Chinese Steamed Buns Mantou 饅頭
My dearest grandma 奶奶 used to make basketfuls of these basic chinese steamed buns, known as Mantou 饅頭, and feed them to us hungry children day in and day out, filling our hungry growing tummies with this sweet fluffy bread.
- Prep time
- 10 min
- Cook time
- 15 min
- Yield
- 6 servings
- Difficulty
- EASY
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 2 cups all purpose flour, 240g
- 1 1/2 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 1 tsp instant yeast
- 2 tsp lard or sesame oil
Instructions
- 1
Dissolve sugar in 1/2 cup warm water in small bowl, add the yeast and mix to incorporate. Let stand undisturbed for 10 mins or until foam head forms over the the water.
- 2
Sift flour, add lard and use fingertips to rub it in until flour resembles crumbs.
- 3
Add in the yeast water and mix until dough comes together. If the dough does not come together, add in extra water, 1 tbsp at a time.
- 4
Knead the dough. The dough should end up soft, smooth and elastic. To achieve soft as baby bottom softness add additional water a careful tsp at a time, incorporating thoroughly each time until the consistency is correct.
- 5
Put kneaded dough in a deep bowl and cover. Let rise in a warm spot for 2-3 hours or until the dough almost triples in size.
- 6
Punch the dough down.
- 7
Sprinkle working surface lightly with flour and roll out the dough to a 12 by 6 inch rectangle.
- 8
Roll up the dough starting from the long side and use sharp knife to cut the roll into 6 equal sections.
- 9
Cut out 6 nos. 3 x 2 inch pieces of parchment paper.
- 10
Place each bun seam side down on paper and place into steamer, leaving approx 2 inches between the buns.
- 11
Cover and let rise for 30 mins or until springy to the touch.
- 12
Steam over high heat for 15 mins.