Steamed Bao Buns

These steamed bao buns are soft and very flavorful with a very unique texture. Fill them with Peking duck slices, teriyaki beef or any kind of meet of your choice or shrimp, drizzle some sauce and you’ll get the restaurant quality dish ready for the whole family.

One of the most wonderful things about homemade bao buns is their incredibly soft, pillowy texture that feels almost cloud-like when freshly steamed. The dough becomes light, tender, and slightly chewy at the same time, creating the perfect base for a wide variety of savory fillings. Their delicate flavor allows the fillings and sauces to truly shine while still adding a comforting warmth and richness to the overall dish.

These bao buns are surprisingly versatile and can easily be customized for different meals and occasions. They pair beautifully with Peking duck, teriyaki beef, grilled chicken, crispy pork belly, shrimp, or even vegetarian fillings like mushrooms and tofu. Fresh toppings such as cucumber, carrots, pickled vegetables, cilantro, or green onions add brightness and crunch, while sauces like hoisin, spicy mayo, soy glaze, or chili oil bring everything together perfectly.

One of the best parts about making bao buns at home is serving them fresh and warm straight from the steamer. The texture is incredibly satisfying and far superior to most store-bought versions. They also make a fun interactive meal where everyone can build their own combinations at the table.

Whether served as appetizers, dinner, or part of a larger Asian-inspired feast, these steamed bao buns create a restaurant-quality experience that feels both impressive and comforting. Once you make them from scratch, you’ll want to experiment with endless filling combinations again and again.

Ingredients

Main Dough

• 150g lukewarm water
• 2g dry instant yeast
• 50g sugar or honey
• 300g bread flour
• 6g baking powder 
• 6g salt
• 15g oil for the dough and extra oil for spread

Directions 

• 8 am mix lukewarm water, dry instant yeast and sugar until dissolved add flour, salt, baking powder mix all together, until no dry flour remained, cover, let rest 30 min for autolyse (during the autolyse stage the flour absorbs the water, becoming fully hydrated. This will activate gluten development). Dough will look lumpy but don’t worry it will become smooth  later.
• 8.30 am add oil, knead by hands or with your mixer for 5-7 min. Until dough will become smoother. Cover, let rest for 1 hour – 1 hour and 30 min at 76-84F/24-28C. During that time perform nice stretch and fold.

• 10 am dough should get almost twice bigger in volume. 
• Sprinkle work surface with flour.
• Roll out the dough 1/4-inch thick. Sprinkle more flour if needed.
• Using cookie cutter or wine glass cut out the dough circles. Use scraps,  knead them a little, roll again and cut more circles ( You should make around 12 circles).
• Roll each circle a little to create oval shape.
• Spread some neutral oil on one surface of the baos and fold in half like a half-moon shape.
• Place each bao on a parchment paper, cover and let proof for 30 min.

• Meanwhile, bring water to boil on a wok or steamer pot.
• 10.30 am Place proofed baos inside the steamer, then carefully transfer steamer on top of boiling water wok/pot. Make sure water is not touching the baos. Cover and steam for 2-3 minutes.  When they are done cooking, tilt the lid a tiny bit for slow air circulation about 2 to 3 minutes before open the lid.
• Carefully remove baos from steamer and place them on a plate.

Please note, these buns taste best when they are warm.

Steamed Bao Buns

120kcal

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Prep 30 minutes mins

Cook 5 minutes mins

Rise & Rest Time 2 hours hrs 30 minutes mins

Total 3 hours hrs 5 minutes mins

These steamed bao buns are exceptionally soft, light, and pillowy with a uniquely tender texture. Perfect for stuffing with savory fillings like roasted pork belly, teriyaki beef, shrimp, or crisp pickled vegetables and savory sauces, they deliver a true restaurant-quality dish right at home.

Servings 12 Steamed Buns

Cuisine Chinese

Ingredients

1x2x3x

The Main Dough

• ▢ 150 g Lukewarm water
• ▢ 2 g Dry instant yeast
• ▢ 50 g Sugar (or sweet liquid honey)
• ▢ 300 g Bread flour
• ▢ 6 g Baking powder
• ▢ 6 g Salt
• ▢ 15 g Oil (for the dough mass)

The Folding Finish

• ▢ 1-2 tbsp Neutral vegetable oil (kept in a small dish for surface brushing)

Equipment

• ▢
  Stand Mixer (fitted with the dough hook attachment)
• ▢
  Bamboo Steamer or Steamer Pot
• ▢
  Wok or Wide Pot (to hold the boiling water under the steamer)
• ▢
  Round Cookie Cutter (or a clean wide wine glass)
• ▢
  Rolling Pin
• ▢
  Kitchen Scale
• ▢
  Parchment Paper Squares

