Snow Baos
Posted by Sylvia on Mon 21 July 2008
I made these at Christmas and no one laughed at my name! I thought I was being really clever. But at least everyone ate them up pretty quick. I bet you can just buy Charsui to use as a filling locally – I have to make mine. But the other great filling is separately added here as Bunny Bao – using this dough but very western (Easter) filling – everyone loves it.
Filling of choice (pork char sui or egg and bacon filling recommended)
For the dough:
• 400g / 14 oz. all-purpose white flour
• 1 packet (7g) dry yeast
• 2 Tbs. sugar
• ½ tsp. salt
• 220ml / a bit less than 1 U.S. cup warm water
• 2 Tbs. vegetable oil (such as canola, safflower)
• extra flour for rolling out
In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients together well. Add the warm water a little at a time, mixing all the time, until it forms a shaggy ball. Add the oil and knead in the bowl until the dough cleans the sides. Place on a board (lightly floured if necessary) and knead until smooth. Form into a ball, place back in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Leave until risen to about 2½ times its original size, about 1 hour.
Punch down the risen dough, roll into a snake and cut into 12 equal pieces. Make each piece into a small, smooth ball. Cover with a dampened kitchen towel and let rest for about 15 minutes.
Cut the parchment paper into 12 10cm / 4 inches or so sized squares.
Flatten a dough ball to about 12 cm / 5 inches in diameter, making the edges thinner than the middle part.
Place about 1 teaspoon of the filling in the middle of the dough circle. Don’t try to overfill or you will have trouble closing up the dough.
Gather up the dough around the filling, pinching to seal well. The dough should be moist enough to form a good seal, but if not brush the edges with the tiny bit of water and pinch closed again.
Flip the bun over, and gently form into a ball shape.
Place each bun on a piece of parchment paper, and place in a steamer well apart (they will puff up to about twice the size, and any touching parts will not be smooth). Steam for about 20 minutes. Eat while piping hot.
Yields: 12 dumplings
Time to make: 2 hr