Sheng Jian Bao in (mostly) pictures

The Missus's Parents were nice enough to watch over Da' Boyz while we were away on vacation. And my MIL brought along a "new wrinkle" on this trip, as we had mentioned in this post.... Sheng Jian Bao! After hearing how much I enjoy(and I'm not the only one)  Sheng Jian Bao (aka Sheng Jian Mantou, aka "SJB"), my MIL set about experimenting. And by the time they arrived, the results were quite good!

  

So I thought I'd document our one SJB making session. There is one caveat however, much like my post on Her Jiaozi, these are made using the senses, and not any set recipe.  I'm fairly certain that you can use your handy dandy Mantou recipe (like this one from Eat.Travel.Eat!) and start with that.

So without further ado.......of course it all starts with yeast (a half envelop Fleischmann's).

    

And some sugar to make it "happy".

 

The water should be warmed to about body temperature (assuming that you don't have swine flu, of course).

 

My MIL adds flour by hand, without the use of a measuring cup, until it "feels" right.

 

If I recall correctly, (and she'll correct me if I'm wrong) She uses a mixture of Arrowhead APF and Bread Flour.

 

 

After achieving the correct texture, she covers the bowl, and lets the dough rest in a mildly warm area for 15-20 minutes.

 

After that period, the dough is pounded down, kneaded again, and it's off to another rest period.

 

After which it's time to get "rolling".......

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The one area where I actually do have a clue, is in cooking the SJB. You should have a pan heated to medium high heat. Add about 2-3 tablespoons(or more) of oil to the pan and swirl it around to coat. Place the SJB into the pan, and gently coat the bottom of the Bao in the oil.

 

Fry until the bottoms of the Bao attain a light golden brown color.

 

To get the Bao steamed, pour about one-third of a cup of water around the rim of the pan. Do not pour on top of the Bao, as this will ruin the texture. Cover immediately(watch out for the splatter) and let steam until water has evaporated. Add another one-third cup of water in the same manner, and cover. From what I've read, you can make this a slurry with some cornstarch if you want the Bao to stick together. Once water has almost evaporated, you can check to see if the SJB is ready. Gently touch the SJB; if the dough springs back into shape, the SJB are ready. Also, check the bottoms of SJB to make sure you've attained the desired crispness.

 

On this occasion my MIL made two different fillings, a pork with chive and scallion, and a chicken filling. Of course, I enjoyed the pork much more. I'm thinking that next time, adding a bit of pork aspic to the filling (a la XLB), will make these even juicier.

 

So there you have it.

 

But wait, that's not all! Did you notice something interesting in one of the photos above?

 

Yes, that straw mat.........

I was told it's a traditional Jiaozi mat, and the Missus's Aunt brought it all the way from QingDao on a visit last year.

 

I was also told that using this mat makes Jiaozi taste "even better"!

 

And if this batch of Jiaozi, that the Missus's Mother made right after the SJB is any indication, I think they're right. It was some of the best I've ever eaten!

 

You won't get any argument from me.......

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day!

Comments

[angelle]

yummmm i love sheng jian bao.....

[liver]

When rolling out the dough, it's important to keep the center of the dough thicker, so when it becomes the bottom, it doesn't break when frying (as demonstrated by your MIL). When I didn't know better, I used to flatten the dough to uniformity much to the chagrin of the elders and the person working so hard rolling each ball to perfection.

[penny]

mmm...they look delicious Kirk! And this way you guys won't end up with 1/2 raw ones like you did at that other place. thanks for posting! :)

[Eat. Travel. Eat!]

Wow, these look delicious and so perfect! I love the photos of the SJB and the dumplings on the straw mat. Each SJB and dumpling look perfectly made.

Great post! I really liked the detailed step by step photos. Funny thing here is that I just finished writing about mantou and now you wrote about SJB. I should make some SJB soon! :)

[kat]

that looks really good! I think the straw mat adds flavor to them when steamed.

[itsCliff]

you know surprisingly I know how to make these from scratch too? (I'm in college haha) I always had some trouble on the dough drying out on me too fast, any technique to prevent it from caking and falling apart too quickly?

