Steamed BBQ Beef Buns

These fluffy steamed buns are just like the ones you have your eye on when you go for Dim Sum.
Directions for: Steamed BBQ Beef Buns

Ingredients

Beef Filling

1 cups (200 g) diced cooked beef (such as braised pot roast or roast beef)

cup (60 mL) ketchup

2 Tbsp (25 g) granulated sugar

2 Tbsp (30 mL) cider vinegar

1 Tbsp (15 mL) light soy sauce

1 Tbsp (15 mL) hoisin sauce

1-inch (2.5 cm) piece fresh ginger, finely grated

1 tsp (3 g) Chinese 5-spice powder

1 cups (185 g) all-purpose flour

1 cup (130 g) cake and pastry flour

cup (70 g) granulated sugar

1 Tbsp (9 g) baking powder

6 Tbsp (90 mL) 2% milk

3 Tbsp (45 mL) water

2 Tbsp (30 mL) vegetable oil

Directions

Beef Filling

1. For the filling, place the beef in a small saucepan and add the ketchup, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, ginger and 5-spice and stir occasionally over medium heat until the sauce reduces a little, about 5-7 minutes. Set aside to cool.

1. For the dough, sift the flours, sugar and baking powder into a large mixing bowl. Add the milk, water and oil and stir this with a wooden spoon until it becomes too difficult to do so. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead the dough by hand until it feels smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Set this back in the bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest on the counter for an hour.

2. On a lightly flour work surface, cut the dough into 8 equal pieces. Roll each piece to as close to -inch (6 mm) as possible, then using a 4-inch (10 cm) round cutter, cut out a circle. To fill each bun, hold a piece of dough in the palm of your hand and shape it with your fingers to make it more like a cup. Put a tablespoonful of the beef filling in the centre and then pinch the edges of the dough up and around to seal it in it does take a bit of practice to make precise folds, so have patience. Place each bun, with the pinched end up, on a 2-inch (5 cm) square piece of parchment paper.

3. Fill the bottom of a wok or other large pot that will hold a large bamboo steamer with water and bring this to a full boil over high heat. Arrange 4 buns into the steamer (if you have 2 baskets, you can stack them, with 4 buns in each). Cover and steam for 13-15 minutes the buns will open up as they steam this is expected. Remove the steamed buns with tongs and serve within 40 minutes of steaming.