Pan-fried Chinese Buns with Pork and Shiitake Mushrooms Filling

中文：生煎全麦香菇肉包

Got some really good and fresh shiitake mushrooms during my last grocery trip near Detroit.  I use some to make pan-fried Chinese buns with pork.  And they are fantastic! O(∩_∩)O~

Vinegar and chili sauce is a popular dipping sauce for pan-fried buns.  It is refreshing and enhances the flavors.

Ingredients for the bun dough：

1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 to 2 tablespoons gluten flour
1/2 to 1/3 cup of warm water
1 teaspoon yeast
1 to 2 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 to 2 teaspoon oil
 

For pork and shiitake mushrooms filling：

2/3 to 1 cup ground pork
6 large fresh shiitake mushrooms
1 to 2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon oyster sauce
1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1tablespoon rice cooking wine
4 to 6 tablespoons chicken stock/ water
a pinch of freshly ground ginger
salt to taste

For pan-frying：

2 to 4 tablespoons oil
1/3 to 1/2 cup of water
chopped green onion
white sesame seeds
 

Directions：

The dough takes longer time to make so I start with bun dough.

In the stand mixer mixing bowl, add all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, gluten flour, sugar and salt.  Mix them with hand or a whisk. 

Make a well in the middle of the flour.  Add warm water; sprinkle with yeast and let it sit for 5 minutes. 

Stand mixer kneads the dough at speed 2 until the dough is smooth and elastic.  It takes between 10 to 15 minutes.

Cover the bowl with lid. The dough proofs for 25 to 35 minutes.  It doesn’t have to double in size.  

When waiting for the dough to be ready, I make the pork and shiitake mushrooms filling.

In a medium mixing bowl, add ground pork, soy sauce, ground white pepper, oyster sauce, sugar, rice cooking wine, ground ginger and salt.  Mix them well.  The best tool to do this is a pair of chop sticks.

When whisking with chop sticks, slowly add chicken stock/ water.  Don’t worry about the filling getting too thin.  Ground pork will absorb the liquid. 

Clean the shiitake mushroom with a damp towel or rinse them under running if there is a lot of dirt.  Pat day with kitchen towel and add to food processor.

Chop finely

Add to the pork and mix well again.

Gently knead the dough to get rid of any large air bubbles.  Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit for another 10 minutes.

Evenly divide the dough into small pieces.  I like to make small buns so I divide it into 28 small pieces of dough.

Press down the dough with palm.  With a small rolling pin, roll the dough edge thin.

Add two to three tablespoons of pork filling to the center.

Wrap it up

Repeat the process until all 28 are done.

Cover them with plastic wrap and proof for another 10 to 15 minutes.

Heat a 12 inches cast iron skillet over medium high heat. 

Add oil and then the buns.  Pan fry for about 1 minute.  Add water and cover with lid.

When the water is almost gone, which takes between 6 to 10 minutes, reduce the heat to medium low.  Cook for another 4 to 6 minutes.  It will cook buns bottom to be golden brown, crispy, crunchy and yummy. 

Serve immediately with bottom side up. 

In winter time, I like to serve with the cast iron skillet so that they would stay hot for longer time.

They go really great with sweet rice vinegar and chili sauce!

Sweet Rice Cake Balls with Black Sesame and Brown Sugar

中文： 姜汁红糖黑芝麻汤圆

Yesterday was the last day of Chinese New Year.  That was the end of 15 days’ celebration.  And sweet rice cake balls are a traditional festive dish to serve on this day.  They are round shape which symbolizes a better and more fortunate new year.  The sweetness of sweet rice cake balls represents a new year will go by smoothly without any trouble.

In the small southern town I am from, we serve sweet rice cake balls in sweet brown sugar and ginger soup.  The spiciness from the ginger root gives the whole dish an exotic flavor.  You will be surprised to taste how great brown sugar and ginger go together.

For sweet rice cake balls：

2 cups of sweet rice flour
3/4 cup of whole milk
1 teaspoon oil
2 teaspoons sugar

For black sesame fillings:

1 1/2 cups black sesame seeds
4 tablespoons honey
6 to 8 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar (use more if you have a sweet tooth)
1 to 2 tablespoons butter

Ground black sesame is available in Asian grocery store.  But I always prefer to roast and grind the black sesame seeds  myself.   The aroma is so much stronger and the flavor is more intense.

