Very pleased because we all had seconds and wiped out 10 baos at one go. I tried to make this more Cantonese style by cooking a thick gravy and freezing the fillings first and it worked perfectly.
Recipe for filling (14 baos)
- About 200g pork collar cut into small strips
- 3 slices ginger
- 1 tbsp Chinese wine
- 1/2 onion chopped
- 2 stalk spring onion chopped
- 3 tsp dark sauce
- 1.5 tbsp oyster
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp soya sauce
- 1 tbsp corn starch
Method
1. Cut pork into small strips. Cut ginger, onion and spring onion.
2. Add a small amount of oil into a pot and add pork and ginger. Stir fry at low heat till cooked. Add Chinese wine and onion and stir fry till fragrant.
3. Add all the rest of the condiments except corn starch in a bowl and add 1/2 bowl of water. And mix well.
4. Add this bowl of condiment and spring onion into pot and stir.
5. Stir and cook at low heat for 10 min until sauce thickens and caramelizes.
6. Add corn starch to a half bowl of tap water and mix well. Then add into pot. Stir to form a thick gravy.
7. Off the flames and taste and adjust accordingly. I added a little salt and a little more water as my sauce was too thick.
8. Place into a plate, clingwrap and freeze for 2 hours. After freezing, divide in 14 equal portions to wrap as fillings.
Recipe for Bao (makes 14)
- 125g water
- 10g sugar
- 3/4 tsp yeast
- 250g plain flour ( can replace up to 50g cake flour for whiter and softer bao)
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 15g oil
Method
1. Mix all above in a stand mixer for 10 min at low speed. Form a smooth elastic dough.
2. Make a hole in the middle, cut one side and roll long as shown. 
3. Divide into 14 equal pieces. Knead each piece and roll round all 14 doughs. Roll out one dough, make sure edge is thin. Place char siu filling in the centre and pleat.
4. Complete for all dough. Proof for 30 min.
5. After 30 min, the bao will look slightly larger.
6. Steam at high heat for 12 min, leave covered for another 5 min. Serve.
Olady Bakes 
1. Can I freeze the meat filling the night before?
2. How do I divide into portions in its frozen state.
3. When placing the filling in the dough, this the filling still in its frozen state?
Sorry for asking so many questions, its my first time making pao!
LikeLike
It’s not so ‘strict’, slightly frozen is fine. Or just follow the suggested timing in the recipe.
LikeLike
Not really answering the questions asked by Mitch. There are also my sinilar questioms to the not so detailed description. Hope you can help us so that we can follow you faithfully.
LikeLike
I have not tried freezing overnight before and so do not want to give the wrong advice. As above, I suggest to use the filling slightly frozen and following the times in the recipe. I wont be doing another round with freezing overnight, just so I can answer the questions properly, as experiment costs time and money.
No worries about not following me if there isn’t enough details. Another reader has suggested to remove all photos as it’s too detailed and hard for her to read. Really hard to please everyone. Joining a class will be more useful than reading my blog.
LikeLike
I have tried several of your recipes and they have turned out successfully as described. Many of my friends and family are following your blog . Your recipes are very detailed and fail proof which is excellent for me. I appreciate the effort and time you take to write and post each recipe. In fact, many of us learnt to bake from your blog. Please keep posting. We love you !
LikeLike
Oh wow. Thank you. Much appreciated 🙏 🥲🥰
LikeLike