Fluffy steamed buns are slathered in hoisin sauce and stuffed with tender shiitake mushrooms in sweet and savory garlic sauce, quick pickled veggies and crunchy peanuts to make these scrumptious vegan bao buns!
I’ve been sitting on this recipe for over a year. And that’s kind of a shame because these buns are so good!
So why the wait? Well, I guess I haven’t been sitting on the entire recipe. I developed the recipe for the shiitake mushroom filling last summer after spotting frozen bao buns (that just happened to be vegan!) at an Asian market. Sometimes I do that: I see some hard-to-find ingredient that I’ve been longing for and develop a recipe around it only to realize most people won’t be able to get ahold of it and won’t get to make the recipe.
In this case, fortunately, that ingredient was one you can make yourself. I just needed to develop a bun recipe to go with my filling.
If you can get your hands on some frozen vegan buns and just want to make the filling, go for it. The whole process of making these will be a lot easier.
But if you can’t, fear not: making your own vegan steamed buns at home really isn’t that tough.
The buns start with a yeast dough that’s not that much different from one you might use to bake bread. To make the dough, dissolve some yeast in warm water and let it sit while you mix up some flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Add the liquid to the yeast and form your dough.
You’ll knead the dough for a bit until it’s smooth and elastic, then, just like with bread dough, let it rise until it’s about doubled in size.
Split your dough up and roll it into balls. Then, roll each ball into a little circle with a rolling pin.
Fold and steam your buns until they’re soft and fluffy.
While the dough rises, prepare some quick pickled veggies. Toss some cucumber, carrots and jalapeño slices in a zippy rice vinegar marinade.
And finally, prepare the shiitake mushroom filling. Slice the mushrooms nice and thin, so you can pile a bunch into your buns after they’re cooked.
Briefly brown the mushrooms for a few minutes on each side, then add some sauce. Let it cook for a few more minutes, until the sauce forms a thick, sticky coating on the mushrooms.
To serve, slather the steamed buns with hoisin sauce, then stuff with the mushroom filling, pickled veggies, peanuts, scallions and cilantro.
Tips For Making Delicious Vegan Bao Buns
- If you want to use premade buns, look for them in the freezer section of an Asian market.
- And if you are using premade buns, check the ingredients to ensure they’re vegan. I checked out a bunch of brands and most of them contained dairy.
- If you make your own buns, you’ll need a bamboo steamer. I love mine and use it to steam all kinds of other things like veggies and dumplings.
- Maybe you noticed that this recipe is a bit of a project. It is! To save time on the day of making it, prepare the sauce and pickled veggies up to a day ahead of time. You can also make the buns a day ahead, or make them well in advance and freeze them.
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Shiitake Mushroom Vegan Bao Buns
Fluffy steamed buns are slathered in hoisin sauce and stuffed with tender shiitake mushrooms in sweet and savory garlic sauce, quick pickled veggies and crunchy peanuts to make these scrumptious vegan bao buns!
Ingredients
For the Buns
- 1 packet (1 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast
- 1 cup warm water
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tablespoons organic granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
For the Pickled Veggies
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon organic granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 medium cucumber, julienne cut
- 1 medium carrot julienne cut
- 1 medium jalapeño pepper, sliced
For the Mushroom Filling
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons sambal oelek, or to taste (optional)
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
- 3 tablespoons canola oil (or high heat oil of choice)
- 1 pound shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced into thin strips
For Serving
- 10 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 1/2 cup chopped peanuts
- 1/2 cup chopped scallions
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro
Instructions
Prepare the Dough
Whisk together the water and yeast in a small bowl or liquid measuring cup. Let it sit for a few minutes while you prepare your dry ingredients.
Stir the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder together in a large mixing bowl.
Stir 1 tablespoon of oil into the yeast and water mixture, then add the mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir to form a soft dough.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead it for about 7-8 minutes, until smooth and elastic.
Lightly oil a medium bowl, roll the dough into a ball and place it in the bowl. Cover with a towel and place it in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size, about 1-2 hours.
To Make the Pickled Veggies
While the dough rises, mix the water, vinegar, sugar and salt together in a medium bowl, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Add the veggies and allow the mixture to sit while you make the filling and finish making the buns.
To Make the Mushrooms
Stir the soy sauce, vinegar, maple syrup, sesame oil, sambal oelek, and liquid smoke together in a small bowl.
Coat the bottom of a large skillet with oil and place it over medium heat.
When the oil is hot, add the mushrooms in an even layer. Cook the mushrooms for about 4 minutes, flip and cook 4 minutes more, until lightly browned.
Add the sauce to the skillet and flip a few times to coat the mushrooms. Allow them to continue cooking until the sauce is thick and forms a sticky coating, about 3 minutes more.
Remove the skillet from heat and transfer the mushrooms to a plate.
To Steam the Buns
Once the dough has doubled in size, divide it in half. Remove half from the bowl and divide it into fifths.
Roll one of the fifths into a ball, then flatten it with your hand.
Use a rolling pin to roll the ball into a 4-5 inch round. Brush the top with oil, fold it in half, and transfer it to a piece of parchment paper (I like to to place the parchment paper in the steamer, so I don't have to move it again later). Make sure not to crowd the dough rounds.
Repeat for the remaining pieces of dough, then remove the other half of the dough from the bowl and repeat. You should have 10 rounds.
Cover the dough rounds and let them rest for 15 minutes.
Transfer the parchment rounds to the bamboo steamer if they're not already there. They may not all fit — just work in batches of that's the case.
Layer the tiers in your steamer, place the lid on it, and place it over a large pot of water. Bring the water to a boil and steam the buns for 8 minutes.
