Do you love fluffy steamed buns? I am a big fan of it.

You may encounter different types of steamed buns in Asian markets or restaurants. Some of them have lovely fillings while others don’t. We will learn how to make Chinese steamed buns or Mantou with a super easy, simple, foolproof one-time proofing method.

With this basic dough, you can turn into into other pillow-soft steamed buns from your own creativity.

Chinese steamed buns|chinasichuanfood.com

What’s Mantou

In other parts of China, Mantou is mostly served as breakfast in restaurants and food carts. The basic ingredients for Mantou are flour, yeast, and water. But we may also use milk, oil, or sugar either to enhance the flavor or improve the texture.

Well-made mantou has a lovely natural and sweet taste from the wheat itself even if no sugar is added. It also has a super lovely smooth surface and pillow-soft texture.

knife cut steamed buns made with single proofing method|chinasichuanfood.com
Knife-cut steamed buns made with the single-proofing method

Two types of methods of making mantou

Before we start to make steamed buns at home, I love to introduce some basic theories about Asian buns or Chinese buns. There are two different ways of making mantou or steamed buns: the first one is single proofing or one-time proofing and the other one is double proofing. Following are some key differences between the two methods.

Single Proofing Steamed Buns

In this method, the dough undergoes only one fermentation process. Typically, the dough is left to rise naturally after mixing. Single-proofing steamed buns are known for their relatively simple and quick preparation process. As there’s only one fermentation, these buns might have a denser texture compared to double-proofing buns, offering a slightly different mouthfeel. It is much easier for a beginner to start with and you can get a shinning surface easily with this method.

Double Proofing Steamed Buns

The double-proofing method involves two fermentation processes. We will need to allow the dough to rise to double size first and then knead again to remove the air bubbles inside.

After shaped, the dough will be left aside for a second rise. Double-proofing buns are softer especially after cooled down. But it involves lots of kneading and it is quite challenging for beginners.

To get a smooth mantou, the dough should be well kneaded in both stages. After the second kneading, there should be no large bubbles in the cross-section of your dough. Please keep dusting your operation board during the second kneading stage, it not only helps to avoid sticky dough but also fills up any small holes brought by the first proofing. So we can have smooth steamed buns. 

Why I recommend single-proofing

I recommend the single-proofing method because, with this method, you can make a similar texture (still super fluffy and good in taste), with much less kneading.

However, one disadvantage of the single-proofing method is that the dough becomes denser and harder after cooling down. But you can make it fluffy and soft again by steaming.

It is much easier to get the shining smooth surface with the single proofing method since the yeast is not activated.

The easiest way of making buns is to use a knife to cut the dough into a car similar shape. It is the fastest and easiest method, requiring just the least kneading effort.

Look at the texture, it can create cloud-like texture buns too.

fluffy steamed buns|chinasichuanfood.com

Cook’s Note

All-purpose flour

Both all-purpose flour and cake flour can be used to make excellent fluffy buns. Low-gluten flour has a lower protein content (usually between 8% to 10%), making the dough softer and less elastic. while those made with all-purpose flour maintain softness with better elasticity. You can choose the flour based on personal preference.

Yeast

There are two types of yeast usually used to make steamed buns: instant yeast and dry yeast. And you should avoid adding instant yeast near sugar.

Sugar

Sugar is optional. You can barely taste sweetness in the well-steamed buns but sugar helps to form better gluten.

Oil

Traditionally, we will use lard in the dough to help keep moisture. But vegetable cooking oil works fine too.

Water or milk

You can use either water or milk to make fluffy steamed buns. For 300g all-purpose flour, use either 150ml water or 180ml milk.

traditional round buns|chinasichuanfood.com

Step-by-step instructions

Basic dough for Chinese steamed buns

Add sugar and yeast to the water. Stir well and set aside for 5 minutes. If you do not want sugar, just skip it. Since we are using the single proofing method in this recipe, the key is not to activate the yeast before we finish the shaping process. So if your room temperature is higher than 18 degrees C. Use chilled water.

mix yeast and sugar with water|chinasichuanfood.com

Add the liquid to the flour in a stand mixer bowl. And we start to make the dough. (If you plan to hand-knead, pour the water with yeast slowly into the bowl with flour and stir with a chopstick).

mix yeast and sugar with water|chinasichuanfood.com

Knead for 1 minute at slow speed and then add oil. Then continue kneading for at least 10 minutes at slow speed until the dough is super smooth, elastic, and whiter in color.

