Canned Biscuits Are Perfect For Quick Steamed Bao Buns

Any fan of the atmospheric, small plate eating experience known as dim sum (and boy, there are lots of us out there) will have a Pavlovian reaction when hearing the name gua bao — conjuring as it does visions of a fluffy, lotus leaf-shaped bun enveloping various things like roasted pork belly, pickled vegetables, shredded cilantro, and peanut powder. And while it's easy enough to head out to a restaurant to eat bao (assuming you're lucky enough to have dim sum nearby), it's quite another thing to consider making them at home. The filling ingredients are one thing, but the bun itself — a yeasted dough, subject to kneading and proofing — requires quite a time commitment. You'll be happy to know that you can do away with this complicated step altogether by substituting a tube of canned biscuits from your local grocery store. 

With a tube of canned biscuits, a decently stocked pantry, and some leftover protein (think rotisserie chicken), you can whip up an appetizing batch of steamed bao as an appetizer or party snack for your next gathering. Canned biscuits are just uncooked dough, after all, and are perfectly happy being steamed as they are being baked.

Gua bao is only one example of the stunning diversity that is Taiwanese street food. A traditional treat usually reserved for special occasions (like the end of the lunar year or the marrying off of a daughter), these little steamed sandwiches went global at the beginning of the 21st century when celebrity chef David Chang made them part of the menu at New York City's Momofuku. Since then, bao has been subject to all manner of interpretation and can contain pork, chicken, or beef as well as raw or pickled vegetables. So, the idea of dressing up some rotisserie chicken to put in these quick steamed bao buns is perfectly legit.

What makes these buns quick are the canned biscuits. Invented in 1931 by the wonderfully-named baker Lively B. Willoughby of Bowling Green, Kentucky, the refrigerated-dough-in-a-cylinder idea took off once Pillsbury took over the business. Turning these biscuits into bao buns is as simple as folding oiled biscuits into crescent-shaped halves and steaming them for about ten minutes. (This will save you about an hour of making bao dough from scratch — a process that includes kneading, shaping, and two separate proofings.) Oh, by the way: Canned biscuits are also great for making homemade mini pizzas.

So, now you've got steamed buns and rotisserie chicken — which doesn't quite get you to dim sum. All that's needed is a quick, spicy sauce to bathe the shredded chicken. You can do that with what you have at hand: some combination of hoisin sauce for peanutty essence (as well as a sprinkling of powdered peanuts to keep the bun from getting soggy​), brown sugar to make it sweet, sriracha to make it spicy, and rice vinegar to add a bright, sour note. You get the idea.

Assembling bao buns involves nothing more than placing a generous spoonful of filling (consisting of a combination of protein and sauce) into the center of the taco-shaped steamed bun. These little beauties can then be garnished with thinly sliced scallions, sliced cucumber, cilantro, shredded carrots — whatever you have on hand to provide a crisp crunch and herbaceous flavor.