Spring Onion Flower Buns
Serves: 8 buns
Soft and fluffy Spring Onion Flower Buns (Scallion Flower Buns) which are the perfect accompaniment to many Asian meals. Recipe with step-by-step photos.
Ingredients
For the Bao Buns
- 300 g (2 cups) plain flour , (all-purpose flour) or bleached flour
- 125 g (1 cup) cornflour , (US: cornstarch)
- 60 g (5 tablespoons) caster sugar , (superfine sugar)
- 3 ½ g (1 teaspoon) instant dried yeast, also called instant dried yeast or fast-action dried yeast (see Kitchen Notes)
- 12 g (2 ½ teaspoons) baking powder
- 180 ml (¾ cup) warm water
- 60 ml (¼ cup) vegetable oil, plus extra
For the Filling
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, or sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- ¼ cup spring onions, (scallions) finely chopped
Instructions
To Prepare the Bao Buns
- Measure all of the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl or the bowl of an electric stand-mixer (if using).
- Measure the warm water and oil into a measuring jug. The water needs to be a bit more than lukewarm to help activate the yeast, but it shouldn't be boiling hot.
- Using the dough hook on medium speed, mixing the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients. Depending on the type of flour which you have used, you might need more or less liquid that than stated in the recipe.
- Once you have a sticky dough, continue kneading the dough on medium speed until it becomes soft and smooth to touch. This should take about 10 minutes using the stand-mixer on medium speed, or about 5 minutes by hand.
- Once the dough is soft and smooth, I recommend kneading it by hand for a few more minutes on the kitchen benchtop.
- Place the ball of dough back into the (clean) mixing bowl.
- Cover the bowl with some cling film or a re-usable bowl cover.
- Place the bowl somewhere warm for about 60 to 90 minutes for the dough to rise and double in size.
To Prepare the Flower Buns
- Once the dough has doubled in size, gently remove it from the bowl.
- Roll out the dough into a rectangle, measuring approximately 20 cm x 30 cm (8 x 12 inches).
- Brush some oil all over the dough.
- Lightly sprinkle some salt onto the dough.
- Generously sprinkle over the spring onions (scallions).
- Fold ⅓ of the dough towards the centre, and cover with the remaining ⅓ of the dough.
- Using a sharp knife or dough cutter, portion the dough into 16 equal pieces. If you wish to make smaller buns, divide the dough into 18 or 20 pieces (you need to have an even number of pieces).
To Shape the Flower Buns
- Take 2 pieces of dough.
- Place one piece of dough on top of the other.
- Place a chopstick across the middle of the dough lengthwise.
- Push the chopstick down to press the dough pieces together. Remove the chopstick.
- Use your hands to gently stretch the piece of dough to about 20 cm/8 inches.
- Drape the dough over the chopstick and pinch the ends of the dough together.
- Rotate the chopstick with the dough anti-clockwise by 360°, in an under-and-over movement.
- Place the dough onto the counter. Push the dough wrapped around the chopstick onto the pinched ends. Slide out the chopstick.
- Place all of the shaped buns onto a large tray, cover with a tea towel, and place in a warm place for about 30 minutes for the buns to rise again. After this time, the bao buns should have puffed up slightly.
To Steam the Flower Buns
- Meanwhile, prepare the steamer on the stove (see Kitchen Notes below).
- Steam the buns in batches for 10 to 12 minutes, or until they are puffy and soft, and cooked all the way through.
- Serve the buns immediately.
Kitchen Notes
- DIFFERENT TYPES OF YEAST
* Please note that there is a difference between instant yeast (also called instant dried yeast or fast-action dried yeast) and dried yeast (also called active dry yeast). If you are not sure what type of yeast you have, please check the packaging for instructions on how to use the yeast.
* With instant yeast, you can add it directly to the flour mixture without having to activate it first.
* With dried yeast, you will need to activate it first (usually in some warm liquid). - WHAT TYPE OF FLOUR TO USE
* Plain flour (all-purpose flour) works well in this recipe as the cornflour (cornstarch) helps to give the buns a light and fluffy texture. However, the resulting buns will be a pale yellow in colour.
* For snowy white buns like those sold in Chinese restaurants, you can use bleached flour found in Asian grocery stores. - HOW TO STEAM BAO BUNS
* The steamer basket (whether bamboo or otherwise) should sit directly on top of a saucepan of the same dimension.
* Fill the saucepan with boiling water until about one-third full.
* Place the steamer basket on top of the saucepan.
* Place the bao buns in the steamer basket, leaving a bit of room for each to rise and puff up during cooking.
* Place the lid on top of the steamer basket.
* Steam over low-medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes. - HOW TO MAKE BAO BUNS WITH A STEAM OVEN
* First Proof: Cover the bowl with some cling film or a re-usable bowl cover. Proof the dough in the steam oven/combi-steam oven at 40°C/104°F for about 1.5 hours, or until the dough has doubled in size.
* Second Proof: Once you have shaped the bao buns and placed them onto a small sheet of baking paper each, place them onto a large tray that will fit inside your steam oven/combi-steam oven. For my steam oven, I can fit a large sheet pan, which will comfortably fit 12 bao buns. There is no need to cover the buns. Proof the shaped bao buns at 40°C/104°F for about 15-30 minutes, or until the buns have puffed up slightly.
* Steaming the Bao Buns: Remove the tray of bao buns from the steam oven/combi-steam oven. Increase the temperature to 100°C/212°F. Once the steam oven/combi-steam oven has come to temperature, place the tray of bao buns back inside and steam them for 10-12 minutes. - HOW TO FREEZE BAO BUNS
Any leftover buns can be frozen in zip-lock bags for 1-2 months. Reheat the frozen steamed buns in a stovetop steamer for about 5 minutes, or until they are warmed all the way through. - CONVERSIONS
To convert from cups to grams, and vice-versa, please see this handy Conversion Chart for Basic Ingredients.