Korean Chicken Bao
Delicious Korean Chicken Bao filled with crispy chicken wrapped in soft, fluffy steamed buns, perfect for party food.
Prep Time 1 hour hr
Cook Time 30 minutes mins
Proving Time 2 hours hrs 30 minutes mins
Total Time 4 hours hrs
Course Appetizer, Party Food
Cuisine Asian
mixing bowl
Rolling Pin
steamer
frying pan
thermometer
Bao Buns
- 450 g plain (all-purpose) flour
- 2 tablespoon caster sugar
- 0.5 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon instant dried yeast equivalent to one packet or 7g
- 3 tablespoon whole milk very soft
- 210 ml warm water approx. ¾ cup + 2tbsp
- 3 tablespoon unsalted butter very soft
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Chicken and Marinade
- 4 pieces chicken breasts sliced into bite-size chunks
- 240 ml buttermilk approx. 1 cup
- 0.5 teaspoon salt
- 0.25 teaspoon white pepper
- 0.25 teaspoon garlic salt
Crispy Coating
- 180 g plain (all-purpose) flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 0.5 teaspoon garlic salt
- 0.5 teaspoon celery salt
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon chilli flakes
- 1 litre vegetable oil for deep frying
Korean Sauce
- 2 tablespoon gochujang paste
- 2 tablespoon honey
- 4 tablespoon brown sugar
- 4 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 cloves garlic peeled and minced
- 2 teaspoon minced ginger
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
To Serve
- 1 small red onion thinly sliced
- 0.25 piece cucumber chopped into small pieces
- 1 bunch fresh coriander cilantro, roughly chopped
- 2 teaspoon black and white sesame seeds
Making the Bao Buns
Start by making the bao buns, Place the flour, sugar, salt, and yeast in a bowl and mix together.
Add the milk, warm water, and butter to a jug and stir together until the butter melts.
Stir the liquid mixture into the flour mixture at first with a spoon, and then with your hands. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes.
Place the dough in an oiled bowl. Cover and leave to prove until doubled in size - about 90 minutes - 2 hours.
Marinating the Chicken
Meanwhile, start on the Korean Chicken. Place the chicken in a bowl. Add the buttermilk, salt, pepper and garlic salt. Mix together, cover and place in the fridge to marinade for at least 1 hour.
Preparing the Dough
After the dough has proved, tip it out of the bowl onto a floured surface. Knead the dough again and split it into 20 balls. Place a piece of baking parchment on your work surface and roll each ball into an oval.
Brush the ovals with the olive oil and fold each oval over, leaving a little space in the fold. Place each bun onto a small piece of baking parchment.
Place the buns on trays and cover each tray with clingfilm or a carrier bag and leave to prove for a further hour.
Cooking the Chicken
Preheat the oil for frying. Mix together the crispy coating ingredients in a bowl.
Dredge the chicken in the crispy coating mixture and fry in the hot oil until golden brown.
Place on a tray in the oven to keep warm whilst you cook the rest of the chicken.
Making the Sauce
While the chicken and bao buns are cooking, make the sauce by mixing gochujang, honey, sugar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, vegetable oil and sesame oil in a saucepan.
Bring to the boil, then simmer for 5 minutes until thickened.
Assembling the Dish
Place all of the cooked chicken in a bowl and pour the sauce over the chicken. Toss together to coat.
Carefully open the steamed bao buns and stuff with the Korean chicken. Top with red onion, cucumber, fresh coriander, and sesame seeds before serving.
Keyword finger food, game day, handheld food, party food