No Yeast Crispy Bottom Veggie Buns '生煎蔬菜饼'
Learn how to make these delicious and simple crispy bottom veggie buns with a no yeast dough. These are my family's favorite as it has a juicy and tasty filling.
Servings: 4 people
Ingredients
Dough (makes 10 buns)
- 300 g [~2 1/2 cups] all-purpose (plain) flour see notes below if using cups
- 175 ml [3/4 cup] hot boiling water
- a pinch of salt
Filling and Seasoning
- 1/2 lb [250g] green beans chopped
- 14 oz [397g] firm tofu pressed and mashed
- 1 small carrot finely chopped
- a handful of chopped cilantro
- 3 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon salt adjust accordingly
- 1 teaspoon white pepper
Other
- oil for cooking
- sesame seeds
- a handful of chopped green onions
Instructions
Dough
- To make the bun wrapper, place flour and salt into a large bowl and mix until well combined.
- Make a well in the middle and pour in the hot water. Using a spatula, fold in all the flour until a shaggy dough forms with no dry spots of flour in the bowl (if there is, add cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time).
- Transfer the dough onto a cleaned surface and knead into a dough, about 10-12 minutes. Cover with a damp towel and let it rest for 30 mins.
Filling
- Meanwhile, place tofu in a nutmilk bag and wring out all the liquid.
- In a heated non-stick pan with 2 teaspoons of oil, sauté chopped green beans for about 2 minutes or until green beans turn to a darker green.
- Place cooked green beans into a bowl along with the tofu, carrot, and seasoning ingredients.
- Mix all ingredients until well combined and divide the mixture into 10 portions. Using your both of your palms, form it into a patty-like shape.
Assemble
- When the dough is ready, dust flour on the surface and roll the dough out into a log, and then divide into 10 equal portions.
- To assemble, take one dough and flatten it with your palm.
- Hold the wrapper with your non-dominant hand and a roller with your dominant hand. Roll the dough by pushing from the outside towards the middle of the wrapper.
- Twist and turn your wrapper while doing this (with your non-dominant hand). Roll it into a 4.5 inches diameter disc. With this rolling method, the middle of the wrapper is thicker which creates a good safety net for the filling.
- Place one filling patty in the middle and pleat to seal.
- Dab the smooth side with water and gently press on some sesame seeds. Continue with the rest of the ingredients.
Cook the buns - Potsticker style
- To cook the buns, heat a non-stick pan (used 12") with a tablespoon of oil.
- Gently flatten each bun with your palms and place them in the pan, sesame side down, slightly apart. Fit as many as you can in one layer.
- Cook until the bottom turns golden brown, then flip the buns and add 1 to 1.5 cups [250g-375g] of water (be sure the water covers > than ⅓th of the bun's height).
- Cover the pan with a lid, preferably glass and turn heat to low-medium. Cook until all water has completely evaporated, about 5 to 10 minutes.
Cook the buns in an oven
- Alternatively, preheat oven to 375F (195°C) and brush the buns with oil.
- Bake the buns for about 20-25 mins or until golden brown, flipping in between.
Serving suggestions
- Sauce 1: Serve with chopped green onions and soy sauce.
- Sauce 2: Serve with sliced ginger with Chenkiang vinegar
- Sauce 3: Serve with chili sauce such as sambal oelek or homemade chili oil
Video
Notes
- To measure flour in the cup, I used the spoon and sweep method. Spoon flour into a standard measuring cup, then level the top with a knife without packing the flour, which I had about ~63g in 1/2 cup.
- I highly recommend using a weighing scale to measure the flour and water needed for this recipe.
- All-purpose flour is the same as plain flour. Please note that some all-purpose flour brands have higher protein content which makes the dough a tad chewier.