Image Credit to: Bea Faicol
Bored with your ordinary bland-tasting white bread? Intend to find some carbohydrate meal that is both exciting and delicious at the same time?
We got you covered! Fried Chinese Bun is another delicacy of the Chinese cuisine that will get your saliva flowing. It is tiny and sponge-like, almost complementary to any meal you are having. Its golden-brown outlook, coupled with crunchy bread crust, and aromatic smell will compel you to come back for more!
Chinese mantou is said to originate during a warring phase, where China was divided and conquered by three-party state, namely Wei, Wu and Shu. Transportation of food supplies during these times was of utmost importance. A famous military strategist, Zhuge Liang is said to invent the infamous Chinese bun, which was easy to carry and travel around. Then the rest is history.
Ingredients (3 Servings):
- 3 grams of dried yeast
- 125 ml of warm water
- 300 grams of plain flour
- 50 grams of sugar
- 10 grams of baking powder
- ½ tsp of vegetable oil
- Cooking oil for deep frying
Directions:
- Mix all the dried yeast, sugar and baking powder with warm water.
- Stir the mixture until they dissolved. Add water appropriately until all the ingredients are evenly mixed.
- In a large mixing bowl, pour vegetable oil and mix with plain flour. The mixture will then come together as a rough dough.
- Knead the dough for a few minutes until it becomes soft and smooth. Cast aside for 5 minutes on a wet towel.
- Roll the dough on a floured surface into rectangle form. (3cm wide, 2.5 cm long, sizing be adjusted to your likings)
- Cut into little rolls based on the sizing.
- Fill the steamer with water. Move the cut dough into a steamer. Let the cut dough (mantou) rest for 20 minutes.
- Switch on the steamer and steam it for 5 minutes.
- Adjust the temperature to medium-high heat. Constantly flip the mantou to ensure they are evenly fried.
- Fried the mantou until they turn golden brown. Move them onto paper towels to drain excess oil.
- Fried Chinese Buns are ready to serve!
Notes: Do note these fried Chinese buns are very flexible to serve with any paste to your liking. We recommend you serve it with condensed milk, curry gravy or peanut butter.