For the soup：

Water
1 small piece of ginger root
brown sugar to taste

Directions：

Heat a cast iron skillet with black sesame seeds over medium low heat.  Stir occasionally until the seeds are fully toasted.

It might be hard to tell when they are done because they are all black.

There is a trick that you can add a teaspoon white sesame seeds.  When they turn slightly yellow, you know the seeds are perfectly toasted.

Add roasted black sesame seeds to a coffee grinder in two or three batches.  Grind them as finely as you can.  But don’t over grind because they might turn into sesame butter. 

Microwave the butter until it is melted.  Add ground sesame, honey and confectioner’s sugar.  Mix well.

Divide them into equal small pieces.  I got 26 pieces.  You can make them any size you want, just not too big.   Roll each of them into a sesame ball.  Refrigerate for over 1 hour or until they harden, which will make the next step so much easier. 

In a medium bowl, add sweet rice flour and sugar.  And then add oil and milk while whisk with a pair of chopsticks or a wooden spoon.  When the flour starts to come together, knead with hands until it forms a sweet rice cake dough ball. 

Divide the dough into equal small pieces too, about the size of black sesame balls or a little bigger.

Press down one piece of dough.  Add black sesame ball to its center.

Wrap it up and roll into a ball again.  When you are working on the cake balls, remember to cover the rest with plastic wrap.  It is normal that sweet rice cake balls fall apart during the process because sweet rice flour has no gluten at all.

Repeat the process until all are done.

Cook the sweet rice balls in boiling water seasoned with sliced ginger and brown sugar until they float.

Serve immediately. 

This is definitely one of my favorite sweet rice cakes.  The nutty, fruity and strong sesame aroma becomes the star in this dish.  And the sweetness from honey, confectioner’s sugar and brown sugar just complete it.

If you don’t like ginger and brown sugar soup, it is ok to serve in them plain.  They taste great too. O(∩_∩)O~

Steamed Chicken Feet in Black Bean sauce

中文：豉汁凤爪

If you have been to any authentic Chinese dim sum restaurant, there is a great chance you might have seen people enjoying this dish not far from you.  It is a dim sum classic.  I never go to a dim sum restaurant without ordering one or two or sometimes three of them. O(∩_∩)O~ 

Chicken feet, well, they taste a lot better than they sound.  They are high in collagen which gives them the unique texture.  If you have never had one before, try to think about how ox tails taste like.  It is kind of similar.  When put it that way, chicken feet sound less bizarre, right?

Ingredients：

1 package chicken feet (available in Asian grocery store)
2 gloves of garlic
2 tablespoons fermented black beans
2 to 3 teaspoons oyster sauce
2 to 3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 to 3 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 to 2tablespoon rice cooking wine
1 1/2 to 2 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon fermented tofu
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
3 to 4 tablespoons chicken stock (optional)
salt to taste
oil for deep frying

Directions：

Ring the chicken feet under cold running water.  Remove the nails with a pair of sharp kitchen scissors .

Pat dry with kitchen tower and then deep fry them in a deep fryer until golden brown.

Be alert!  This step is highly dangerous because the oil will spatter vigorously.  Be careful not to burn yourself, or anything else.  O(∩_∩)O~

Soak the fried chicken feet in cold water for 6 to 9 hours.  If you are in a rush, you can cook them in boiling water for 30 to 40 instead.

Peel the garlic gloves and press them with a garlic press to get super fine minced garlic.   In a small bowl, add garlic, fermented black beans, oyster sauce, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, rice cooking wine, sugar, fermented tofu, ground white pepper, chicken stock and salt.  Mix well.

Drain the chicken feet and toss them with seasoning sauce.

Steam over low heat for 2 to 3 hours

I like to do the steam in this large 6 quarts lodge cast iron Dutch oven.  It is spacious for a large bowl and the water needed for long steaming process.

Gently toss the chicken feet with sauce a few times during steaming so that they can be evenly colored and flavored.

Serve immediately in small portions in mini bamboo steamers.  Doesn’t it bring you right back to the dim sum restaurant? O(∩_∩)O~

Brioche Bread

中文： Brioche 面包

I just can’t get enough of soft, sweet, light and fluffy bread.  Brioche is also one of my favorites.  So I never stop trying different ways to make it.

 The recipe is adapted from http://forums.huaren.us/showtopic.aspx?topicid=1400907.  According to the author, she adapted from somewhere else.  Anyway, many thanks to the both authors who have contributed to this recipe!

