Tasty, juicy filling with soft, fluffy wrappers, homemade bao buns are super comforting! This guide offers tips and tricks to ensure a fail-proof cooking experience.
Popular as street food and an everyday family dish in China, steamed bao buns (Baozi, 包子) is one of the foods I really enjoy cooking. They are not difficult to make but it can be very tricky to get them right, especially when it comes to making a nice wrapper which rises properly, has a smooth look and a soft, fluffy texture. Today, I’m sharing all the knowledge I’ve gained through trial and error over the years.
Which type of flour for bao buns?
Which type of flour shall I use to make bao buns? My answer to this FAQ is all types of wheat flour works (regardless of the gluten level). However, you may wish to choose a particular type of flour to achieve a certain look/texture.
Do you like them fluffy and less chewy? Then use flour which has a medium to low gluten level. Check the nutrition label on your flour package. The protein content should be under 11g per 100g flour. As far as I know, common all-purpose flour in the UK and the US is within this range. It’s the type I use most frequently for bao buns.
Cake flour has 8-9g protein in 100g flour, so it delivers the least chewy texture. If like me, you don’t have easy access to cake flour, there is a simple substitute: Mix all-purpose flour with cornstarch (ratio: 5:1 by weight). Sift before using.
Another note: as yeast is used as a raising agent in bao buns, do not use self-raising cake flour which is commonly available in the UK.
Is special bao flour better?
Flour specifically labeled as Bao bun flour/Mantou flour is available in Chinese/Asian shops. It has a low gluten level (around 8g protein in 100g flour) so it’s good for producing fluffy Bao. However, personally I don’t like it as it’s heavily bleached and processed (that’s why it produces a whiter finished look). I’ve tried several brands of bao flour and I find them lacking in natural wheat flavour.
How to make the dough?
Unlike dumpling (Jiaozi) dough which is made from water and flour, bao buns call for the leavened dough which involves the use of yeast. The wrapper rises during the process of steaming.
My recipe for Bao bun dough requires five ingredients: all-purpose flour; dried yeast; sugar; cooking oil, and lukewarm water.
- The flour & liquid (water + oil) ratio is 2:1 by weight. It may vary a little depending on the type and the brand of your flour.
- The water & oil ratio is 10:1 by weight. It’s better to choose the cooking oil which doesn’t have a strong taste (eg. rapeseeds, sunflower, canola, vegetable, etc.).
- For every 500g of flour, you will need 2 teaspoons of dried yeast. Add the same amount of sugar or a little less (but not more).
Why is kneading important?
Everyone loves a bao bun with smooth, even skin. Unfortunately, homemade ones can easily end up with a pot-marked look. The well-kneaded dough will create even air bubbles inside the dough and therefore lead to a smoother appearance after steaming.
I’ve done a test with my six-year-old daughter. We kneaded two identical pieces of dough then rested and steamed them in the exact same way. Obviously she has much less strength and skill in kneading. So her buns had a much rougher look. Another surprising finding was that extended kneading will lighten the colour of your dough.
Here are my tips on kneading:
- You may use your hands or a stand mixer with a dough hook. Knead until the dough is very smooth.
- For me, the best practice is to initially combine the dough in the stand mixer for 5 minutes or so, then knead with hands to finish.
- After the dough has risen and before shaping the buns, you need to knead the dough again until it returns to its original size and the smooth look.
How long to rest the dough?
Fermentation takes place when you leave your yeast dough to rest. As yeast is very sensitive to temperature, the required resting time varies a lot. To double the size of the dough, it can take as little as 40 minutes if the room temperature is high (and/or if the dough is small in size), or up to 1.5 hours if it’s cold.
To accelerate this process, you can:
- Place the dough bowl in a warm room/area. For example, near a radiator or a preheated oven.
- Heat up a glass of water in the microwave then put your dough bowl inside (keep the glass in). Shut the microwave door.
- Turn on your empty drier for 2 minutes then place the dough bowl inside (I learned this trick from food blogger Nagi).
- Cover your bowl with a damp cloth as humidity also affects fermentation.