[Michelle]

Kirk, you are one lucky dude! These looks SOOOOO good!

[Carol]

Looks delicious! My stomach is growling now. I love that bamboo mat.

[Dennis]

Wow Kirk, they look amazingly fluffy!! Very jealous... The frozen kind I tried at 99 Ranch just wasn't worth the trouble. The kitchen gadget geek I am I'm jealous of your mat too! :)

[kirbie]

These look so yummy! And I love how many photos you took of the process. I feel like I got to watch them being made.

[caroline]

Yum! Thanks for sharing the photos.

Kirk, do you use a stainless steel pan and not a nonstick pan to cook the SJB? What about pot stickers? How do you get them to not stick to the pan? This has been a huge issue the last few time I've tried potstickers. It usually ends in tears! :)

[Tracey]

Beautiful post! I love the photos.

[Kirk]

Hi Angelle - These were really good.

Hi Liver - It's gotten to the point where one of the first things I check when eating Jiaozi is the thickness of the fold on the top to the thickness of the rest of the wrapper. Call me crazy....

Hi Penny - So true.....

Hi ETE - I'd love to see how your SJB turn out.

Hi Kat - Funny thing is, the Jiaozi mat is only for resting the Jiaozi on before cooking. So how it imparts flavor onto the dumpling is beyond me.....but after eating these, you'll get no argument from me.

Hi Cliff - I'll ask my MIL, and let you know.

Hi Michelle - Yes I am....

Hi Carol - Yes, it's very neat.....and supposedly a must have item....

Hi Dennis - LOL! You have mat envy???

Hi Kirbie - It's great to be able to just take photos, and not make the food and take photos at the same time.

Hi Caroline - I don't think you'll ever develop a great crust using non-stick. Why don't you try this for starters. Make sure your pan is pretty hot, add a couple of tablespoons of oil, and swirl it in the pan to coat. When you put your dumplings in the pan, make sure to lightly rub the part of the dumpling on the bottom lightly to coat it with oil. After placing all the dumplings in the pan, touch them lightly to make sure they are not sticking(once you get the previous step down, you won't have to do this any more). If you are still having problems, I'd heat my pan, coat with oil to season, discard the oil, and readd oil. Try it out, and let me know how things turn out.

Hi Tracey - Thanks so much!

[Su-Lin]

OMG, I've bookmarked this. I want to make it when I have some time (uh...maybe a whole day) free!

[SK]

I think I know what I'm making for dinner tonight. Those look delicious.

[mnchemie]

Kirk and the Missus,
Sorry that I didn't write this earlier... Thank you very much for the Guatemalan potholders. I appreciate your thoughtfulness very much. You didn't need to get me anything. The potholders are so pretty that I'm debating whether I should actually use them or just hang them as decoration (maybe 1 for each). Thanks for sharing your wonderful pictures of your travels and your MIL's SJB!

[Beach]

Kirk,
I will share with you and your reader recipe to make a good skin for your SJB without going through too much hassle.
3 1/4 cup of self-rising flour
1/2 cup of sugar
1 cup of milk (any milk)
Mix it all up. If it is too wet, add a little four. If it is too dry add a little milk. This will make approximately 16 good size SJB or about 32 of your MIL SJB size. Filling is up to you. No need to worry about warm milk or not.

[nhbilly]

You're spoiled!
Wow finally caught up.
Talk about alot of fried chicken and I think its great to hang out with the locals versus the tour bus.
And welcome back.

[Kirk]

Hi Su-Lin - I don't think you'll need an entire day for this.

Hi SK - I'm wondering how they turned out.

Hi mnchemie - No thank you, for thinking of us!

Hi beach - Thanks for the recipe....though it seems to be one for Cantonese Bao. It would be a bit too sweet for Northern mantou, and I think the milk may change the flavor. The self-rising flour is interesting, because if I recall it uses baking powder as it's leavening agent, and usually has salt and other ingredients. In the North they want their Bao unsweetened. Next time I'm up your way, I'll take you out for some SJB......

Hi Billy - Yes, I am......

[elmomonster]

Oh gawd! I want this. I want this now. Lucky SOB!