Steamed Buns With Chinese Sausage [Starter Dough Method]

First time making this pattern pau, practice will make perfect

During the Chinese New Year, most Chinese families will buy chinese sausages [lap cheong] as CNY gifts for friends and relatives.  However, not all people will eat chinese sausages as it is a preserved food and rather fatty.  This is so with some of my friends who received them as part of their CNY gifts and just do not know what to do with it.  So, when they gave them to me, I will usually used them as fillings to make Steamed Buns.  These buns are really tasty and of course they just love it.

How to prepare the Chinese sausages [lap cheong] for wrapping?


Enough number of Chinese sausage - skin removed and cut into 4 pieces.
some oyster sauce, water and  a little cornflour mix.

• Pan fry the prepared sausages in a non stick pan [without oil] for a few minutes.  Add in oyster sauce then some water to combine with sausages.  Stir in cornflour mix [just enough to coat the sausages].  
• Dish out on plate to cool before using.  Can prepare ahead and refrigerate until required.

This is how the sausages look after frying

Ingredients for Starter Dough 

175 gm plain flour/pau flour

1 tsp yeast

100 ml warm water

• Mix all ingredients into a sticky, rough dough.  Cover dough and leave for 1-2 hours or until 2-3 times in size.

Ingredients for Bun Dough

175 gm plain flour/pau flour

1.5 tbsp [40 gm] castor sugar

1 tsp double action baking powder

100 ml warm water
1/4 tsp vinegar

1 tbsp oil or vegetable shortening

• Mix all ingredients [except water and oil] with starter dough.  Knead to combine ingredients well, then gradually add in water as you knead the dough until soft and smooth.  If using electric mixer, it takes about 10 minutes.  Then add in vegetable shortening/oil.  Continue kneading for another 10-15 minutes until dough is soft, smooth and elastic [does not stick to fingers].  Cover dough and leave to proof for 15 minutes.
• Punch down and divide into 2 portions.  Roll each portion and fold in thirds.  Then roll into a log and divide into 8 pieces.  Do the same for the other portion.  [After this step, you can roll out the dough into any shape to suit the fillings used].  
• Roll each small piece into an oval shape.   Place a piece of sausage in the centre, then make equal number of slits on both sides and fold criss-cross to cover the sausage.  Pinch the end and place it on a steaming tray lined with greased proof paper.  See photos below.
• Leave to rise for at least 1/2 hour or until double in size.
• Steam over boiling water on high heat for 12-13 minutes.  Off fire and leave buns in steamer [covered] for another 1 minutes.  Then remove the cover and place buns on rack to cool or serve immediately.

Note:
Please refer to Steamed Meat Pau [Tua Pau] recipe for straight dough method.  This is a really good pau skin recipe to keep.