INGREDIENTS
Char siu pork
1 kg pork neck
1 tbsp red fermented bean curd, optional
1 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp honey
120 g (½ cup) hoisin sauce
2 tbsp light soy sauce
2 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
¼ tsp five-spice powder
¼ tsp white pepper
¼ tsp red colouring powder, optional
2 tbsp honey, extra
Bun dough
260 g (1 ¾ cups) cake flour (low gluten) or plain flour, sifted
35 g (¼ cup) cornflour, sifted
1 tbsp caster sugar
¼ tsp salt flakes
1 tsp dry yeast
1 tbsp vegetable oil
185 ml (¾ cup) warm water (approximately 37°C)
Char siu sauce
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 spring onion, white part only, finely chopped
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 tbsp chicken stock or water
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp hoisin sauce
3 tsp light soy sauce
2 tsp cornflour, mixed with 1 tbsp cold water
250 g (1 ½ cups) char sui pork, chopped into 1 cm pieces
To serve
1 spring onion, green part only, thinly sliced
Chilli sauce or crispy chilli oil, optional
Miele accessories
METHOD
Char siu pork
- Cut the pork lengthways into long 2 cm thick pieces and prick several times with a knife or cooking skewer.
- Mash the red fermented bean curd (if using) with the sugar, combine in a bowl with honey, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, cooking wine, five spice powder, pepper and red colouring (if using).
- Place the pork and marinade in a container with a lid and marinate in fridge overnight, or up to two days to intensify the flavour.
- Remove the pork from the marinade and reserve the marinade. Place the pork on a grilling and roasting insert in a universal tray.
- Place the tray into the combi steam Pro oven on shelf level 2. Select Combi mode: Fan Plus at 160°C + 80% moisture + 30 minutes. Baste the pork with the reserved marinade every 10 minutes.
- Change the function to Combi mode: Fan Plus at 200⁰C + 0% moisture. Brush extra honey over each piece of pork and cook for a further 10 minutes until the edges are caramelised.
- Cut 1 ½ cups of the pork into 1 cm pieces to use in the buns. Remaining can be frozen or used in another dish.
Bun dough
- Combine the flours, sugar and salt together in a bowl of a freestanding mixer with a dough hook attachment.
- Whisk the yeast, oil and water together and pour over the flour mixture, mix on medium speed for 3 minutes, or until the dough is soft and silky to touch.
- Place the dough into the oven on Prove yeast dough for 20 minutes, or until doubled in size.
Char siu sauce
- Heat the oil in a frying pan on medium heat, induction setting 6. Add the spring onion, shallot and garlic. Cook for 5 minutes, or until soft.
- Add the chicken stock or water, sugar, oyster sauce, hoisin sauce and soy sauce. Cook for another 3 minutes. Slowly add the cornflour mixture to the sauces and mix until smooth.
- Stir through the chopped pork and set aside to cool.
BBQ "cha siu" pork buns
- Lightly dust a bench. Roll the dough into a sausage shape and cut into 12 equal pieces, approximately 40 g each.
- Roll each piece into a 12 cm circle. Thin the edges out slightly.
- Place a rounded tablespoon of cooled filling in the centre of the dough. Pleat the dough edges up and around the filling to enclose the filling.
- Place the buns into a perforated steam container lined with baking paper; continue for all the dough mix, allowing a gap in between each bun.
- Place in the steam oven on Prove yeast dough for 15 minutes, or until doubled in size.
- Do not remove the buns from the steam oven. Steam at 100°C for a further 14 minutes.
- Serve the buns with spring onions and chilli sauce, if desired.
Additional appliance method:
Oven
- The pork can be cooked in an oven using Moisture Plus with 3 manual bursts of steam. Release a burst of steam immediately, at 20 minutes and at 30 minutes during the first cooking step.
Hints and tips:
- Red fermented bean curd is used in a variety of dishes to add flavour, it also adds a little red colour in this dish. It can be found in Asian groceries or online.
- Extra pork can be used in many ways. Including fried rice, stir fries or noodle soups.