PS.  I didn’t expect this piece of eggy dough to rise so high in the oven.  That is why we have a giant mushroom shape loaf here. O(∩_∩)O~

Ingredients：

3 1/4 to 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup warm water
3 eggs
2egg yolks
6 tablespoons softened butter
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoon yeast
1/4teaspoon salt
 

For the filling：

2/3 cup raisins
4 to 6 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1/2 to 1teaspoon ground cinnamon
egg wash for brushing the top
white sesame seeds   (optional)

Directions：

Dissolve the yeast in warm water.  Let it sit for 5 minutes.

Add water with yeast, eggs, egg yolks, flour, sugar and salt to the bread machine .  Start dough process.  My bread machine will knead the dough for 20 minutes.

Stop the machine after kneading by pressing stop button for seconds.  Add diced softened butter, start dough process all over again.  This time, allow the machine to knead and proof the dough as programmed.

It takes about 2 hours for the dough to double in size.

Transfer the dough to a well-floured wooden board.  Punch down and knead gently to get rid of any big air bubbles.  Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest for 10 minutes.

Equally divide the dough into 4 pieces.  With a rolling pin, roll each one flat and thin; sprinkle with brown sugar, ground cinnamon and raisins; and then roll up from one end all the way to the other end.  

Loosely braid them together.  Proof the dough again in a greased loaf pan. 

It takes about another hour or so for the dough to double in size again.

Preheat the oven to 350F/177C.  

Brush the top with egg wash.  Sprinkle with white sesame seeds.

Bake in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes, depending on the baking pan you are using.  You might need to cover the bread with a piece of foil to prevent too dark color on the top.

Sweet Rice Cake with Red Beans and Coconut Milk

中文：椰奶红豆年糕

Right now, we are celebrating the Chinese New Year.  According to the tradition, the celebration lasts for 15 days.  It is just like Christmas for American people.  We get together with families and friends, partying, eating, drinking and having a wonderful time.  And we have some traditional holiday food too.  Sweet rice cake is one of them.

Ok, I am crazy about sweet rice cakes.  I have met any sweet rice cake I don’t like.  Sweet, savory, spicy… love them all.  One of my favorites is the traditional sweet rice cake with brown sugar. I add red beans and coconut milk to add more flavor and texture.  And it turns out fantastic! 

You can serve the sliced sweet cake right away, and you can pan fry them like I do.  It is so so so good that we always have to fight for the last piece. O(∩_∩)O~

Ingredients:

1 package of sweet rice flour (16 oz)
1package of red beans (12 oz)
1 3/4 to 2 cups coconut milk
1  to 1 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar  (use more if you have a sweet tooth)
water for boiling

I love red beans.  So I use the whole package here.  You can use half or 2/3 package.

I use light coconut milk from trader joe’s.  It tastes good and contains less fat and calories than the regular coconut milk. O(∩_∩)O~

Directions：

Add water and red beans to a medium stock pot.  Heat it on high heat.  When the water boils, reduce to medium heat and cook for 50 to 60 minutes just until the beans are tender but don’t fall apart yet.

Drain the beans well.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together sweet rice flour and dark brown sugar.

Add coconut milk and whisk just until the dry flour is gone.

With a rubber spatula, fold in cooked red beans.

Spray a round glass bowl, and line up with parchment paper.

Steam the sweet rice cake on a vegetable steamer  in a covered pot. I love to use Lodge 6 quart Dutch oven for steaming.  Steam over medium heat for about 60 to 70 minutes.

Now it is done.

Remove from glass bowl

Remove parchment paper.  Isn’t it beautiful?

You can serve it immediately.  The sweet rice cake might be sticky now.  Dip the knife into cold water with every cut.  It helps to make it easier to slice the sweet rice cake.

It is good the way it is right now.

After refrigerating for a couple days, the cake begins to harden. 

Cut into thick slices.

Heat a cast iron pan over low heat.  Add 1 to 2 teaspoons cooking oil.

Add sliced sweet rice cake.

Flip them when the bottom side is gold brown.

Flip them when the bottom side is gold brown.

Cook until both sides are golden brown.

It takes time to make great pan-fried sweet rice cake.  Heating over low heat means longer cooking time but also means they will get crunchier and crispier on the outside. 

Top with honey if you like.

Now it is time to enjoy!  It is crunchy and crispy on the outside, soft and sweet and sort of gooey on the inside.  O(∩_∩)O~