Chinese Steamed Bun with Duck Confit | Bao Momofuku-Style

Buns on a steam tray ready to go into a 220°F and 90% humidity oven.

This is a global bun that dabbles in the world cuisine. First of all, it is a hybrid of the chinese steamed bun and duck confit, which is preserved duck by slow-cooking it in its own fat. Confit is a common technique in French cooking. At the same time, you can think of the Chinese steamed bun as two pieces of bread or a sandwich, stuffed with preserved meat, cucumber, green onion and a homemade hoisin sauce in between. In addition, this bread stands out having a unique clam-shell design. Pile up high with all the stuffings you like. Then neatly hold it between your fingers and eat — nothing will escape. Take a few more bites of the steamed bun with duck confit, you’ll be thinking of the next one. It’s seriously good.

If you’re still not convinced to take the plunge, go to Momofuku. Consider ordering David Chang’s pork bun. After the first bite, you’d probably want to order a second one. Then another one…. They’re addictive.

This is the first time I make the Chinese steamed buns at home. Since it’s a straight dough, the breadmaking process is fairly manageable. Although there is a twist: you might need to use a bamboo steamer basket, for best results. Over the years I have accumulated several of these steamers. For some reasons, I don’t get too much use out of them. As a result, they’ve languished on top of the shelf.

Stuffings: Duck confit, cucumber, scallions and homemade hoisin sauce.

When the shaped dough is fully proofed, it’s time to steam the buns. I steam four at a time in one basket over a pan of boiling water, for 10 minutes for each batch. For the full recipe of 50 buns, there is a long queue for the steamer. You have to learn to take turns.

I like to speed things up. Hence, I put a small tray of three buns in the convection-steam oven — just to test things out. First, I set the temperature at 275°F and 80% humidity. Cook the buns for about 10 minutes. When they come out, they look every bit as good as those steamed in the bamboo baskets.

However, my husband noticed that the bun’s exterior had a slight crust to it. Subsequently, I made some marginal adjustments to the oven setting. Lowered the temperature to 220°F and 90% humidity. Finally, the next and last attempt: the tray with nine buns went in. That’s it.

After some tinkering, I’ve found a way to steam half the recipe (20-30 buns), all at once, in the convection-steam oven. (Or try experiment with placing a hot pan of boiling water in a regular convection oven.) Above all, it’s a good day in the kitchen — a revelation.

The steamer baskets consist of a stack of sturdy baskets and a thinly woven cover. Since they are made of bamboo leaves, which are porous and breathable, they are perfect for steaming. Most notably, bamboo allows the steam to rise and escape above without water condensing under the cover and on the surface of the buns. Therefore, by setting the convection-steam oven at approximately the boiling temperature (212°F) and 80-90% humidity, I emulate a similar environment as the buns cook in the Chinese steamer baskets. Works like a charm.

With a quick and efficient method on hand, the steamer baskets, unfortunately, are heading back on the shelf.

Buns coming out of the bamboo steamer basket.

Summary of the Chinese steamed bun dough:

• A David Chang recipe.
• Dough ingredients consist of: yeast, water, sugar, salt, bread flour, milk powder, baking powder, baking soda and rendered fat. I used duck fat. See the recipe below for details.
• A same-day straight dough.
• I made half a recipe. The cheat sheet (Chinese-Bun-Momofuku) outlines various scaling sizes (in grams) and baker’s percentages.

Print Recipe

Chinese Steamed Bun | Bao Momofuku Style

Serves: 50 buns

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon (25g) active dry yeast
• 1 1/2 cups (338g) water, at room temperature
• 4 1/4 cups (489g) bread flour
• 6 tablespoons (30g) sugar
• 3 tablespoons (21g) nonfat dry milk powder
• 1 tablespoon (10g) kosher salt
• Rounded 1/2 teaspoon (2.5g) baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon (2.5g) baking soda
• 1/3 cup (75g) rendered duck fat or neutral oil, at room temperature, plus more for shaping the buns, as needed

Instructions

1

Combine yeast & water in the bowl of a stand mixer with a dough hook. Add flour, sugar, milk powder, salt, baking powder, baking soda, & fat and mix on the lowest speed possible for 8 to 10 minutes. The dough should gather together into a neat, not-too-tacky ball on the hook. When it does, oil a medium mixing bowl, put the dough in it, & cover the bowl with a dry kitchen towel. Put in a turned-off oven with a pilot light or other warmish place and let rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour and 15 min.

2

Punch dough down and turn out onto a clean surface. Using a bench scraper or a knife, divide dough in half, then divide each half into 5 equal pieces. Gently roll the pieces into logs, then cut each log into 5 pieces, making 50 pieces total. They should be about the size of a ping pong ball and weigh about 25 grams, or a smidge under an oz. Roll each piece into a ball. Cover dough balls with draped plastic wrap & allow to rest & rise for 30 min.

3

Meanwhile cut out fifty 4" squares of parchment paper. Coat a chopstick with fat.

4

Flatten one ball with palm of your hand, then use a rolling pin to roll it out into a 4-inch-long oval. Lay the greased chopstick across the middle of the oval and fold the oval over onto itself to form the bun shape. Withdraw the chopstick, leaving the bun folded, & put bun onto a square of parchment paper. Stick it back under the plastic wrap & form the rest of the buns. Let the buns rest for 30 to 45 minutes: they will rise a little.

5

Set up a steamer on the stove. Working in batches so you don't crowd the steamer, steam the buns on the parchment squares for 10 minutes. Remove parchment. You can use buns immediately (reheat them for a minute or so in the steamer if necessary) or allow to cool completely, then seal in plastic freezer bags and freeze for up to a few months. Reheat frozen buns in a stovetop steamer for 2 to 3 minutes, until puffy, soft and warmed all the way through.

Notes

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/momofuku-steamed-buns-50165535