I recommend using a stand mixer for single-proofing dough, as the warmth from hands can raise the temperature of the dough, leading to premature fermentation and further case the failure of the smooth surface.

If you don’t have a stand mixer, wearing a plastic wrapper can stop the temperature from passing through the dough.

steamed bun dough|chinasichuanfood.com

Knife-cut steamed buns

Slightly dust the operating board to avoid being sticky, then shape the dough into a smooth ball. Knead for around 1 minute or around.

knife cut mantou|chinasichuanfood.com

Further, shape it into a long log. Try to make it as even as possible. Remove the two ends and use a very sharp knife to cut the log into smaller pieces (around 2 cm wide). Try to keep the original shape.

knife cut mantou|chinasichuanfood.com
knife cut steamed buns made with single proofing method|chinasichuanfood.com

Round mantou

Divide the dough into 7-8 portions. And knead each piece for several minutes until the surface becomes super smooth. Then shape it into a round shape (check the video for the detailed process and tips).

round steamed buns|chinasichuanfood.com

Proofing

Please the buns into a lined steamer.  If it is warm, cover the lid and start the proofing process.

If it is very cold, remove the lid, place it in an oven, and place it in a large cup of hot boiling water. Cover the lid of the oven and let it rise inside.

It may take around 30 minutes to 1 hour for the proofing method. Check frequently until the buns are 1.5 times in size.

Tips about checking the proofing status

We place a small piece of dough in a cup with water. As the fermentation progresses, yeast in the dough produces bubbles, causing the dough to expand and become lighter.

When the proofing is ready, the small test dough will float on the surface.

Steam the buns

Use high fire first and then lower the fire after you see the vapor coming out from the lid. I highly recommend using a Bamboo Steamer to steam Chinese steamed buns or Chinese Baozi. They can bring a bamboo aroma to the food. You can try to find some in local stores or purchase from Amazon: Joyce Chen 2-Tier Bamboo Steamer Baskets, 10-Inch.

how to steam the buns |chinasichuanfood.com

Remember to let it stand for another 5 minutes before opening the lid. Here we are, super easy, simple, and fluffy steamed buns.

steamed buns|chinasichuanfood.com

It is much easier to achieve a super smooth surface with the knife-cutting method. You will need lots of kneading to make the round buns perfectly smooth. So I recommend starting this knife-cutting method.

knife cut buns|chinasichuanfood.com
traditional round buns|chinasichuanfood.com

Other Chinese steamed recipes

With this dough, you can make lots of stuffed buns like the following.

1. Xiao Long Bao RecipeChinese Steamed Soup Dumplings   The dough for Xiao Long Bao does not need yeast and fermentation.
2. BBQ Pork Buns
3. Chinese Sugar Buns with sesame and brown sugar as filling.
4. Vegan Baozi with spicy tofu as filling.
5. Chinese sweet potato buns — add some excellent purple color for your buns.
6. Healthywheat buns–mix flour with wheat flour.

fluffy steamed buns|chinasichuanfood.com

Chinese Steamed Buns (one proofing method)

Basic Chinese Steamed Buns using instant yeast and a quicky one time proofing method
4.92 from 36 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Chinese
Cuisine: Northern
Keyword: flour, staple food, steamed
Prep Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 50 minutes
Servings: 4
Calories: 297kcal
Author: Elaine

Ingredients

  • 300 g all-purpose flour + 2 tbsp. more for dusting
  • 1 and 1/2 tsp. instant yeast
  • 2 tbsp. sugar ,optional
  • 150 g water or 20ml more if needed
  • 1 tbsp. vegetable cooking oil

Instructions

Basic dough for Chinese steamed buns

  • Add sugar and yeast to the water. Stir well and set aside for 5 minutes. If you do not want sugar, just skip it. Since we are using the single proofing method in this recipe, the key is not to activate the yeast before we finish the shaping process. So if your room temperature is higher than 18 degrees C. Use chilled water.
  • Add the liquid to the flour in a stand mixer bowl. And we start to make the dough. (If you plan to hand-knead, pour the water with yeast slowly into the bowl with flour and stir with a chopstick).
  • Knead for 1 minute at slow speed and then add oil. Then continue kneading for at least 10 minutes at slow speed until the dough is super smooth, elastic, and whiter in color.
  • I recommend using a stand mixer for single-proofing dough, as the warmth from hands can raise the temperature of the dough, leading to premature fermentation and further case the failure of the smooth surface.
  • If you don’t have a stand mixer, wearing a plastic wrapper can stop the temperature from passing through the dough.