Leave the dough to rise until its size doubles. Then knead again to remove any bubbles trapped inside. After shaping the dough into individual Bao, leave them to rise a second time before steaming, about 15 minutes this time.
How to avoid bao bun collapsing?
If you have tried to cook bao buns before, you probably know how tricky it can be. The most common problem is that the wrappers collapse/wrinkle/harden after steaming. I believe many of you would hold your breath (or cross your finger) the moment you remove the steamer lid.
The inconsistency of the cooked wrappers used to drive me mad too. So I’ve conducted numerous trials and kitchen experiments to overcome these problems. Now I’m happy to share my findings with you.
- First of all, allow me to clarify a myth. Many recipes suggest that you should wait for 5 minutes before you uncover the steamer. This does not prevent collapsing at all. I always immediately remove the lid after I turn off the heat (as my parents and restaurant chefs do), my bao buns don’t change their look if the dough has been prepared properly.
- Make sure you include a little sugar and cooking oil when making the dough. Sugar helps to activate the yeast, therefore, guarantee a good rise. Oil reduces the transmission of the moisture from the filling into the dough, therefore make collapsing less likely.
- As I mentioned above, kneading affects the appearance of bao buns. Extend the kneading time and make sure the dough is perfectly smooth before shaping.
- It’s CRUCIAL to allow enough resting time during the dough fermentation process (two times as I explained above).
- Don’t roll your wrapper too thin (especially the middle part) otherwise the moisture from the filling might leak into the wrapper making it soggy.
- Start cooking with cold water in your steamer. The gentle rise in temperature helps the dough grow smoothly. Turn the heat down when water starts boiling. Count cooking time from this moment. I suggest no less than 15 minutes.
Make a tasty and juicy filling
I use pork and carrots as the main ingredients in this recipe. Onion and coriander are added to boost the flavour.
- Add water/stock to the pork will produce a juicy filling. You can find more tips on this topic in my post “How to make great dumpling fillings”.
- Briefly stir fry carrot and onion in a little oil. This will enhance their flavour and give the filling a soft texture.
Steamed bao buns (包子), a complete guide
Ingredients
For the dough
- 300 g all-purpose flour , or cake flour, see note 1
- 1 tsp dried yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tbsp cooking oil, see note 2
- 140 ml lukewarm water, see note 3
For the filling
- 150 g minced pork
- 1 tsp light soy sauce
- 1 tsp oyster sauce
- 1 pinch ground Sichuan pepper, or Chinese five-spice powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 4 tbsp water, or unsalted stock
- 1 tbsp cooking oil
- 150 g carrot, grated
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp coriander, finely chopped
Instructions
Prepare the dough
- Mix flour, yeast, sugar and oil in a bowl. Pour in water little by little while mixing.
- Combine and knead with your hands until a very smooth dough forms (see note 4).
- Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place until doubled in size (It will take between 40 minutes to 1.5 hours depending on the room temperature).
Mix the filling
- Put pork, soy sauce, oyster sauce, salt and Sichuan pepper/Chinese five-spice in a mixing bowl.
- Swirl constantly while gradually adding water/stock until no more liquid can be seen.
- Brief stir fry grated carrot and onion in oil until softened. Add to the pork along with chopped coriander.
Shape the buns (Please refer to the video below)
- Knead the dough until it goes back to its original size.
- Divide it into 12 equal portions. Roll each piece into a disk-like wrapper.
- Place some filling in the middle of a wrapper then fold into a bao shape.
- Leave all the assembled buns to rest for another 15 minutes or so.
Steam the buns
- Place the buns (with parchment paper underneath each one) in the steamer basket (see note 5). Leave 2cm space between the buns and the side of the steamer.
- Start cooking with cold water over a high heat. Turn the heat down to medium-low when the water starts boiling.
- Cook for 15-18 minutes.
Serving with a dipping sauce
- Serve them warm, on their own or with some dipping sauce (find inspirations in my post Six dumpling sauces).
Storage & reheat
- You can freeze cooked buns. Leave to defrost in the fridge then steam for 8 minutes to warm up, or steam for 15 minutes without defrosting.