Method

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Autolyse and Gluten Mixing

1. In your stand mixer bowl, combine the lukewarm water, dry instant yeast, and sugar. Stir gently with a small whisk until the granules are completely dissolved.
2. Add the 300g of bread flour, 6g of baking powder, and 6g of salt directly into the liquid. Mix with a spatula or your mixer on low speed just until a cohesive, shaggy mass forms and no dry flour patches remain.
3. Cover the bowl and let the mixture rest undisturbed for 30 minutes for the autolyse phase. During this time, the flour fully absorbs the moisture, which naturally jumpstarts gluten alignment. The dough will look lumpy, but it will smooth out perfectly during kneading.
4. After the autolyse rest, pour the 15g of oil over the dough. Knead by hand or with your mixer on medium speed for 5 to 7 minutes until the oil is completely incorporated and the dough turns smoother and more elastic.
5. Cover the container tightly and let the dough rise at a warm room temperature for 1 hour to 1 hour and 30 minutes. Perform one clean stretch-and-fold session during this bulk rise. The finished dough should grow to nearly double its original volume.

Precise Shaping and Final Proof

1. Lightly sprinkle your clean counter surface with flour. Turn out the puffy dough and roll it out with a rolling pin until it reaches a uniform thickness of 1/4-inch.
2. Using a sharp round cookie cutter or the rim of a wide wine glass, cut out clean circles from the sheeted dough. Gather any remaining scraps, knead them together briefly, roll them back out, and cut out additional circles until you have exactly 12 rounds.
3. Use your rolling pin to gently roll each individual circle out slightly along one axis to create an elongated, oval shape.
4. Dip a pastry brush into your extra neutral oil and spread a light layer across the top surface of each dough oval.
5. Fold each oval cleanly in half to form a classic half-moon pocket shape. The thin layer of brushed oil prevents the two halves from fusing back together while steaming.
6. Transfer each folded bao bun onto an individual small square of parchment paper. Cover them loosely and allow them to proof undisturbed on your counter for exactly 30 minutes.

Controlled Gentle Steaming

1. While the buns are proofing, fill your wok or steamer pot with water and bring it to a rolling boil over high heat on your stovetop.
2. Arrange the proofed buns (leaving their parchment squares underneath) inside your bamboo steamer basket, leaving plenty of space between them to allow for steam expansion.
3. Carefully position the steamer basket directly on top of the boiling water pot. Ensure that the water level is low enough that it never comes into direct contact with the bottom of the buns.
4. Cover tightly with the lid and steam over medium-high heat for exactly 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Once the cooking time concludes, turn off the heat but do not open the lid immediately. Tilt the lid open just a tiny fraction of an inch to let a small amount of cool air circulate slowly for 2 to 3 minutes. This gradual temperature shift prevents the delicate buns from collapsing or wrinkling. Serve warm immediately!

Nutrition

Calories120kcalCarbohydrates22gProtein3gFat2gSaturated Fat0.2gPolyunsaturated Fat1gMonounsaturated Fat1gTrans Fat0.01gCholesterol1mgSodium89mgPotassium34mgFiber1gSugar4gVitamin A1IUVitamin C0.02mgCalcium34mgIron0.3mg

Notes

• Baking Powder in Yeast Dough: You might wonder why this recipe pairs baking powder alongside instant dry yeast. The yeast handles the primary rise and flavor foundation during bulk fermentation, while the baking powder acts as a secondary chemical leavener that reacts instantly to the hot steam. This combined action causes the buns to puff up rapidly in the steamer, producing that signature airy, cloud-like bite.
• The Importance of the Lid Crack Rest: Never pull the steamer lid completely off the moment the cooking timer finishes. Exposing the piping hot, fragile structure of the steamed buns to a sudden blast of cool kitchen air causes an immediate drop in internal steam pressure, causing the smooth skins to instantly shrivel, deflate, or turn rubbery. Cracking the lid slightly for 2 minutes allows the starch structure to set safely.
• Flour Choice for Whiter Buns: Traditional artisanal bread flour yields an incredibly soft texture with excellent structural integrity, though it gives the buns a natural, creamy off-white color. If you are aiming for the snowy, brilliant white appearance found in fine-dining restaurants, you can substitute the bread flour with bleached all-purpose flour or specialized low-protein Chinese bao flour.
• Reheating and Storage Guidelines: Steamed bao buns are best enjoyed fresh and warm from the basket. If you have leftovers, let them cool completely, store them in a zip-top bag, and keep them in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. To restore their original pillowy softness, simply pop them back into a hot steamer basket for 1 to 2 minutes. Avoid reheating them in the microwave, as this draws out moisture and leaves the dough tough.

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