Vegan Baked BBQ Pork Buns / Vegan Baked Char Siu Bao

Course Main Course

Cuisine Chinese

Keyword baked goods, bao, bread, chick'n, chinese, dim sum, dinner, fried seitan, main dish, pork, vegan

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 20

Rising Time 1

Total Time 2

Servings 12 buns

2 cups All-Purpose Flour
2 tsp Vital Wheat Gluten (This gives the flour some extra protein for the yeast to eat which allows for bread to rise better.)
7 grams / 2 1/4 tsp Instant Yeast
2 tbsp Sugar
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 cup Non-Dairy Milk
1/2 cup Lukewarm Water (100-110° F)
2 tbsp Vegan Butter

Mix all the ingredients except the vital wheat gluten together.
Next, mix in the vital wheat gluten until everything comes together. Let the dough sit for 10 minutes as this will activate the gluten.
Next, knead the dough or run it through a food processor for around 3 minutes.
Form the seitan dough mixture into a log and tightly wrap with foil. If the foil is not tight enough the seitan might expand or burst out of the foil.
Steam the seitan for 45 minutes in an instant pot or another preferred steaming method.
Once done steaming remove the foil-wrapped log and allow it to cool for 5-10 minutes or until you can safely touch the foil and unwrap the seitan.
Place the seitan in the fridge in a ziplock bag or container to finishing cooling and setting until you’re ready to chop it up for the filling.
When you’re ready to chop the seitan I recommend chopping them small. Too large of pieces won’t be as tender when eating as smaller pieces.

Mix the vegan broth and corn starch to make a slurry and set aside.
Next, heat the oil over medium-high in a wok or saucepan and add the shallots. Stir-fry for around 3 minutes or until it starts becoming translucent.
Mix in these ingredients next into the wok/saucepan: ginger paste, oyster mushroom sauce, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Chinese cooking wine, sesame oil, and the optional red food coloring.
Stirring the mixture until it starts to bubbling. This will take about 3 minutes.
Once the mixture is bubbling reduce the heat to medium-low and mix in the corn starch and broth slurry. Cook it for a couple of minutes until the sauce starts to thicken.
Remove from the heat and mix in the seitan.
Set the mixture aside in the fridge until the dough is ready to fill.

Combine your yeast and 1 tsp worth of the sugar with the lukewarm water in a bowl or mixing cup.
Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes to proof the yeast. It should become bubbly and start filling up the bowl.
Combine the flour, vital wheat gluten, remaining sugar, and salt in a bowl.
Warm the non-dairy milk and butter until it reaches around 120 F.
Add the proofed yeast and liquid mixture to the dry ingredients.
Knead the bread by hand or with a dough hook until it because glossy, smooth, and elastic. This will take around 9 minutes.
Lightly oil your hands and form the dough into a ball. Lightly oil the dough ball with your hands and place in a bowl to rise.
Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for 30 minutes to 1 hour. If you live in a cold area place the bowl in an oven that's off with a bowl of hot water. This will heat the oven a little to replicate an environment that the bread can rise in.

Take the dough out of the bowl and place it on a clean working surface that is lightly dusted with flour.
Press or roll the dough out into an even square and cut the dough into 9-12 pieces.
Roll the dough pieces out into a disc shape, but leave the center a little thicker than the edges. This helps ensure that the filling doesn’t burst out of the dough while baking.
Add around 2 tablespoons of the seitan and glaze filling to the center of the disc and seal the bun by tightly crimping/folding the edges into each other.
Once the bun is tightly sealed, place them seam side down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Once all the buns are filled and sealed let them rest for 10-15 minutes while you preheat your oven to 375° F.
Once the oven is preheated brush the “egg” wash over the buns.
Bake the buns for 20 minutes or until the buns are golden brown.
Serve the buns warm. You can refrigerate them and just microwave them for 20 seconds. Wrapping them in a damp paper towel when microwave can keep the dough soft.