Knife-cut steamed buns

  • Slightly dust the operating board to avoid being sticky, then shape the dough into a smooth ball. Knead for around 1 minute or around.
  • Further, shape it into a long log. Try to make it as even as possible. Remove the two ends and use a very sharp knife to cut the log into smaller pieces (around 2 cm wide). Try to keep the original shape.

Round mantou

  • Divide the dough into 7-8 portions. And knead each piece for several minutes until the surface becomes super smooth. Then shape it into a round shape (check the video for the detailed process and tips).

Proofing

  • Please the buns into a lined steamer. If it is warm, cover the lid and start the proofing process.
  • If it is very cold, remove the lid, place it in an oven, and place it in a large cup of hot boiling water. Cover the lid of the oven and let it rise inside.
  • It may take around 30 minutes to 1 hour for the proofing method. Check frequently until the buns are 1.5 times in size.

Steam the buns

  • Use high fire first and then lower the fire after you see the vapor coming out from the lid. Steam for 13 to 15 minutes.
  • Remember to let it stand for another 5 minutes before opening the lid. Here we are, super easy, simple, and fluffy steamed buns.

Video

Notes

When lifting the cover when the buns are steamed ready, do not drop any water on the buns.
Adding some salt can help to support the gluten network.
If you want to frozen the buns, steam them firstly and then wait until well cooled. Place in air tight bag and freeze for later use.

Nutrition

Calories: 297kcal | Carbohydrates: 63g | Protein: 7g | Sodium: 3mg | Potassium: 80mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 6g | Calcium: 11mg | Iron: 3.5mg

What’s the difference between mantou and Baozi

Mantou and Baozi can share the same dough and proofing process. Mantou is unfilled and there is no wrapping process. While baozi is filled with savory meat filling or sweet paste filling.

A guideline about double proofing method

If you prefer to try a double-proof method, knead the dough just as the previous one and then Firstly place the dough in a warm place until 1.5 or 2 times in size (don’t over ferment the dough, otherwise you will need a long time to get the air out). Poke a hole with a finger and the dough does not collapse. You can find a lovely honeycomb texture inside the dough. For the details, check this our double proofing mantou video. However, you will need to use lukewarm water for double-proofing dough if the temperature is low on winter days.

double proof dough|chinasichuanfood.com

Forcefully re-knead the dough, lightly dust the operating board, and punch the air out. The surface of the dough needs to be smooth again.

Divide the dough into two halves take one portion and re-knead again.  To make smooth Mantou, It is quite important to pinch all the air bubbles out of the dough and keep dusting your operation board. My checking way is to cut cross sections and see whether there are large bubbles inside.

On a lightly floured kitchen board, roll the dough into a long log around 1 inch in diameter or any size you want. Then remove the two ends and use a very sharp knife to cut the log into smaller pieces (around 2 cm wide). Try to keep the original shape.

Please the buns into a lined steamer.  Add cold water to your wok or steel steamer. Place the buns and then cover the lid and rest for 10 minutes in summer and around 20 minutes in winter or until the bun becomes fluffy again.  

The steaming process is the same as one proofing method.

FAQ about Mantou making

I get lots of feedback about this recipe. It turns out perfect for some of the readers, but there are also failed reports and requests to figure out what’s wrong. So I collect some of the top topics and share my own experience.

What about the dough that smells sour?

The sour taste indicates that the dough is over-fermented. This usually happens on hot summer days or when too much instant yeast is used. The best proofing temperature for steamed buns is around 28 degrees C.

How to make the buns smooth in surface (avoid bumpy surface)

I will recommend you try the first-time proofing method which is much easier to make a smooth mantou.

