Char Siew Bao

CHAR SIEW FILLING

Ingredients

350g pork shoulder

3/4 tsp salt

2 Tbs sugar

3/4 Tbs vegetable oil

3/4 Tbs hoisin sauce

2 Tbs light soya sauce

3/4 Tbs shaoxing wine

110g honey

2 small shallots, finely chopped

1 tsp corn flour

2 Tbs water

1 tsp roasted white sesame seeds

Method

1. Cut pork shoulder lengthwise into 4cm-wide strips. Rinse under running water, pat dry and set aside.

2. Put salt, sugar, vegetable oil, hoisin sauce, light soya sauce, shaoxing wine, 85g honey and shallots together. Microwave mixture on high for 20 seconds. Remove and whisk to mix well.

3. Put pork in a re-sealable plastic bag and pour marinade over the meat, coating the meat evenly. Press out the air, seal the bag and refrigerate overnight.

4. Pre-heat oven to 230 deg C for at least 30 minutes before baking. Line a baking tray with aluminium foil and place a metal rack in the tray.

5. Remove pork from bag, pat dry with paper towels and place it on the rack. Reserve the marinade.

6. Roast the pork for 15 minutes before turning it over. Roast another 15 minutes, then remove the tray from oven.

7. Flip the pork over, brush it with honey and put it back in the oven for three minutes. Remove the tray again, turn the meat over, glaze with honey and roast for two more minutes in the oven.

8. Remove the pork from the oven and leave it to rest for 20 minutes before dicing into small cubes. Set aside.

9. Dissolve cornflour in water and set aside.

10. Pour marinade into a non-stick pan and bring it to a boil.

11. Add diced char siew to the boiling marinade and cook on medium heat for 2 minutes.

12. Add sesame seeds and cook for another minute. Add cornflour mixture to thicken the sauce. Stir well, remove from the heat and leave to cool. Set aside.


BUO LUO BAO

Ingredients

300g bread flour, sifted

71/4 tsp milk powder

3/4 tsp salt

60g sugar

2 eggs, beaten

2 tsp instant yeast

140g water

105g butter

125g cake flour, sifted

63g icing sugar, sifted

char siew filling (above)

Method

1. Use an electric stand mixer to mix together the bread flour, 6 tsp milk powder, 1/2 tsp salt, sugar, 2 Tbs beaten egg, instant yeast and water for 8 minutes on medium speed.

2. Add 30g butter, softened at room temperature, and mix for 10 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic.

3. Roll dough into a ball and place it in a lightly greased bowl. Cover the bowl with cling wrap and leave it in a warm place for 1 hour or until the dough doubles in size.

4. Put cake flour, icing sugar, 11/4 tsp milk powder, 1/4 tsp salt and 75g butter, cut into cubes and chilled, into a bowl. Rub the mixture with your fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs.

5. Gradually add 21/2 Tbs beaten egg to the crumbly pastry and mix till well incorporated.

6. Roll this dough, which forms the crust of the bun, into a ball. Place it in a bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes to let it harden slightly.

7. When the bread dough has doubled in size, punch out the air and divide the dough into 10 portions. Cover the dough with cling wrap and leave to rest for 15 minutes at room temperature.

8. Remove the dough for the crust from the refrigerator and divide it into 10 portions. Set aside.

9. Flatten one portion of the bread dough into a circle of about 12cm in diameter and scoop 1 Tbs of char siew filling into the centre. Wrap the dough around the filling and seal it. Place the sealed end face-down on a greased baking tray.

10. Flatten one portion of the pastry crust dough, place it on top of a bun and press down lightly to secure the crust. Repeat steps 9 and 10 for the remaining nine portions.

11. Use a sharp knife to score the crust of the buns with a diamond pattern (above, left). Leave at room temperature for 1 hour.

12. Pre-heat oven to 180 deg C for 15 minutes.

13. Glaze the top of each bun with beaten egg wash.

14. Bake the buns for 20 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven and leave them to cool.

Makes 10.