Pan-Fried Buns (生煎包) have stolen the spotlight around the world. We’re attracted by its crunchy bottom and the juicy filling. Everyone wants a bite of them right? And now I’m happy to say that you’re able to taste these extraordinary buns, as this recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free as well as vegan-friendly!
Pan-Fried Buns are popular street food in Shanghai. I haven’t been to Shanghai before but there are quite many Shanghainese restaurants in Hong Kong. When our family dines outside for special occasions or festivals, I always suggest Shanghainese cuisine! The Pan-Fried Buns in those restaurants are delicious enough, though I heard people who have been to Shanghai keep saying that the taste was incomparable to what you could find in a random ordinary restaurant in Shanghai. Aw…I wish I could travel now!
WHAT MAKES SHANGHAI PAN-FRIED BUNS SO ATTRACTIVE?
Of course the crispy bottom! The way to cook Pan-Fried Buns is similar to potstickers’, except the amount of oil used for pan-frying. The filling basically includes ground pork and aspic made with pork skin, so you can tell why it’s so juicy. People are so satisfied with the dripping soup after taking a bite. Wait, we don’t use meat here, then how do we create buns that are as amazing as the ordinary version? For the answer, please continue to read.
HOW TO MAKE GOOD PAN-FRIED VEGGIE BUNS?
To be precise, we’re now imitating the taste and texture of the traditional Pan-Fried Buns because the ingredients used in this gluten-free and vegan recipe are mostly different. However, the keys are more or less the same.
1. FILLING
As I mentioned, we don’t use any meat in this recipe, so how do we make the filling juicy? I have tried for quite many times with varied ingredients to create juiciness – black beans, chickpeas, tofu, etc. I love using tofu for its protein but I think SQUASH/PUMPKIN gives the best result. Water comes out naturally from squash/pumpkin after cooking and this becomes the SOUP we want.
Unlike other oil, coconut oil is solid at room temperature and turns into liquid after heating. This characteristic makes it a key element to increase the juiciness of our veggie buns! Just a little reminder, coconut flavor is undesirable here so refined coconut oil was chosen.
2. BUN DOUGH
Various gluten-free flours are combined to resemble the texture of buns made with all-purpose flour. I combined white rice flour, glutinous rice flour (sweet rice flour), potato starch and tapioca flour and initially I used this combination to make steamed buns. They produced fluffy and soft steamed buns! I screamed when I finally got the right ratio and made the first successful batch of buns! Back to Pan-Fried Buns, their texture should be crispy – more like a dumpling wrapper but a bit fluffy like steamed buns. This recipe will make it!
3. COOKING METHOD OF PAN-FRIED BUNS
You will need a lot of oil to cover the bottom of the buns when pan-frying. Shallow-frying is the secret to create an evenly browned and beautiful bottom.
HOW TO SERVE PAN-FRIED BUNS?
I cannot call the Pan-Fried Buns fatty but they’re indeed a bit greasy. Serving them with Shanghai rice vinegar is the traditional way plus a great way to cut the richness, as well as adding balance to this dish. My boyfriend loves to add some chilli oil too!
TIPS
Pleating the buns takes quite some time so I prefer to make bun dough in 2 batches to prevent over-proofing while pleating the buns.
To check if the buns have reached double in size while proofing, I place a small dough in a shot glass/shot glass-size container to monitor the level of the dough.
To cook the buns, I pour water to cover around 1cm of the buns’ height.
STORAGE
Like most gluten-free goodies, these buns are best served warm and immediately. I do not recommend storing them in the refrigerator as the texture of the dough will be less fluffy and chewy.
