Chinese Steamed Buns with Scallions (Hua Juan)

Ingredients

• 1 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
• 2 teaspoons instant yeast
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon nonfat dry milk powder (optional)
• 1 cup finely sliced scallions, from 8 to 10
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• sea salt, optional
• soy dipping sauce, I like this one, optional

Instructions

1. 1

   In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring the milk to a gentle boil. Remove pan from heat. Let cool till 100ºF to 110ºF. Stir in the oil.

2. 2

   In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, yeast, sugar, milk powder (if using), and salt. Add the milk-oil mixture to the flour bowl, and stir to form a dough ball.

3. 3

   Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 6 to 8 minutes. Return dough to bowl and let rise in a warm spot for at least 2 hours or as as long as 24 in the refrigerator.

4. 4

   In a small bowl, stir together the scallions, oil, and salt. Cut out twelve 6-inch square pieces of parchment paper. Lightly flour a work surface.

5. 5

   Turn dough out onto prepared work surface. Punch down to deflate. Using a knife or bench scraper, divide the dough into 12 pieces and shape each roughly into a ball. Using a rolling pin, roll each into a 4×6-inch oval. Working with one oval at a time, slice ribbons lengthwise into the oval, leaving about 1/2 inch at the top of the oval intact. Brush or spoon about 1 tablespoon of the scallion mixture across the dough. Pick up each end of the oval, gently pull outward, then twist into a coil. Then, twist the coil into a knot. Place the knot on a sheet of parchment paper. Repeat process with remaining ovals until all 12 knots are shaped. Let rest 30-40 minutes.

6. 6

   Prepare a steamer basket. If using a wok with a bamboo insert, bring 2 inches of water to a boil, being sure water does not touch the bottom of the steamer basket. If using a pot with steamer insert, fill with water, again being sure water does not touch the bottom of the steamer basket, and bring to a boil.

7. 7

   Place 3 to 4 scallion knots with parchment paper into steamer. Cover. Reduce heat so that water is just simmering. Steam for 15 minutes.

8. 8

   Serve warm sprinkled with sea salt, if you wish, or a soy dipping sauce.

9. 9

   Leftovers can be frozen and reheated in a steamer or microwave (about 15 seconds).