Flower Buns

Flower buns are steamed buns in the shape of a flower and have no fillings, so they have to be eaten with stewed meat like Hong Bak or Tong Po pork. I have made them from quite a number of recipes but this one is from Jo's Deli Bakery.




Ingredients:

Dough Starter:
135g cake/superfine flour, sifted
45g pau flour, sifted
1 tsp instant yeast
A pinch of salt
100g water


METHOD:
Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix and knead (by hand or by mixer) until dough is smooth and elastic.
Place dough in an oiled bowl and covered with cling film. Prove for 11/2-2 hour until dough is double in volume.
Divide dough to 70g portions. Reserve one portion for this recipe and store the rest in an air tight container and freeze. Thaw to room temperature the next time you want to use the dough starter.


INGREDIENTS:

Main Dough:
200g cake/superfine flour
100g pau flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
6g soy flour
50g castor sugar
2 tsp instant yeast
130g water
70g Dough Starter
10g shortening

For greasing:
2 tbsp shortening
2 tbsp castor sugar



METHOD:

Prepare main dough: Sift cake flour, pau flour, baking powder and soy flour into a mixing bowl. Combine flours with sugar, yeast and water. Beat until a smooth dough is formed.
Add in dough starter and shortening. Continue to knead until the dough is smooth, elastic and close to the stage where a thin membrane can be formed when dough is stretched
To prepare greasing, mix shortening and castor sugar in a bowl. Mix well using a spoon until sugar dissolve a little.


To prepare Flower Bun:


Divide dough into 11 portions of 50g small doughs. Roll each portion out to about 1/4 inch thick. Use a knife or pizza cutter, cut a few lines on the dough. Leave both ends of dough un-cut
Apply the sugar greasing onto dough . Twist the dough . Tie dough into a knot . Repeat for other dough.
Cover Flower Buns with a damp cloth and prove for 30 minutes.
Boil water in a steamer. Reduce fire to medium heat. Steam Flower Buns for 10 minutes.
Serve while Flower Buns are still hot.


NOTES FROM JO'S DELI BAKERY:

The dough starter recipe will give you about 4 portions of starters. Store the rest in air-tight container in freezer. Just bring a portion of starter back to room temperature when you need it for other pau products. Use it for making e.g. Steamed Man Tou, Meat & Vegetable Pau, Char Siew Pau (Barbecued Pork Pau) etc.


Unlike bread dough, dough for pau product does not have to be kneaded to the thin membrane stage. Knead until gluten is formed in dough.
Please adjust water content of this recipe. Remember amount of water required depends on types of flour used, type of liquid used, temperature and humidity of atmosphere at the time of making the pau.
Unless the dough is too sticky to work with, avoid using too much flour to dust your working surface. This may result in thick and hard pau skin.
Avoid water condensate at steamer's lid from dropping to the man tou. Dry lid with a cloth every time you uncover the steamer.
Don't worry if your product is not as white as those sold in the restaurant. This is because you do not use 100% bleached pau flour in this recipe. I mixed pau flour with superfine/cake (low protein) flour so that texture of pau would not be too chewy.
If you are not able to finish all the flower buns at one time, keep them in an air-tight container or plastic bag and freeze. Just reheat them whenever you want to have them. Estimated storage period is 2-3 months.
Serves