Char siu bao

Name: Char siu bao
Prep time: 60 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 195 min
Yield: 12 buns
Cuisine: Cantonese
Ingredients: 280 g Wheat flour, plain; 30 g Potato or corn starch, lowers the protein for a whiter, softer bun; 1.5 tsp Yeast, instant; 45 g Sugar; 2 tsp Baking powder, kneaded in after the first rise; 150 ml Water, warm; 1 tbsp Neutral oil, or melted lard; 300 g Pork, boneless shoulder in 1 cm dice, or 300 g diced leftover char siu; 1 tbsp Hoisin sauce; 0.25 tsp Chinese five-spice; 1.5 tbsp Soy sauce, light; half for the pork, half for the sauce; 1.5 tbsp Oyster sauce; 1 tsp Dark soy sauce, for colour; 2 tbsp Sugar, 1 tbsp for the pork, 1 for the sauce; 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine; 2 piece Shallot, finely diced; 1 tbsp Neutral oil; 1 tbsp Potato or corn starch; 100 ml Water; 1 tsp Toasted sesame oil

叉烧包

Cantonese steamed buns with a soft, slightly sweet dough that splits open on top to show a sticky, glossy barbecue pork filling.

Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: 叉烧包.

Start cooking

Prep: 1 hr
Cook: 45 min
Rest: 1 hr 30 min
Total: 3 hr 15 min
Difficulty: Medium
Spice: No chilli
Cost: Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price

Know it before you cook it

Image coming soon

About

Char siu bao is the dim sum bun that cracks open in the steamer. The dough is low in protein and carries both yeast and baking powder, so it puffs fast and bursts at the top into what Cantonese cooks call a smile. Inside is diced barbecue pork in a thick, sweet oyster-sauce gravy. The usual way is to use leftover char siu; if you have some, dice 300 g and go straight to the sauce. Without it, this version pan-glazes diced pork shoulder in hoisin, soy and five-spice until it caramelises, which gets you most of the flavour in fifteen minutes. Chill the filling well. Cold filling is far easier to wrap.

What you'll need

20 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.

0 of 20 ready

12 servings

Dough
Filling

Ingredients

Servings

Dough

Wheat flour, plain280 g
Potato or corn starch, lowers the protein for a whiter, softer bun30 g
Yeast, instant7.4 ml
Sugar45 g
Baking powder, kneaded in after the first rise9.9 ml
Water, warm150 ml
Neutral oil, or melted lard15 ml

Filling

Pork, boneless shoulder in 1 cm dice, or 300 g diced leftover char siu300 g
Hoisin sauce15 ml
Chinese five-spice1.2 ml
Soy sauce, light; half for the pork, half for the sauce22 ml
Oyster sauce22 ml
Dark soy sauce, for colour4.9 ml
Sugar, 1 tbsp for the pork, 1 for the sauce30 ml
Shaoxing wine15 ml
Shallot, finely diced2
Neutral oil15 ml
Potato or corn starch15 ml
Water100 ml
Toasted sesame oil4.9 ml

Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.

Steps

Step 1
Mix the flour, cornflour, yeast and sugar in a bowl, add the warm water and oil, and knead for 8 to 10 minutes until smooth and soft. Cover and leave somewhere warm for about an hour, until doubled.
70 min
Step 2
While it rises, toss the diced pork with the hoisin, five-spice, half the soy, 1 tbsp sugar and the wine. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat and fry the pork for 6 to 8 minutes, until cooked through and catching at the edges. Add the shallot and fry for 1 minute more.
12 min
Tip: If you have leftover char siu, dice it, fry the shallot alone and go straight to the next step.
Step 3
Stir the oyster sauce, dark soy, the rest of the soy and sugar, and the cornflour into the water. Pour it over the pork and stir as it bubbles for 1 to 2 minutes, until thick, glossy and clinging to every piece. Stir in the sesame oil, spread on a plate and chill for at least 30 minutes.
35 min
Step 4
Knock back the dough, flatten it, scatter the baking powder over and knead for 3 to 4 minutes until it has disappeared completely. Roll into a log and cut 12 even pieces of about 45 g.
10 min
Watch: Baking powder that is not fully worked in leaves yellow spots and a bitter taste. Keep kneading until there are no specks.
Step 5
Roll each piece into a 10 cm round, thinner at the edge than the middle. Put a heaped tablespoon of cold filling in the centre, gather the edge up around it in pleats, and pinch and twist the top shut. Set each bun seam side down on a 7 cm square of baking paper and rest 15 minutes.
30 min
Step 6
Bring water to a hard boil in a wok under a bamboo steamer or a rack with a lid. Steam the buns over high heat, four to six at a time with room to spread, for 12 minutes without lifting the lid. Turn off the heat and wait 2 minutes before opening so they do not wrinkle.
30 min
Tip: Wrap the lid in a tea towel so condensation does not drip onto the buns.

