BBQ Pork Steamed Buns

I am obsessed with these bbq pork steamed buns! They are reminiscent of the siopao I used to get from this little Filipino bakery years ago! They are slightly sweet, slightly tangy, and oh so fluffy! I know that I always say that things are easy to make but that's because it is! Lol. Purchasing pre-packaged mix helps tremendously with this recipe, but if you would like to make the dough from scratch, feel free to check out my recipe here.


INGREDIENTS:

(approximately) 2.4 pound pork shoulder butt roast (seasoned well with salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder)

1 cup of freshly chopped pineapple

1 jar of your favorite bbq sauce (I prefer Sweet Baby Ray's Hickory and Brown Sugar)

1/4 cup of hot water

1 Tablespoon of brown sugar (optional)

black pepper

FOR THE DOUGH

1 package of dumpling (banh bao) flour--you will need to follow the directions according to the packaging, so make sure you have the ingredients for your mix.


YOU WILL ALSO NEED:
12 parchment squares

Steamer

vinegar


INGREDIENTS FOR BBQ PULLED PORK:

1. With your crockpot on high, add in a layer of bbq sauce and HALF of your chopped pineapple. Add in your seasoned pork shoulder butt roast, fat side up.
2. Cover the pork with another layer of bbq sauce and the rest of your chopped pineapple.
3. Add in 1/4 cup of hot water, cover, and cook on HIGH for 4 hours.
4. After 4 hours, remove lid, flip pork over, and cook on HIGH for another 2 hours.
5. Once pork is fork tender, remove pork from crockpot and shred it.
6. Drain the juices/pineapple from the crockpot using a colander. Discard the pineapple and save the sauce. Taste check for seasoning. Add a Tablespoon of brown sugar(optional) and two big pinches of black pepper. Mix well. Pour the sauce over your shredded pork and mix well. Refrigerate until cold.

MAKE THE DOUGH:

1. Follow the directions on the packaging for your steamed buns/banh bao/dumpling mix.
2. Roll out your dough into a 16 inch long log and divide equally into 12 pieces.
3. Flatten out the dough into a circle (the circumference should cover your palm), making sure that the middle of the dough is thicker than the outer part.
4. Using an ice cream scoop, place a scoop of bbq pulled pork into the middle of the dough. Bring the sides up and pinch to seal. Make sure to keep any unused dough under a clean wash cloth to prevent drying them out. Place filled dough on a piece of parchment square and repeat with the rest of the dough until finished.

STEAM THE BUNS:

1. Place some water into your pot and pour a couple of Tablespoons of vinegar in there. Add your steamer compartments on top of your pot. Cover with lid and bring water to a quick rolling boil. Turn down heat to medium. Wipe down the inner compartment and make sure it's dry before adding in the formed buns. It's also important to not have the boiling water touch the base of the compartment. That will lead to soggy buns.
2. Place some of your buns into the dry steamer, being careful not to overcrowd them. You may have to work in batches. Steam the buns for 10 minutes. Remove the lid, wipe it down, cover again, and steam for an additional 10 minutes (total time: 20 minutes). Repeat with the rest of the buns until all have been steamed.

NOTES:

Once your buns are done steaming, do not leave them in the steamer. The bottoms will get soggy! Remove them from the steamer and allow them to cool down completely before individually wrapping them in saran wrap. These can be refrigerated (for up to 3-5 days) and then reheated in the microwave until warm.

Pulled Pork (crock pot recipe)

No words can describe how easy and delicious this pulled pork is! Someone once told me that it's only pulled pork if you are using bbq sauce at the end?? Although I call it slow cooked pork in my video, I'm going to call it pulled pork for the recipe since it sounds more fitting for me. :)

The possibilities are endless with this recipe! You can make sandwiches, burritos, or eat it with rice like a good little Asian (like me, haha).


Ingredients:

2.5 pounds of pork butt/shoulder (just over 2 pounds is fine)
1 pkg of onion soup mix
2 1/4 cups of hot water
1/2 Tbsp of soy sauce (you may end up using another 1/2 Tbsp later)
2 Tbsp of brown sugar
1/2 tsp of garlic powder
1/2 tsp of black pepper
extra virgin olive oil

For the open faced sandwiches:

French bread
cheese (optional)

For the bbq sauce (for open faced sandwiches):

1/2 cup of your favorite jarred bbq sauce
1/2 cup of the reserved juice from the pulled pork
black pepper
pinch of salt

Instructions:

1. Take your pork butt and make sure to wash and pat it dry COMPLETELY. Season it with salt and pepper on all sides.
2. With a cast iron on high heat (or any non stick pot) add in some olive oil. Brown your meat on all sides and then place it into your crock pot FAT SIDE UP and turn it to HIGH. Or turn it to low if you plan on cooking it for 8 hours instead.
3. In a small mixing bowl, add in your packet of onion soup mix, hot water, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic powder, and black pepper. Mix well and then pour this mixture into your crock pot.
4. Cover and allow it to cook for 4 hours. Remove lid and using a fork, start to tear off some huge chunks of pork making sure that most of it is submerged in the yummy pork juices.
5. Cover again, and allow it to cook for 1 more hour.
6. Serve immediately.

NOTES:

*To get rid of most of the fat, refrigerate the pulled pork in the crock pot, let the fat harden, and remove it using a spoon. The juice from the pulled pork is the most delicious part! Serve it over rice and you've got yourselves a meal, people!

*Placing your pork fat side up is very important! It allows the fat to render down into the rest of the meat and keeps it nice and moist during cooking! Try not to forget this part. You'll thank me later! :)