13 Jun Sticky Vegan Jackfruit Pulled-“Pork” BBQ Bao Buns

Sticky Vegan Jackfruit Pulled-“Pork” BBQ Bao Buns by the incredibly talented ladies at Give A Fork

Makes 6 large Bao buns

INGREDIENTS

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For the buns (can be made a day in advance)

• 2 1/2 cups bao flour/all-purpose flour
• 2tsp Instant Yeast
• 1 1/2 tbsp Vegetable Oil
• 1tsp Sea Salt
• 2tsp Sugar

For the filling

• 3 tins (600g) Natures Charm Young Jackfruit
• 4 Small Spring Onions, sliced on the diagonal
• 2 Medium carrots, grated
• 5tbsp Grated Ginger
• 2 Garlic Cloves, finely chopped
• 4tbsp Tamari Sauce
• 1tbsp Chilli Sauce
• 1tbsp A Grade Maple Syrup 
• 1tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
• 4tbsp Hoisin Sauce
• 1tbsp Five Chinese Spices
• 4 Radish, finely sliced on the round
• 1/4 Red Cabbage, Finely Sliced
• 100g Skinned Peanuts
• 1 Chilli, de-seeded and finely chopped.
• 2 Limes, quartered

Extras

• 1 Cucumber, ribboned
• 5g Fresh Coriander, roughly chopped
• 1tbsp Black Sesame Seeds
• Kimchi for serving

METHOD

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For the buns

1. Combine all your dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl, use a whisk to aerate all the dry ingredients. Add 120ml warm water and 1 1/2 teaspoons of oil, combine roughly with a wooden spoon.
2. Once the ingredients are roughly combined start combine the dough with your hands to ensure none of the dry ingredients remains. If the dough is too dry, add extra warm water (a tablespoon at a time).
3. Using your hands or a standing mixer with a dough attachment knead the dough for roughly 10 minutes, or until it becomes elastic and smooth.
4. Form your smooth elastic dough into a ball and rub a little oil over the surface. Place in a clean bowl and cover with a warm, clean dishcloth, place the bowl somewhere warm and let proof for 1-2 hours or until doubled in size.
5. Using a two-tiered bamboo steamer, cut 2 circles of baking paper to line the steamer. Some also prefer to use cabbage leaves to prevent sticking. Use a knife and pierce the baking paper several times to allow steam to escape.
6. Once the dough has doubled in size tip it onto a lightly floured surface and punch the dough down with your hands. Then split the dough into 8 equal parts, rolling them into balls.
7. Place the balls on a lightly floured surface, cover with a kitchen towel and leave for a further 30 minutes.
8. Once the dough has risen for a second time, use a rolling pin to roll each ball into a 1/2cm thick oval, fold in half and insert a square sheet of baking paper in the centre.
9. Line your bamboo steamer with the 2 circles you cut earlier and fold your buns inside for a further 30 minutes of proofing. Place 3 buns on each tier.
10. A wok is generally the best to use, but any pot that will snugly fit your steamer is good to use, you want as little steam as possible to escape. Place your pot on a medium-high heat and fill halfway with boiling water and place your bamboo steamer, with your buns inside, on top. Once your water starts to simmer, you’ll be able to hear it, set your timer to 10 minutes. Once your timer goes off, remove your buns from the heat and let rest for 5 minutes.

For the filling

1. Open your tin of jackfruit and drain the excess liquid. Cut the firm pointy ends off, these are the parts that hold the strands of jackfruit together. Once the pointy ends are removed, using a medium-sized bowl, pull the jackfruit into strands. You can choose to cut up the pointy ends and add them, but their texture is slightly different.
2. Place a large frying pan over medium-high heat, add your peanuts and dry roast for 3-4 minutes, shifting occasionally to allow for even colouring. Once your peanuts are complete, remove from pan and set aside to cool. Once cooled roughly chop your peanuts, or alternatively use a pestle and mortar, set aside until serving.
3. Place the same pan back on the stovetop adding a drizzle of olive oil and fry your spring onions, garlic and ginger for 2 minutes, or until softened and slightly translucent. Add your five Chinese Spices and fry for a further minute to incorporate all the spices.
4. Add all hoisin sauce, tamari sauce, maple syrup, chilli sauce and rice vinegar, mix well and add your grated carrot and jackfruit. Stir well to combine and distribute the sauces. If you find the mixture needs extra sauce, taste to test and adjust accordingly. If you’d like a slightly more bbq flavour. add more hoisin, if you’d like it to be sweeter add extra maple syrup, and if you’d like the filling to be saucier add a little extra of all the ingredients. Cook for an extra 2 minutes and remove from heat.
5. To assemble your bao buns, fill each with a little bit of sliced red cabbage, a heaped spoonful of your jackfruit mixture, sprinkle with some sliced spring onions and chilli and top with crush peanuts and a final squeeze of lime juice. Repeat with all bao buns. We’ve included some optional extras you could include on your bao bun.
6. Serve immediately and enjoy!