Why not make it a fun afternoon or a fun weekend than to make Siopao Asado (Filipino Steamed Buns With Pork Asado Filling)—a famous snack here in the Philippines? Nowadays, I find that making food that you usually eat outside something you can eat at home is really extra satisfying.
Continue to read this recipe article below to learn how to make the fluffiest and softest Siopao Asado. There are detailed explanations on how to make it better so be sure to read all of it!
What is Siopao Asado?
Siopao is a popular Filipino snack which is an adaptation of a Chinese steamed bun. This has become popular all over the Philippines through bakeries and vendors in Chinese restaurants and even in convenience stores.
There are a lot of varieties when it comes to the fillings of siopao, but for this recipe, we are going with the more popular one, the Siopao Asado. This consists of pork made with soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, and other common ingredients such as onion and garlic.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Pork
Pork will be our main ingredient for our asado filling. You can use any cut of pork as long as you get a good meat to fat ratio when sliced into chunks.
Dough ingredients
For the dough, we will be using regular baking ingredients like flour, baking powder, sugar, yeast, and shortening.
Aside from these, we will also be using other regular pantry ingredients like onion, garlic, oyster sauce, soy sauce, sugar, cornstarch, salt, black pepper, and cooking oil. If you are filling up your pantry, here’s a handy shopping guide:
Equipment You’ll Need
- Cooking Pan (Kawali)– You will need a cooking pan or any deep pan to cook the asado filling.
- Steamer Pot- Most dimsum are cooked via steaming, so with this siopao recipe. You can use a steamer or steamer pot that can hold about 1o molds or cook by batch if you have a smaller one. Most rice cookers also have steaming pots with them.
In need of kitchen tools and equipment? Read this before you buy:
How to Make the Siopao Asado Filling
Making the filling is as easy as cooking a normal recipe. To start off with this, make sure that the pork is cut nicely into chunks, or another option would be to shred the meat. The recommended pork parts for the asado filling would be pork shoulder or pork butt, as this would render the most flavor for the asado.
Boil the pork meat along with soy sauce and oyster sauce and cook until the pork is tender, which should take about 30 minutes. Once that’s done, stir in the diluted cornstarch along with sugar, and let it cook for 2 to 3 minutes while stirring continuously until the sauce thickens.
How to Assemble the Siopao Buns
- Place the dough on a flat surface and then form into a long log shape so you can cut it easier into equal sizes. Having a weighing scale at your disposal is better so you’re sure about the sizes. Especially if you plan on selling the siopao.
- Once you form the dough into balls, this is optional but you can let it rise for another 30 minutes to 1 hour in order to have puffy siopao.
- For arranging the buns with the asado filling, you need to flatten the dough balls using a rolling pin. One tip is to make the edges thinner, keeping the center thick so you have a nice base for the siopao.
- With a tablespoon, scoop a portion of the asado filling and then place at the center of the flattened dough.
- Wrap the edges onto the center, covering the filling and then ping the center and twist to secure the siopao.
- Transfer the siopao pieces into a steamer. A good distance would be an inch apart from each other to allow space to cook evenly and nicely. Steam for about 15 to 20 minutes. Make sure that the steamer is set to low heat.
- Do not immediately open the steamer lid after steaming, so that we are sure the siopao won’t deflate. Keep it there for 5 minutes or so.
How to Serve the Siopao Asado
Siopao is usually served as a quick snack or merienda. I suggest you serve this warm and pair it with a pancit dish and a glass of soda, juice, or iced tea.
How to Store and Reheat the Siopao Asado
In case you have leftover siopao, transfer into a clean food container with lid and refrigerate. This will extend its shelf-life to 3 to 5 days. You can also freeze this and extend the shelf-life for months.
To reheat (thaw first if frozen), you can use a microwave oven but the best way is to re-steam it until it becomes soft again.
Other Chinese Dimsum Recipes
- Special Siopao Bola-Bola Recipe
- Pork Siomai Recipe
- Easy Homemade Kikiam Recipe
- Easy Puto Pao Asado Recipe
For a quick reference about this recipe, see the recipe table below:
Special Siopao Asado Recipe
Equipment
- Cooking Pot
- Steamer
Ingredients
Filling Ingredients
- 500 g (1.1 lbs) pork, cut into chunks
- 1 pc onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp oyster sauce
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp cornstarch, diluted in 2 tbsp water
- 2 cups water
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
Dough Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp active dry yeast, diluted in 1 cup warm water or warm milk
- 2 tbsp sugar, combined with the yeast
- ½ cup sugar, combined with the flour
- 4 tbsp shortening, (or 2 tbsp vegetable oil)
Instructions
Filling Instructions
- In a cooking pot, pour in and heat the cooking oil over medium heat.
- Add in the garlic and onions. Saute until soft and aromatic.
- Add in the pork. Cook until lightly browned.
- Pour in the soy sauce, the oyster sauce, and water and then bring to a boil. Simmer for 30 minutes or until pork is tender.
- Add in the sugar and the diluted cornstarch. Stir for 2 to 3 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Set aside.
Dough Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, add in the all-purpose flour mixture, baking powder, shortening (or vegetable oil), and then add in the diluted yeast mixture.
- Mix until a dough is formed and continue to knead until smooth and no longer sticky.
- Cover the dough and set aside in a warm place for the dough to rise for 1 to 2 hours.
- Knead the dough and cut into equal slices.
- Form the dough into small balls and let it rise once again for 30 minutes.
Steaming Instructions
- Flatten the dough pieces and place the asado filling (about 1 tablespoon) in the middle of the dough and wrap around the filling, twisting at the top to secure.
- Transfer the siopao into the steamer and steam in low heat for about 15 to 20 minutes. You can keep the steamer lid on for 5 minutes after steaming to make sure the buns do not deflate.
- Transfer to a serving plate or serving tray. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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