Nutrition

Per serving · estimate

Calories: 213 kcal
Protein: 10.3 g
Carbs: 27.9 g
Fat: 6.2 g
Saturated fat: 1.6 g
Fibre: 1 g
Sugar: 6.3 g
Sodium: 213 mg

Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.

Allergens

Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.

Wheat
Soy
Shellfish
Sesame

Dairy-free
Nut-free

Adapt this recipe

The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.

Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 12 November.

Substitutions

Diced pork shoulder → Leftover char siu
The proper filling. Dice 300 g and use only the sauce step; it needs no marinade.
Plain flour and cornflour → Hong Kong low-protein bao flour
Gives whiter, fluffier buns that split more readily. Use 310 g and leave out the cornflour.

Tips

Hard, steady steam is what makes the tops split. A gentle simmer gives you a closed, dense bun.
Steamed buns freeze well. Steam them from frozen for about 12 minutes, until hot right through.
The baked bakery version uses a richer milk-and-egg bread dough. This filling works in it unchanged.

History & culture

Char siu bao is a fixture of yum cha, the Cantonese morning and weekend tea meal, where the buns arrive three to a bamboo basket alongside har gow and siu mai. Hong Kong bakeries sell a baked, glazed version too. People judge a dim sum house by whether its buns split properly and whether the filling is sweet without being sticky.

Dim sum grew out of the teahouses of Guangzhou, and char siu bao has been on the trolleys for as long as anyone there remembers. The split top became a point of pride in Hong Kong teahouses in the 20th century, as chefs refined low-protein flours and chemical raising agents to make the tops open cleanly every time.

Quick version — The dim sum filling is diced roast char siu. Pan-glazing raw diced pork in the same seasonings skips the roast; it is a little less smoky and charred, and the site's char siu recipe is the proper route. Dim sum kitchens often add ammonium bicarbonate to the dough for a bigger split. You also need a bamboo steamer, or a rack and lid that fit your wok.

Provenance: Editorial adaptation.

Questions about this recipe

Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.

How long does Char siu bao take?

3 hr 15 min all in — 1 hr prep, 45 min cook, 1 hr 30 min rest. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.

How many does it serve?

The recipe is written for 12 buns. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.

How hard is it?

Medium.

How spicy is it?

No chilli.

What allergens should I watch?

This recipe is labelled for Wheat, Soy, Shellfish, Sesame. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.

Does it fit a diet?

The published recipe is labelled Dairy-free, Nut-free.

14 more questions

What does it cost to cook?

Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.

What equipment do I need?

Mixing bowl, Frying pan, Rolling pin, Wok, Kitchen scale.

How much salt do I put in?

This recipe does not list salt as its own ingredient. Saltiness comes from Soy sauce — 1½ tbsp (light; half for the pork, half for the sauce); Oyster sauce — 1½ tbsp; Dark soy sauce — 1 tsp (for colour). Taste at the end rather than adding a number we did not write.

How much sugar?

45 g of Sugar.

How much soy sauce?

1½ tbsp (light; half for the pork, half for the sauce) of Soy sauce.

How much oyster sauce?

1½ tbsp of Oyster sauce.

How much dark soy sauce?

1 tsp (for colour) of Dark soy sauce.

How much sugar?

2 tbsp (1 tbsp for the pork, 1 for the sauce) of Sugar.

How much toasted sesame oil?

1 tsp of Toasted sesame oil.

What can I use instead?

Diced pork shoulder → Leftover char siu. The proper filling. Dice 300 g and use only the sauce step; it needs no marinade. Plain flour and cornflour → Hong Kong low-protein bao flour. Gives whiter, fluffier buns that split more readily. Use 310 g and leave out the cornflour.

What should I watch for?

Baking powder that is not fully worked in leaves yellow spots and a bitter taste. Keep kneading until there are no specks.

Any tips from this recipe?

Hard, steady steam is what makes the tops split. A gentle simmer gives you a closed, dense bun. Steamed buns freeze well. Steam them from frozen for about 12 minutes, until hot right through. The baked bakery version uses a richer milk-and-egg bread dough. This filling works in it unchanged.

Can I prepare this ahead?

If you have leftover char siu, dice it, fry the shallot alone and go straight to the next step.

Can I use an air fryer?

This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.