Video
NOTES
I hope my post has made you feel more confident in cooking bao buns in your own kitchen. Check out my Ultimate Dumpling Guide if you love stuffed delicacies.
A little note: I have created a Youtube channel under the name “FlavorQuest China“. Subscribe if you often use YouTube for cooking inspiration. I’m gradually creating more video recipes and will share them on YouTube.
Happy cooking!
Such beautiful photos. They look perfect. I love that I got a look at the “behind the scenes” of this post!
Thank you Heddi! You should come over and we shoot together (and eat of course)!
Not a lot of recipes talk about the gluten content of the flour… rather none of the recipes do. They may mention using “Hong Kong” flour but they don’t say why. It took me months of trying different recipes before I came across a comment about gluten level. I wish you wrote your article sooner!!
I have found that White Lily has a really good gluten level for Bao but its difficult to get in some states and especially difficult in the North East.
Thank you Michael for your appreciation for my work. The understanding of gluten level really helps when it comes to flour-based cooking.
Geniales Rezept wie alle deine Rezepte, so toll fotografiert ich liebe deinen Blog und deine Rezepte!
Viele Grüße sendet dir,
Jesse-Gabriel aus Berlin
Hi Thank you so much for your compliment (I don’t understand German but thankfully it’s easy to translate your words online). Very happy to know you enjoy my recipes. Have a great time in your kitchen!
Hello! My partner, who spent 4 months in Asia (Thailand and Vietnam) last year kept asking me for those buns. He used to eat them for breakfast. I found your blog, this recpie and I made them tonight. He saaid they are almost like he remembers 😉 They are really good. I have to work on form them, made them too thick with not enough filling, but they are so good, that even my cat ate a little bit! Not the meat, the dough! 😀 Tomorrow I will dogg more on your blog. Lovely Photos!
That’s great news to hear! Very happy to know you were able to satisfy your partner’s craving following my recipe. Well done!
Hi, thank you for this recipe, I love bao but have never made them, I will definitely be having a go. Sorry if I’m being a bit stupid, but can I just check that apart from the carrot and onion the rest of the filling (mince) is raw when you put it in the dough and it just cooks in the steamer?
Yes Apart from the carrot and onion, all other ingredients are raw before you put them into the wrapper.
Hi,
Whenever I roll out my dough it doesn’t seem to keep its shape and shrinks, making it difficult for me to pleat the dough and close the bun. Do you know why this could be? Am I not letting the dough rest for long enough?
Hi Ashley! Thank you for trying out my recipe. If your dough tends to shrink, please try one of the followings to improve:
— Make sure the dough isn’t too cold. If it has been kept in the fridge you need to leave it to come back to room temperature before working on it.
— Knead the dough a little more then leave it to rest for a few minutes and try again.
— Use flour which doesn’t have a very high protein content (under 11g per 100g flour). You may find the information on the nutrition label of the package.
Hope this helps!
Thanks for the recipe! My pleating and patience need work but the dough recipe is amazing! Truly wonderful! I made my own filling, and will work on that too, but thank you so much again.
You are very welcome Jaime. Very happy to know you enjoyed it!
Hello, do you have a gluten free recipe version for the dough? Or know of one? I’ve tried several and haven’t been successful.
Sorry I have no idea how to make it gluten-free.
Brilliant. Thank you
Could you use this same dough recipe to make folded over buns for filling sandwich style with pork belly and pickles, or would you use a different dough recipe?
Yes, you can use the same dough. Alternatively, you can use the dough I introduced in my post “Mantou, Chinese steamed buns” .
Can I make these ahead of time/the night before and then steam them the next day?
Hi Kit! You cannot leave raw bao buns for too long without cooking them. If you wish to enjoy them the next day, you should cook them right now then reheat by steaming for 5 mins or so. They will be as fresh. Cooked bao buns freeze very well too. Hope this helps.
Hello and thank you for your recipes, they are so complete !
