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If you love a good soft bao bun, make your own with my simple homemade chicken and mushroom bao bun recipe.
This bao bun is a mouthwatering treat stuffed with savory chicken and earthy mushroom filling wrapped in a pillow of fluffy bun. Simply make the bao bun dough, prepare the filling, and assemble them for steaming.
What Is Chicken And Mushroom Bao?
If you don’t know yet, a bao bun is a fluffy steamed bun with a bread-like texture. Bao or Bao buns are normally served in Chinese restaurants and food stalls in Chinatown. You can find two types of bao buns: half-open and fully closed.
It is different from a dumpling that has thin and chewy skin. A bao bun uses white leavened dough for an airy texture, typically made with flour, yeast, and warm water. You can fill a bao bun with almost any type of filling you like.
The options are endless, whether you like a delightful beef bao bun, sweet lotus seed bun, or vegetable bao bun.
In my recipe, I use a fusion of chicken and mushrooms cooked with vegetables, a spoonful of Doubanjiang, and soy sauce. Moreover, this is a fully closed type of steamed bun.
What You Need For The Bao Bun Dough
To make the bao bun dough, you will need 300g of plain flour, 3g of high-active yeast, and 160g of warm water.
The ingredients are mixed and kneaded until it becomes a smooth ball of dough, which is then shaped into small circular flat wrappers. Here’s what you need to know about each ingredient:
Plain Flour
Plain flour or all-purpose flour works for this recipe. It gives you a fluffy texture without being too chewy. I don’t really recommend whole wheat flour or rice flour since it won’t give you the same fluffy texture.
High-Active Yeast
Yeast is needed to make the bun rise and have an airy texture. You can use instant yeast or fast-rising yeast, which does not require initial proofing and dissolving in water. It can be mixed directly with another dry mixture since it uses finer granules that quickly dissolve.
Alternatively, you can use active dry yeast. However, active dry yeast needs to be dissolved in warm water first before mixing with other dry ingredients.
Keep in mind active dry yeast will need a longer fermentation process than instant yeast.
Warm Water
Warm water is important in activating and dissolving the yeast. It is worth noting that the water should be below 120°F, preferably at 110°F. This temperature is ideal as you do not want it to be too hot.
Water with a temperature of 120°F to 140°F or higher will kill the yeast. Remember, yeast is a single-celled living microorganism that takes a natural process of fermentation. Thus, if you kill the yeast with hot water, it will not activate and make the dough flat.
Recipe Techniques For Chicken And Mushroom Bao Bun
If it is your first time making a bao bun, make sure to read these recipe techniques to have a fluffy and soft result.
There are a few things that can affect the results, such as inaccurate measurements and proofing time. I have provided some suggestions below to help you achieve the best results.
- Use a kitchen weighing scale: It is ideal to have a kitchen weighing scale to have accurate measurements of the dough ingredients. In some cases, having too much or too little can change the outcome.
- Use a kitchen thermometer: Aside from a kitchen weighing scale, I suggest using a kitchen thermometer to ensure the water is not too hot for the yeast. Otherwise, you risk wasting the flour ingredients since you must do the whole process again if the yeast is killed.
- Add water or flour to change the dough consistency:Sometimes, the results may vary depending on the type and brand of flour used. It is possible that some types of flour absorb water better than others. If you find that the dough is too firm, sticky, or watery, you can adjust it by adding water or flour if needed. Make sure you add small amounts gradually until you get the desired consistency.
- Proof the buns until it doubles in size: Proofing may take up to 30 minutes to an hour for the size to double. Do not proof too long or too short. If the buns are proofed longer than necessary, the dough weakens and collapses when steamed. If it is proofed too short, it will not rise after steaming.
- Proof at room temperature:Proof the buns in the steamer while covered and at room temperature. Do not open the cover too often since this may affect the proofing process. If the temperature is cooler than room temperature, the proofing time may be longer. It is possible to proof the dough in an oven or microwave with a cup of boiled water next to it if it is cold in your area.
- Use sweet Doubanjiang or black bean sauce: What makes the filling flavor stand out is the bean paste ingredient. You can use Chinese black bean sauce. The taste will vary depending on the type of bean paste you use. Nevertheless, it should add a pungent, savory, and salty taste to the filling.
- Steam using a steamer or bamboo basket: Use regular metal steaming equipment or a traditional bamboo basket. If you don’t have steaming equipment, you can try steaming it without a steamer. Follow my guide – 5 Easy Ways To Steam Buns Without A Steamer.
Things Needed To Make Chicken And Mushroom Bao Bun
Now that you know more about what the recipe entails, start preparing the kitchenware and ingredients you need.
The main kitchen tool required for the recipe is steaming equipment. If you don’t have one, you can always steam buns without a steamer using a DIY pan with a steamer rack, microwave, rice cooker, or instant pot.
As for the ingredients, you won’t have a hard time getting them since they are all common grocery items or are easily found in Asian supermarkets.
