Siopao Filipino Steamed Buns Recipes

Steps:

• Dissolve yeast in the water; stir in the sugar and beat in 2 1/2 cups of rice flour to make a soft sponge. Set aside in a warm place to double in bulk, about 40 minutes. Mix in 2 more cups of rice flour and 1/4 cup of shortening and place the dough on a greased work surface; knead in the remaining 1/4 cup of shortening to make a smooth dough. Cut the dough into 15 equal-sized pieces; form each piece into a ball.
• Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat; cook and stir the onion and garlic in the hot oil until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken, soy sauce, 2 teaspoons of sugar, green onion, salt, and pepper. If the mixture is juicy, add cornstarch to thicken.
• Working on a lightly greased work surface, flatten a dough ball into a circle about 4 inches in diameter with the heel of your hand. Place about 1 tablespoon of filling into the center of the dough ball, bring the edges of the dough together at the top, and pinch and twist to seal in the filling. Place each filled dumpling onto waxed paper with the pinched seal at the bottom while you finish the rest of the dumplings.
• Spray a multi-layered bamboo steamer with cooking spray, place the steamer on top of a large saucepan, and pour in water to several inches below the steamer. Bring the water to a boil.
• Working in several batches, place 3 or 4 filled buns into each steamer layer without letting the buns touch each other or the edge of the steamer, cover the steamer, and let the buns steam over medium-low heat until puffy and the dough is springy, about 15 minutes per batch. Serve warm.

Steps:

• Heat milk in a microwave-safe container in a microwave until lukewarm, but not scalding, 15 to 30 seconds. Mix warm milk, vegetable oil, water, and eggs together in a bowl.
• Mix flour, yeast, and salt together in a separate bowl. Stir in milk mixture until fully incorporated. Cover the bowl and let rest for 15 minutes.
• Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic, adding flour as needed if too sticky to work with, about 5 minutes. Shape dough into a smooth ball by tucking folded ends under. Place dough ball into a clean bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm area until doubled in size, 1 hour to 90 minutes.
• While dough is rising, prepare filling by placing pork in a bowl with soy sauce, sugar, oyster sauce, cornstarch, and black pepper. Mix well to combine.
• Heat vegetable oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Cook and stir onion, garlic, and star anise in the hot oil for 2 minutes. Add ground pork mixture and cook until browned and crumbly, breaking up any large clumps of meat that may form, 4 to 5 minutes. Pour in water; reduce heat and let simmer, scraping the bottom of the pan occasionally until filling is glazed but not soupy, about 10 minutes. Refrigerate filling until dough is ready.
• Preheat the oven to 100 degrees F (37 degrees C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Portion dough out into golf ball-sized pieces (about 2 inches in diameter). Arrange on the prepared baking pan with 1 to 2 inches of space between them. Flatten dough balls using your hand to 1/4-inch thickness, or slightly larger than the palm of your hand. Put 1 tablespoon filling in the dough centers. Gather edges of dough at the top; twist, and pinch to seal. Replace each bun back on the prepared baking sheet.
• Turn off the oven once it has reached temperature.
• Transfer the baking sheet to the warm oven and let buns rest until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
• Heat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C), leaving buns inside.
• Bake buns until bottoms are lightly browned, 12 to 15 minutes.