Name: Bao Buns without Steamer
Prep time: 2 h 30 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 2 h 42 min
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 1/3 cup warm water; 1/2 cup warm milk; 1 tablespoons active dry yeast; 2 tablespoons sugar; 2 tablespoons vegetable oil; 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour; 1/2 teaspoon baking powder; 1/4 teaspoon salt

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This is how to make light, fluffy and soft bao buns without steamer using water, milk, yeast, oil, flour and baking powder.

Want to know how to make Bao Buns without steamer? Do you want to make the most delicious and easiest bao buns ever? I made these without a bamboo steamer and used a regular steamer. They came out light, fluffy and soft. They were SO good. If you have a stand mixer, this will make your life a lot easier.

Head to the recipe below (or watch the video) to see how I make these. If you love this recipe, feel free to try my Keto Orange Chicken.

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Equipment
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
Variations
Storage
Top tip
Bao Buns without Steamer
Food safety

Equipment

Equipment can have a big impact on how a recipe turns out. You will need:

Regular steamer
Parchment paper or coffee filters
Tea towel
Rubber band or hair tie
Nonstick cooking spray

Ingredients

You'll only need a few simple ingredients to make this. The exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below. Here's an overview of what you'll need:

Water
Milk
Active dry yeast
Sugar
Vegetable oil
All purpose flour
Baking powder

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

Activate the yeast. Add the warm water and warm milk in a small bowl. Make sure it is not hot when you touch it but warm to the touch. Add the yeast, oil and sugar. Stir and let it sit for 4 minutes.

Create the dough. In a stand mixer, add the flour, baking powder and salt. Using a dough hook, mix until combined. Slowly add in the wet ingredients and knead for 3-5 minutes on medium speed.

Rise the dough. Let the dough sit in a bowl and cover with cling wrap for 2 hours, or until the dough has doubled in size.

Form the buns. You will not need to add more flour like you do with pasta. With a rolling pin, roll out the dough until ⅓ inch thick. With a glass, cup, or round cookie cutter, cut through the dough to form perfect circles and repeat with the rest of the dough. Pull out the dough you won’t use and repeat the same process until you are left with little or no dough.

Form the buns. Lightly brush vegetable oil on the circles and fold in half like a half moon. Press down with your hand so it stays folded. They might fold back out into a circle – those might need extra pressure! Let them rest for another 30 minutes.

Steam the buns. Meanwhile in a wok or steamer, bring water to a boil. If you have a bamboo steamer, use that. If you don’t: Cut parchment paper into squares the size of your buns. Spray the squares with nonstick cooking spray and place the buns on them and on the steamer. Wrap the lid with a tea towel and, with a rubber band, tie the towel around the handle.

Steam the buns for 8 to 12 minutes, depending on the thickness of your dough. Repeat with the rest of the buns. Tip: While you’re steaming the rest of your buns, you can wrap the steamed ones in a clean towel to keep them warm.

Notes

If you use instant yeast, be sure to use 2 ¼ teaspoons and rise time will only be around 30 minutes or until it doubles in size.
I highly recommend testing the yeast for activity before starting to work on this recipe. Add 1 teaspoon of sugar and 2 ¼ teaspoons of yeast (one envelope) to ¼ cup of warm water. Wait for 10 minutes and if you see foams and bubbles and you smell that yeast aroma, your yeast is still good to go. If not, then you need to get fresh yeast.

Variations

Cooking is a chance to be creative! Have fun with it and feel free to make your own variation.

Fillings:

Deluxe - add Ginger Sesame Tofu or Sesame Sour Chicken Balls.
Spicy - try a Latin Asian fusion and add Tinga de Res or Chicken Tinga.
Kid friendly - add chicken nuggets or fries.

Storage

This will be good in the refrigerator for 2-3 days, or frozen for up to three months.

Top tip

Let the dough rise fully until you make the bao buns.