Pizza Bao 包子 (Steamed pizza bun)
Baozi 包子 is a type of steamed, filled bun found in numerous Asian countries. Other names for it are nikuman 肉まん in Japan or hoppang 호빵 in South Korea. These are usually filled with meat and are often sold as street food or found at convenience stores in Asia.
One variation that seems to be gaining recent popularity in Japan and South Korea is the pizza bao (also called pizza-man or pizza hoppang), which can be found at 7-Eleven. Food coloring is usually added to the dough to make it yellow to denote that it’s pizza-filled, I decided to leave that bit out.
Servings: 8
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Passive Time: 70 minutes
Dough Ingredients:
250 grams of all purpose flour / 2 cups of all purpose flour
EDIT: ~28 grams / 2 tablespoons of sugar
1 teaspoon of active dry yeast
¾ teaspoon of baking powder
1 tbsp of vegetable oil
½ cup + 2 tbsp of water
Filling Ingredients:
Tomato sauce
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Pepperoni
Baozi Directions:
1. Sift flour, sugar, yeast, and baking powder together in a bowl. Add oil and warm water and loosely combine. Turn the dough out onto your work surface and form the dough into a ball. Knead until the dough is elastic and shiny.
2. Put the ball of dough in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rest in a dark warm place until it has risen to double its initial size (at least 70 minutes).
3. While the dough is rising, prepare your filling ingredients. Use your favorite pizza sauce or make your own (I’ve provided a very simple pizza sauce recipe down below). The tomato sauce should be at room temperature by the time you are ready to form the baozi/nikuman. Also prepare bowls of shredded mozzarella cheese and other toppings you like (I’m using pepperoni).
4. Punch down the dough and roll it into a log. Portion the dough into 8 pieces and form each into a ball. Set aside on a baking sheet and cover with a damp kitchen towel. Let it rest for 15 minutes.
5. Working with one at a time, flatten or roll each dough into a 12 cm circle. Thin out the edges. Add a large scoop of tomato sauce to the center of the dough circle, top with shredded cheese and slices of pepperoni.
6. Wrap the filling by pinching one edge of the dough and bringing it up and gathering in the center. Turn over on parchment squares so smooth side is up. Repeat with remaining pieces of dough. You can also wrap the baozi using a bowl and the pleating method. Place the flattened dough into a small bowl, fill with sauce, cheese and pepperoni, fold pleats and pull towards center. Pinch the pleats together and twist off excess dough, place pleat side up on a parchment square.
7. Cover the finished buns with the damp kitchen towel and let it rest for another 10 minutes.
8. Prepare your steamer. Place a few buns into the steamer basket, do not overcrowd because the buns will expand. Once the water is boiling, place your steamer on top, cover with a damp kitchen towel and lid. The kitchen towel helps trap the steam that condenses on the lid without dripping on to the buns. Steam for at least 15 minutes.
9. Enjoy hot and right out of the steamer!
Simple Pizza Sauce Directions:
1. Sauté one cup of chopped onions and 1 tbsp of minced garlic in vegetable oil until onions are translucent.
2. Stir in an 8 oz can of tomato sauce.
3. Add 1 tbsp of dried oregano and 1 tbsp of dried parsley.
4. Simmer until sauce has thickened.
Notes:
Use whatever pizza toppings you like, if you’re a vegetarian, I recommend using sautéed mushrooms or bell peppers.
If you want to make these look like the one found in Japan or South Korea, add 1 or 2 drops of yellow food coloring to the dough.
Wrap these however you are most comfortable, just make sure to seal the edges.
Background Music:
“Golden Hour” by Broke For Free