I have had an obsession with bao buns since the first time I had them at a restaurant in London called ‘On The Bab’. The spicy mayo, crispy chicken and pickled onions against the softness of the hot freshly baked buns are a match made in heaven!!! I do hope you try this recipe because they are fairly easy to make they just need a bit of time and patience. This recipe makes about 16 buns which can feed 4 really hungry people.
Ingredients:
Pickled Onions:
- 1 big red onion, thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons of sugar
- 2 teaspoons of white vinegar
Spicy Mayo:
- 1/2 cup of mayo
- 1/4 cup of sriracha (add more if you like it spicier)
Crispy Chicken:
- 2 chicken breasts, sliced into fat strips
- 3/4 tablespoon of garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika, whichever one you prefer
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 3 cups natural yogurt
- About 2 cups of flour or more
Bao Buns:
- 2 1/2 cups of flour
- 2 tablespoons of skim milk powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons instant dry yeast
- 2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
- 3 tablespoons vegetable or corn oil
- 400 ml warm water, about
Method:
Pickled onions:
- Slice the onion julienne
- Add sugar and vinegar
- Mix well to combine.
- This can be refrigerated for 2 days.
Spicy Mayo:
- Combine mayo and sriracha and mix well
Crispy chicken:
- Sprinkle prepared chicken strips with garlic powder, paprika, salt and pepper and massage the spices into the strips.
- Transfer chicken to the yogurt and let marinate for at least two hours.
- After two hours transfer chicken and all the yogurt in a bowl with 2 cups of flour.
- Using your hands mix to coat all the chicken pieces very well.
- Heat vegetable oil and fry the chicken in batches.
- Sprinkle sea salt on the cooked strips.
Bao Buns:
- In a big bowl place all the dry ingredients and give it a good mix using a fork or a whisk and make a well.
- In a small bowl mix the warm water and oil together and add this to the dry ingredients.
- Using a wooden spoon start gradually incorporating the ingredients together, add a bit more warm water if dough seems too dry.
- Flour a working surface, tip the dough and start kneading till you end up with a soft, non sticky dough.
- Place in a clean bowl, cover and leave to rest in a warm place until double in size.
- After dough has risen flour your working surface and knead the dough again for 5 minutes to get rid of all the air bubbles.
- Using a rolling pin stretch the dough to about 1/2 cm thick.
- Dip your fingers in a bit of vegetable oil and spread all over the dough.
- Using a pastry cutter or a cup cut our circles of about 8-10 cm in diameter.
- Fold each circle in half and place on a piece of baking paper. Repeat till you finish all the dough. Cover again and let rest for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes place the buns in the steamer and cook for 5-6 minutes.
Time to assemble!! Carefully open a bun, spread spicy mayo, add chicken and top with pickled onions. You can add spring onions for garnish and amazing flavor!!!
Buon Appetito!!