Vegan Bola-Bola Siopao (Filipino Steamed “Pork”/"Meat"ball Buns)

Ingredients

• 1 tsp instant yeast
• 2/3 cup warm soy milk or oat milk ((or regular milk))
• 2 tsp oil
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp fine salt
• 1/2 lb plant-based ground pork or mince (I used Omnipork Mince)
• 4 shiitake mushrooms (finely minced (feel free to use fresh or rehydrated or other mushrooms of your choice))
• 1/2 small thumb ginger (finely grated)
• 1 clove garlic (minced)
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 1/4 tsp 5 spice powder (optional, substitute with some white pepper and a pinch of cinnamon)
• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
• 1 tbsp vegetarian oyster sauce
• 1/2 tbsp soy sauce or more (to taste)
• 3/4 cup chopped spring onions or scallions
• 1/2 tbsp corn starch

Instructions

1. 1

   You can watch the video for a complete step-by-step.

2. 2

   --- Yeast Mixture ---

3. 3

   Mix the yeast and the warm milk together. Leave for 10 minutes or until it foams up.

4. 4

   Afterwards, mix in the oil.

5. 5

   --- Dry Mixture and Kneading the Dough ---

6. 6

   Meanwhile, mix together all the dry ingredients. While mixing, add in the yeast-milk mixture. You can use a stand mixture for this and combine until you have a dough. You can also use your hands to knead the dough. Feel free to add 1-2 tbsp water to the mixture if it’s dry and doesn’t come together very well. Continue to need until the dough no longer sticks to your hands and you have a ball of dough.

7. 7

   Place the dough back into the bowl. Cover with a towel and leave to double in size at room temperature or in a warm place, for around 1 hour.

8. 8

   --- Prepare the Filling ---

9. 9

   Add all the ingredients in a bowl and mix until well combined. If preparing this mixture in advance, make sure to cover and seal it well to prevent from drying.

10. 10

    --- Making the Buns ---

11. 11

    Flour your work surface as well as your rolling pin.

12. 12

    Place the ball of dough on the surface, then punch a hole in the middle with your finger. Pull apart the dough until you have a large ring.

13. 13

    Divide the dough into 12 pieces. Each piece will be around 40 grams. Shape each piece into a small ball.

14. 14

    Place the dough balls back into the ball and cover these to prevent from drying.

15. 15

    Get 1 piece of dough, place it on a floured surface flatted with your palm, and then roll out with your rolling pin until you have a round shape. While rolling, rotate clockwise to an angle and only roll over 1” of the edges, to create thinner margins with a thicker base. This will make it easier to plate the buns later on.

16. 16

    Add 1-1.5 tbsp of the filling on the centre of your wrapper. Make sure you do not add too much filling to keep the edges clean so that your bun will seal well. Pleat the buns, twist, and seal well.

17. 17

    Proof the buns: place the buns in a bamboo steamer or your steamer and cover these. Leave to proof for 20-30 more minutes.

18. 18

    Afterwards, steam the buns for 12-15 minutes. After turning off the heat, do not immediately open your steamer and allow to slightly cool for 5 minutes. This will help keep the buns fluffy since any immediate temperature change can deflate the buns.

19. 19

    Enjoy while hot!