For a double-proofing method, the dough should be well-kneaded at the very beginning. Then make sure the dough is appropriately fermented just double in size even in winter, do not over-ferment the dough. Pinch the air out after the first fermentation forcefully to remove the air inside. There should be no bubbles in the cross-sections.
Lastly, control the fire during the steaming process. For steel steamer, you can use high fire all the time because there is not enough vapor via the holes. For the bamboo steamer, lower the fire to medium after boiling.  Adjust the steaming time if necessary, if your buns are bigger, steam for 25 minutes. After steaming, remove your steamer from the fire and wait for around 5 minutes before lifting the cover, otherwise, the buns might collapse.

How to keep the buns

If you made a large batch and can not eat up all the time, steam the buns first and then fridge or freeze after cooling. They can be refrigerated for 3 days and frozen for up to 1 month. Re-steam before serving.

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319 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    I’m surprised these turned out well. Was quite worried that it might get too yeasty like my previous attempt with different recipe. Was looking for a simple recipe for my R&D and finally I can use this! Thank you! 😀 will definitely be exploring more recipes from this site ??

    1. Thanks Zee for your lovely feedback. This is a well tested recipe by lots of readers. Summer is a great season for steamed buns, happy cooking!

  2. I have a 2 tier metal steamer. When I steamed the buns the top tier buns puff perfectly but the bottom tier buns just did not puff as much and the skins of the buns are wavy and swivel. What could be the reasons..

    1. Hi Kean,
      Do you remember the buns in which layer is prepared firstly? And is there any vapor wet your buns?

  3. 5 stars
    I just made my first steamed buns and they turned out great. Soft, pillowy and tastes pretty good, I’ll be making more soon. Thank you for this recipe.

  4. Hi Elaine,

    Thanks for posting the recipe. Tried making it tonight and I only made half recipe. Looks okay but texture is not fluffy and soft. The bun looks rough and it is chewy, not soft and smooth. Also, I have instant yeast, do I need to mix it with the water to proof the yeast?

    I will try the recipe again…

    Thanks

    1. Doris,
      You can use active instant yeast directly with the flour. But for common dry yeast, you need to activate them with water. Please read the instructions on the package of the yeast, there should be some lines about how to use it.
      Go ahead, you are close to soft steamed buns.

  5. 5 stars
    Hi Elaine, your such a wonderful woman and I’m crazy reading ur recipe for about 2 weeks now. I’ved tried already your chicken braised and paper skin chicken without cooking wine because it’s not available on my area. Results paper skin is much better. Thank for the recipe I will master it lol.
    About this mantou I will try tonight, I only confuse on instant yeast and dry yeast. Instant yeast can directly mix with flour and dry yeast is need to activate with warm water and sugar, my question is , I had already purchased instant yeast and definitely that’s I will gonna use tonight. I want to add sugar , how will I do that? Do I mix directly flour yeast sugar and salt and mix and then add water?
    Thanks for your reply. Ilovechinesefood

    1. For instant yeast, all we need to do is prevent it touching large amount of sugar and salt directly. If you are using a stand mixer, do not make the yeast touching the sugar. If you are kneading by hand, mix sugar with flour firstly roughly and then add yeast.

  6. Hello! I am trying this recipe out for my sister, but do not have a thermometer for the water. She is coming over to my house in an hour or so, and I do not have time to buy a thermometer. So how do I measure the temperature of the water? Anyways, this recipe looks lovely!

    1. Sorry for the late reply, but I really think you present a good question. The best way of testing the temperature of the water is our hand. Usually our hand is around 37 degree C, and the water for the dough should be slightly warmer than your hands.

  7. 5 stars
    Hi Elaine,

    I tried making mantou following your recipe and it was great! Thank you for going through all the effort to put together this recipe.

    Mantou is one of my most favourite breads and I have never had the guts to try making it myself. It is much nicer to have homemade mantou rather than the store bought ones full of additives and milk. This mantou is denser than store bought mantou, but it was still lovely and soft.

    Just in case anyone has any issue with yeast… I had bought a yeast that is able to be placed directly into a flour mix without activating the yeast granules. It was the Tandaco Dry Yeast (it doesn’t specifically say “instant” on the package). However, I knew that this particular yeast works well in dough when it is activated prior to being used. I activated the yeast with 150g water at 35 degrees celcius and 2 tablespoons of sugar, but it could have worked fine without the sugar. So, in case anyone is having issues with their dough rising, you might want to try activating the yeast. Cooking pros can correct me if I’m wrong!