The Dim-Sum is Greater than its Parts

 

Dim-Sum always seemed like such an intimidating thing to me. Often talked about by more adventurous friends or those that, through heritage, had a natural foot in the door of this unique brunch like dining experience, the descriptions of soft buns, small plates and the presence of chicken feet just seemed overwhelming to an outsider. (An outsider, in this instance, being someone who stuck to relatively safe brunch fair such as fried eggs or waffles.)

 

It was through a work lunch that I got my first experience of Dim Sum, feeling relatively safe with 2 seasoned veterans who could point me towards safe fair or at least tell what something was if I thought to ask what the mystery meat was inside the small dumplings and noodle wrappers. I went in with a brave face and a determination to be open mind and strong of will, and stomach. This attitude was totally unnecessary as the steam plates came around and I was treated to steam buns with sweet pork, shrimp dumplings and other delicious little bites. The thing that stuck out most for me was the bao or steamed buns with bbq pork inside. So it was with this in mind that I set out to try and make my own steam buns.

 

I researched a fairly simple recipe for the steam buns in Ken Hom’s Complete Chinese Cookbook. With only 5 ingredients and nothing that I didn’t already have on hand I put together this basic recipe and made the steamed buns. The buns are very simple and lacking even salt have a very plain flavour. That is where the second recipe comes in.

 Recipe: Steamed Buns

 

The BBQ Pork packs a lot of flavour and transforms these simple buns into a delicious package with an explosively flavoured center. I have read through several recipes for BBQ Pork but most have included a multitude of ingredients I didn’t have and didn’t know where to source. It was in Mastering the Art of Chinese Cooking, that I found the recipe I would finally use and a method that utilized our home oven.

 

The one ingredient I went without was the ferment bean curd. The recipe says that this is where the pork gets it distinctive red colour. I for one could live without the distinctive red colour if it meant I didn’t have to brave the T&T Supermarket.

My biggest recommendation for this recipe is to go to the dollar store and get a foil liner for your baking this as you broil the meat in the salty sweet marinade and run the risk of creating a serious mess if left unattended.

Additionally the recipe just says to broil the meet 4 inches from the heat source. I used a lo broil setting so as not to burn the meat.

My last recommendation is to keep an eye on the pork and turn it often to make sure an even crust forms around the pork slices.

 

Recipe: BBQ Pork

I made 2 variation of the buns, the first just plain buns that I sliced open and put some bbq pork and fresh green onions into with a dollop of the reduced cooking sauce. The second I rolled out some dough and wrapped it around some of the pork before sealing and steaming creating the traditional bao.