Very carefully remove the lid and remove the buns from the steamer.
To Serve
Slather the insides of the buns with hoisin sauce, then stuff with mushrooms, pickled veggies, peanuts, scallions and cilantro. Serve.
Recipe Notes
Steamed buns recipe loosely adapted from BBC GoodFood.
Kari says
July 25, 2018 at 12:59 PMI like these buns. Never thought of making something like this. They remind me of the flatbread from Subway, but they look much better. We make our dumplings by steaming them, so I have a sense of how the texture will be -darn good! :)
Alissa Saenz says
July 27, 2018 at 4:46 PMThe texture is a lot like steamed dumplings! I hope you give them a try and enjoy them!
Celeste says
July 26, 2018 at 12:08 PMDo you have suggestions for things to use if you do t have a bamboo steamer?
Alissa Saenz says
July 27, 2018 at 4:41 PMYou might be able to get away with using a metal steamer basket. I’d use one that’s as large as possible, line it with parchment paper, and just be really careful when arranging the buns to avoid them sticking together. I’d love to hear how it works out if you try!
Celeste says
September 9, 2018 at 10:47 AMSo, I bought the bamboo steamer and I love it! But, my buns didn’t come out fluffy like yours. They were flat and dense. Any ideas on what I might have done wrong? Everything else was so delicious, and I’d like to nail these buns!
Alissa Saenz says
September 9, 2018 at 8:56 PMMy best guess is that either the yeast is dated, or it just needed more time to rise, which could be the case if your kitchen is on the cooler side. Did the dough take a long time to double when you let it rise? That would be a good indication that the kitchen is too cool. Old baking powder could also contribute to them not rising – test it by sprinkling some in a glass of water. It should fizz – if not, time to toss it! I hope that helps! And I’m really glad you enjoyed everything else!
A.H. says
August 6, 2018 at 11:29 PMIs there a gluten-free option for the buns? Otherwise, I’ll have to pass on this delicious-looking recipe :( Thx.
Alissa Saenz says
August 12, 2018 at 11:05 AMI’m afraid I’m not sure how I’d go about making this one gluten-free, but here’s a recipe for gluten-free buns that could easily be veganized: https://www.greatbritishchefs.com/recipes/gluten-free-steamed-buns-recipe Just use a non-dairy milk and vegan butter. :)
Bethery says
August 7, 2018 at 1:44 PMThis looks wa wa oo!
Alissa Saenz says
August 12, 2018 at 11:03 AMThanks Bethery!!
Jerry says
August 9, 2018 at 3:11 PMThis looks so good! Can’t wait to try and make this bread on my own – thank you for the recipe!
Alissa Saenz says
August 12, 2018 at 11:00 AMThanks Jerry!! I hope you enjoy it!
Ann says
August 23, 2018 at 9:55 AMI don’t have a bamboo steamer. Do you think I could use my instant pot, on the steam setting?
Alissa Saenz says
August 26, 2018 at 8:34 PMI think that would work, but I don’t have an instant pot so I can’t say for sure. I’d love to hear how it works out if you try!
James says
October 8, 2018 at 9:58 PMDo you know if it’s possible to freeze the dough? It would be great to make a big batch of these bao buns rather than have to make them especially everytime. It’s so annoying that most of the off-the-shelf buns are not vegan!
Alissa Saenz says
October 14, 2018 at 9:03 PMI haven’t tried freezing this, but I will for sure with my next batch! I’ve had luck freezing other yeasted doughs though, so I think it will work. :)
Dorothy says
October 19, 2018 at 7:43 AMThis has become one of my favorite recipes, I have made these three times now and plan on making them many more times. Your blog is my holy grail, 85% of my meals are made from your recipes. Awesome job!
Alissa Saenz says
October 21, 2018 at 11:38 AMI’m so happy to hear that!! Thanks so much Dorothy!
Sara Rose says
February 6, 2019 at 1:06 PMWhen I made these, the buns became a little too puffy (still tasted amazing) but I hardly had any room for the veggie filling. Do you have any tips to make them thinner with more room in the middle?
Alissa Saenz says
February 8, 2019 at 6:39 PMYou could try cutting down on the amount of baking powder, or even cutting it out completely. The yeast should provide enough air for the buns to rise – the baking powder is in there to make them extra puffy!
Sara Rose says
February 10, 2019 at 11:38 PMThank you for the reply!! I’ll be sure to try this next time I make these! (Which I’m sure will be soon as they are AMAZING!!!)
Akhoda says
March 25, 2019 at 6:11 AMAt what point would you freeze the dough ?
Alissa Saenz says
March 25, 2019 at 4:33 PMI’d do it after step 5, and then maybe give it a bit of extra time to rise after it’s thawed out.
Malena says
April 7, 2019 at 3:45 AMHi! I’ve made these twice and they’ve come out absolutely divine every time! My only question is regarding the sauce: in the beginning of the post and in the beginning of the recipe card, you write that the mushrooms are slathered in a “garlic ginger sauce”, but I can’t seem to find any mention of ginger in the recipe steps nor the ingredient list. Am I misunderstanding something? :) Either way, they taste great without ginger, too!
Alissa Saenz says
April 7, 2019 at 5:10 PMLol. Whoops! I guess that’ll teach me not to write those blurbs before the recipe is finalized! I just updated them (and confirmed with my recipe notes) – no ginger. I’m so glad you’ve been enjoying them!
Steffano says
May 17, 2019 at 4:46 PMWOW, this is a recipe I will definitely enjoy (now that I’m a vegetarian). I got my shiitakes from https://www.burmaspice.com/ and the quality is amazing. THANK YOU so much for this.