MORE ASIAN-STYLE/HONG KONG-STYLE VEGAN RECIPES 更多亞洲/港式純素食譜
- Gluten-free Vegan Rainbow Crispy Pan Fried Dumplings 無麩純素彩虹煎餃子
- HK x Viet-style Rice Paper Spring Rolls 炸米紙春卷
- Vegan Kimchi Turnip Cakes 純素泡菜蘿蔔糕
- Hong Kong-style Vegan Chow Fun 港式乾炒河粉
- Gluten-free Vegan Kimchi Pancakes 無麩質純素泡菜煎餅
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Gluten-free Pan-fried Veggie Buns 無麩純素生煎包
Equipment
- Electric stand mixer with a dough hook (optional)
- Rolling Pin
- 11-inch non-stick pan
Ingredients
For filling
- 205 grams Kabocha squash chopped – 1 cup
- 1 bunch vermicelli noodles cut into portions
- 3 teaspoons olive oil for cooking
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 to 3 fresh shiitake mushrooms sliced – 80-100 grams
- 80 grams carrots grated
- 223 grams cabbage chopped
- 150 millilitre water
- 2 tablespoons tamari
- 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 2 tablespoons chives or scallion finely chopped – 10 grams
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons solid refined coconut oil for bun juice
For dough
- 120 grams white rice flour
- 100 grams potato starch
- 40 grams sweet/glutinous rice flour
- 40 grams tapioca flour
- 4 teaspoons xanthan gum
- 2/3 teaspoon baking powder
- 6 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons instant dry yeast
- 180 grams warm soy milk 35-36°C
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
For cooking & topping
- 3 tablespoons oil depends on your pan size
- 120 milliliter water depends on your pan size
- 1-2 tablespoons white sesame for topping
- 4 tablespoons scallion finely chopped for topping
Instructions
For filling
- Steam chopped Kabocha squash for 20 minutes. Mash them into puree and set aside. Soak vermicelli noodles in a bowl of water for 15 minutes until soft.
- In a frying pan heat olive oil over medium-high heat, sauté garlic until fragrant, then add shiitake mushrooms to pan-fry until golden brown. Add carrots & cabbage to fry roughly (we want to keep their crunchiness). Push everything to one side, then add vermicelli noodles & water and bring to a boil. Simmer everything for about a minute, until the noodles have absorbed all the liquid but are still elastic. In a small bowl stir tamari and cornstarch together and stir into the pan. Use chopsticks to lift and mix everything. Season with salt and ground white pepper, then taste and adjust flavors if necessary.
- Turn off the heat and stir in chives/scallions and sesame oil. Transfer to a bowl. Add squash puree and solid coconut oil (to create bun juice!) and mix to combine. Chill for 30 minutes before use.
For dough
- Whisk flours & starch, xanthan gum, baking powder, sugar and yeast together. Pour in 1/3 of the soy milk and olive oil and mix with a stand mixer with the dough hook over medium speed. When everything starts to combine, pour in another 1/3 soy milk while mixing. Observe the texture of the mixture to adjust the amount of soy milk you add, as the consistency of soy milk may vary from brand to brand. Add the remaining or your adjusted amount of soy milk to the mixture. A dough should be formed and the texture should be a bit sticky but not wet. Continue to knead for 5 minutes more. You can choose to mix and knead by hand.
- Wrap the dough and let it rest for 5 minutes in the refrigerator.
Assembling the buns
- Dust a working surface with white rice flour and knead the dough for around 2 to 3 minutes with your hands. Roll the dough into a long strip and divide them evenly into 16 portions (25 to 26 grams each), then roll each into a small ball. Cover them with a damp towel while working.
- Flatten a dough ball with your palm and roll it into an around 4-inch round disk with a rolling pin. Roll the edges thinner.
- Add 2 teaspoons filling to the centre, then fold the bun up by gathering all sides. Repeat until all are assembled.
- Proof the buns under room temperature until they become double in size, for about 15 to 20 minutes.
Cooking
- Before turning on the heat, put buns on a 11-inch non-stick frying pan and pour oil all over the pan to cover the bottom of all buns. Now turn on medium-high heat and cook until the bottom becomes slightly golden.
- Pour water into the pan (be careful of the splashing oil!). Place a lid over and simmer until the buns have absorbed all water and the top becomes soft. Pour more water and simmer for longer if the buns are still not soft enough. Turn off the heat and sprinkle white sesame & scallions over the top. Serve warm with balsamic vinegar or chilli oil!
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