You will need a pan to stir-fry the ingredients and your hands to knead the dough. Here’s what you need to start making the recipe:
Kitchen Items
- Mixing bowl for the dough
- Pan for stir-frying
- Spatula for stir-frying
- Mixing bowl for the dough
- Dough cutter
- Dough rolling pin
- Parchment paper
- Steamer with cover
- Kitchen weighing scale (optional)
- Kitchen thermometer (optional)
Filling
- 200g chicken breast
- 20g diced carrots
- 20g corn kernels
- 20g diced mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon Doubanjiang
- 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon pepper powder
- 20g diced onions
Dough
- 300g plain flour
- 3g high-active yeast
- 160g warm water
Recipe Instructions For Chicken And Mushroom Bao Buns
The recipe requires cooking the filling, kneading the dough, assembling the filling and dough wrapper, proofing the buns, and steaming for 15 minutes.
Generally, it may take an hour or longer to do the whole process, depending on how long it takes to knead and proof the buns. You can follow my recipe tutorial video on Instagram and Tiktok to learn more.
Cook The Filling
Clean and chop the chicken breast into small pieces.
In a pan, stir-fry the chicken breast until the color changes from pinkish to white. It should become whitish to indicate it is cooked and blood removed.
Then, add diced carrots, corn kernels, and diced mushrooms.
Fry until they are all cooked thoroughly.
Next, mix in Doubanjiang, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and pepper.
Add the diced onions and mix well. Set the filling aside.
Knead The Dough
In a mixing bowl, combine plain flour, high-active yeast, and warm water. Make sure to use warm water below 120°F to avoid killing the yeast.
Once the mixture is mixed thoroughly, knead it until it becomes a ball of smooth dough.
Then, roll the dough into a cylindrical-shaped dough.
Next, divide the dough into small square portions using a dough cutter. It should be about 1 inch wide.
Using a rolling pin, flatten each piece of small dough until it becomes a flat circular wrapper. The wrapper should be thicker in the center and thinner on the edges. If you make the center too thin, the chances of breaking will be higher when the filling is added.
Combine The Dough Wrapper And Filling
- Take a dough wrapper and fill the center with a portion of the chicken and mushroom filling.
- Then, seal the bun by pleating and pressing the edges. You should be able to form a round bao bun with a creased top.
- Next, get parchment paper and cut it into squares. The size of each square should be big enough to fit a bao bun.
- Place the parchment paper onto the steamer basket before placing the buns on top of it. In this way, the buns won’t stick to the basket and can be easily removed.
- Cover the steamer with a lid and let the buns proof until the size doubles.
- Once the size doubles, steam the bao buns for 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, turn off the heat and refrain from opening the steamer lid. Allow the buns to rest undisturbed for 3 minutes.
- Lastly, indulge in delicious homemade Chicken Mushroom Bao Buns!
If you enjoyed chicken and mushroom bao buns, try my other bao bun recipes on Tiktok, such as Chinese Steamed Tofu Bun, Steamed Taro Bun, and Egg Custard Buns.
Homemade Chicken Bao Buns With Mushrooms
Equipment
- Mixing bowl for the dough
- Pan for stir-frying
- Spatula for stir-frying
- Mixing bowl for the dough
- Dough cutter
- Dough rolling pin
- Steamer with cover
- Kitchen weighing scale (optional)
- Kitchen thermometer (optional)
Ingredients
Filling
- 200 g chicken breast
- 20 g diced carrots
- 20 g corn kernels
- 20 g diced mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon Doubanjiang
- 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon pepper powder
- 20 g diced onions
Dough
- 300 g plain flour
- 3 g high-active yeast
- 160 g warm water
Instructions
Cook The Filling
- Clean and chop the chicken breast into small pieces.
- In a pan, stir-fry the chicken breast until the color changes from pinkish to white. It should become whitish to indicate it is cooked and blood removed.
- Then, add diced carrots, corn kernels, and diced mushrooms.
- Fry until they are all cooked thoroughly.
- Next, mix in Doubanjiang, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and pepper.
- Add the diced onions and mix well.
- Set the filling aside.
Knead The Dough
- In a mixing bowl, combine plain flour, high-active yeast, and warm water. Make sure to use warm water below 120°F to avoid killing the yeast.
- Once the mixture is mixed thoroughly, knead it until it becomes a ball of smooth dough.
- Then, roll the dough into a cylindrical-shaped dough.
- Next, divide the dough into small square portions using a dough cutter. It should be about 1 inch wide.
- Using a rolling pin, flatten each piece of small dough until it becomes a flat circular wrapper. The wrapper should be thicker in the center and thinner on the edges. If you make the center too thin, the chances of breaking will be higher when the filling is added.
Combine The Dough Wrapper And Filling
- Take a dough wrapper and fill the center with a portion of the chicken and mushroom filling.
- Then, seal the bun by pleating and pressing the edges. You should be able to form a round bao bun with a creased top.
- Next, get parchment paper and cut it into squares. The size of each square should be big enough to fit a bao bun.
- Place the parchment paper onto the steamer basket before placing the buns on top of it. In this way, the buns won't stick to the basket and can be easily removed.
- Cover the steamer with a lid and let the buns proof until the size doubles.
- Once the size doubles, steam the bao buns for 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, turn off the heat and refrain from opening the steamer lid. Allow the buns to rest undisturbed for 3 minutes.
- Lastly, indulge in delicious homemade Chicken Mushroom Bao Buns!
