Chicken & Egg Big Bao (鸡球大包)
Cantonese big Bao is an excellent, fluffy baozi that's meant to be an entire meal in one hand
“Big Bao”, is a classic Cantonese steamed bun that’s stuffed to the brim with marinated chicken, sausage, minced pork, shiitake mushroom, and a half a whole boiled egg. Now, the obvious question you might naturally have might be "why make a bao so big? What's… wrong with a normal sized baozi?" and while the answer of 'because we can' should probably be as good enough rationale as any, there actually is a pretty interesting reason as to why these specific baozi got so big.
So you might be familiar with Cantonese “Zou Lou” (酒楼), or 'teahouses' but I'm pretty sure everyone outside of China just calls them 'Cantonese restaurants'. These are the places where the rich can flaunt their status by ordering hundreds of dollars worth of abalone and lobster, yes, but interestingly, unlike similar high end restaurants in the west, that's not their only function. From the morning to the early afternoon, they serve dim sum, at prices that don't break the bank for the middle class. And outside the restaurant on the street – there's – sometimes – a baozi stand, ready for workers to grab and go on the cheap.
So Big Bao comes from that Zou Lou baozi stand tradition – it was invented as a way for workers to eat an entire tasty meal in one hand. So, three baozi here is for three people – each one meant to be an entire meal in and of itself.
Big Bao Filling:
Dried Shiitake Mushrooms (冬菇/香菇), 2.
Cantonese Lap Cheong sausage (广式腊肠), ½ sausage.
Hard boiled eggs, ½ to 1 egg per Baozi (seven minute eggs), 1 to 2 eggs.
Chicken thigh, ½. Cut into 1 inch cubes.
Marinade for the chicken:
Salt, ¼ tsp.
Sugar, ¼ tsp.
White pepper (白胡椒粉), ¼ tsp.
Cornstarch (生粉), ½ tsp.
Oyster sauce (蚝油), ½ tsp.
Liaojiu a.k.a. Shaoxing wine (料酒/绍兴酒), ½ tsp.
Toasted sesame oil (麻油), ¼ tsp.
Pork leg/ham (后腿肉) or collar (梅肉) or 80/20 minced pork, 150g.
Marinade for the pork:
Salt, ⅛ tsp.
Sugar, ¼ tsp.
Soy sauce (生抽), ⅛ tsp.
White pepper powder (白胡椒粉), ⅛ tsp.
Cornstarch (生粉), ½ tsp.
Liaojiu a.k.a. Shaoxing wine (料酒/绍兴酒), ¼ tsp.
Mushroom soaking liquid, 1 tbsp.
Oil (preferably peanut), ½ tsp.
Process:
Soak 2 dried shiitake mushrooms in hot, boiled water for about 30 minutes (or overnight in cool water).
While mushrooms soak is soking, place 2 egg in pot with cool water, bring to boil. Reduce to medium/medium-high, boil for 7 minutes. Rinse and peel. Use ½ to 1 egg per Baozi.
Then cut ½ chicken thigh into 1 inch cubes. Marinate with ¼ tsp salt, ¼ tsp sugar, ¼ tsp white pepper, ½ tsp cornstarch, ½ tsp oyster sauce, ½ tsp Shaoxing wine, and 1/4 tsp sesame oil.
Once mushrooms are soft, cut into 1 cm pieces, and mix with the chicken.
For the 150g pork leg/ham/collar or 80/20 minced pork: If hand mincing, separate and finely dice the fat, then set aside. Next, mince the lean with cleaver(s), then marinate the minced lean with ⅛ tsp salt, ¼ tsp sugar, ⅛ tsp soy sauce, ⅛ tsp white pepper powder, ½ tsp cornstarch, ¼ tsp Shaoxing wine, and 1 tbsp mushroom soaking liquid. Stir thoroughly for about a minute till everything’s absorb. Add back the fat cubes, coat the mixture with ½ tsp oil (preferably peanut), mix well and set aside.
Cut ½ a stick of Cantonese Lap Cheong sausage into 2 cm sections, set aside.
The Big Bao:
Levain:
Cake flour (低筋面粉), 100g.
Water, 48g.
Instant yeast, 1g.
Final dough:
Cake flour (低筋面粉), 100g.
Water, 48g.
Sugar, 24g.
Instant yeast, 1g.
Baking powder, 1 tsp (2g).
Lard, 10g. To be added later in the process.
Process:
For the levain: Mix 100g cake flour, 48g water, and 1g instant yeast. Form into a rough ball. Let sit for 3-5 hours (or overnight in fridge, then 1 hour at room temperature).
For the final dough: Dissolve 24g sugar in 30g water and 1g instant yeast in 18g water separately, mix 1 tsp (2g) baking powder with 100g cake flour.
Add flour/baking powder mixture to levain, followed by yeast water and sugar water, then form into a rough ball. Knead for about 6 minutes until smooth and playdough-like.
Add 10g lard, knead for another 2 minutes until completely combined, rest for 30 minutes.
Then we’ll need to pass the dough through a pasta maker to create a smooth and even final dough.
Pass dough through pasta maker on widest setting, fold in half, pass through again. Repeat 7 times total.
Then, roll this smooth sheet tightly into a log, and portion into three ~110g sections for three baos.
Next, shape each section into a ball:
Press the section flat, then fold edges into center, then place crinkly side down on work surface, twist on the counter as if you’re shaping bread dough for tigher and smoother ball. Let the balls rest for 5 minutes.
Then we can wrap. Press the ball flat in all directions, then use edge of rolling pin to roll the sides thinner, aiming for wrappers about 20 cm wide.
Then for wrapping, you can place the wrapper in a bowl to assist. Evenly spread 3 tbsp pork filling inside, nestle in 1/3 of Lap Cheong sausage, add 3 tbsp chicken filling, place 1/2 to 1 whole egg on top, then grab the edge and start pleating around to close up the bao (more pleats would look nicer). Finally pinch up at the center to finish.
Now place each baozi on a parchment paper inside a steamer, proof over 35°C water for 15 minutes, then move onto heavily bubbling water and steam on high for 20 minutes.
After steaming, your big baozi are ready to serve.
These keep very well in the fridge and freezer. No need to thaw. If reheating, steam over some parchment paper - 5 minutes if coming from the fridge, 25 minutes if coming from the freezer.