I’m trying to watch out for not gaining much weight during this tough time, therefore a question about the calories: 444 is for 1 bun right?
thank you very much again
Hi Amandine! Happy to know my recipe worked well for you. As stated at the very end of the recipe card, 444 calories is for 3 buns (one serving). Maybe it would be less confusing if I change it into 148 calories for 1 bun. Will edit it later.
What kind of yeast did you use?
I use instant dried yeast which can be directly mixed with flour.
Hello, trying this recipe, but what kind of yeast? Active dry or instant dry?
Thanks!
I usually use instant dry yeast. But active dry works perfectly too. The difference is that active dry yeast needs to be dissolved in water then mix with flour, etc. Instant yeast can be mixed directly with dry ingredients.
Why doesn’t the buns stay close while resting before steaming?
Hi Cory! I’m not sure what you mean exactly by “stay close”. Could you please explain more?
Great instructions! My baozi tasted great, but I need to practice shaping them.
Very happy to hear that! Keep practicing John!
Hi, will this work if I use flour with 4g of protein?
I don’t think the protein content of flour can be that low. In my post, I talk about the quantity of protein in every 100g of flour. Have a look at the label again, is it 4g in 100g flour? or 4g in 30g flour? If it’s the latter, what you have is high gluten bread flour. Not ideal for steamed bao.
Hi Wei,
I have prepared this buns. They tasted very delicious.. However the dough, as you instructed, did not work for me, maybe it was too soft and somehow the buns didn‘t stick together as they should (when folded 😕) I hope I will make it better, next time. In total we have prepared 8 of your dishes during that day. I like the recipes, they tasted all authentuc and I like the pics and videos. Exzellent work! Many thanks
8 dishes! A delicious feast! Regarding the folding problem, there are two possible causes: 1. The edge of the wrapper was wet by the filling. 2. Too much flour was dusted onto the wrapper. Hope this helps.
Can anyone tell me why a lot of bao recipes use a combination of yeast and baking powder? Is it a texture thing? Does the baking powder affect the dough if it’s left too long?
Hi Jeff. You can use either yeast-only dough like this one, or yeast+baking powder dough like the recipe I wrote for pork belly buns. The proofing procedure is different. Both work well in terms of texture.
I can’t wait to try this recipe. Can you make the dough the day ahead and then take it out of the fridge to warm up before forming? Or should it all be made the same day?
Thanks!
Yes you can leave the dough in the fridge overnight for the first proofing. In this case, I suggest you reduce the yeast by half. Before working on the dough again, bring it back to room temperature.
THANKS FOR THE RECIPE . Dont know why after i stream it, the baozi all open up , it did mot shape like a baozi, but before I stream it it looks good.
Thank you Mary for trying out my recipe! I haven’t experienced that myself. But I think it could be that you didn’t seal the buns very well (no matter what shape). Next time try pinching the dough a little harder.
Great recipe, I am making Bao today for the 2nd time. I have made Char Siu on my smoker and used that instead of raw pork in the filling. I sauteed grated carrot, onion garlic and ginger in a little oil and cooking wine, added a little hoisin sauce and 5 spice along with chopped Char Siu. This made a great BBQ pork Bao that the family loved. Everyone that had these said the dough is perfect!
So happy to hear that! Char Siu Bao is so addictive. Thank you for sharing your filling mix idea! Other readers would appreciate it.
Hi 🙂 Thank you so much for your thorough recipe and explanation ! I’m excited to try these, but I need to buy a bamboo steamer first. What size steamer do you use?
Hi Heather! My bamboo steamer is about 26cm in diameter and it has three layers.
Thanks so much!
Thanks for the recipe, Wei.
May I know whether it works when steaming the baos in 2 tiers at once? Thanks.
Regards,
Elvi
Hi Elvi! Yes, you can steam in multiple tiers. I usually use three steamer baskets at once.
Thanks for your reply. Did you use the same method as steaming with 1 basket (i.e lenght of steaming time, baskets arrangement, etc)?
Thanks in advance
Regards,
Elvi
Yes, the same method. Steam for 18 mins.
Thank you so much, Wei.
Your advice is very useful. Have a great weekend.
Regards,
Elvi