see them esp if they are moist and soft. My first attempt is ok but still can be improved.

marla {family fresh cooking} said...

Your roast pork buns look great. I know the red color freaks me out a bit too. The flavors in these must be grand :)

lisa is cooking said...

These buns look like fun to make. I've never tried, but I'd like to!

The Blonde Duck said...

It sounds delicious!

mysimplefood said...

Marla - Thanks dear. We are on the same page on the coloring.

Lisa - if you like char siew, I am quite sure you will like these buns.

The Blonde Duck - Thanks :)

Anonymous said...

I love these beautiful buns! so soft and puffy. Bookmarked to make soon :)

Tangled Noodle said...

I am bookmarking this! I don't mind sweet with savory but I do like that your recipe doesn't add any artificial color. Since finding good dim sum here can sometimes be diffcult, I'd love to make this at home!

mysimplefood said...

Ellie and Tangled Noodles - I do hope the recipe works out for you! Enjoy!!

Chef E said...

Now thats a pork bun I could love! I have only had one and it was David Chang in NYC-Momofuku, and it was not what I expected either, good, but these look fantastic!

mysimplefood said...

Chef E - Thanks. Momofuku's is a bit different. If I am not wrong it is on steamed bun. I hope to try that one day.

Stella said...

Wow, these look amazing-very tempting even to this pork avoiding kitchen witch;)

MyCathie said...

Hi, can we steam this bun instead of bake? I want to do this for my 2 young sons. But baked stuff are very heaty, so, would be nice if we can make this steam style.

mysimplefood said...

hi MyCathie - You are right! Steamed is much healthier. I have not made the steamed ones yet but there are a lot of recipes out there. Ingredients are pretty much the same. I found one on youtube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzG5CXE0hfo

Anonymous said...

Hi, can you make them up and freeze them before you cook them? I would think you could then thaw and let rise in the refrigerator before you baked them? Have you tried it?

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