Home cooking · Xianyitang dried ingredients
Soft steamed rolls hold layers of spring onion and toasted white sesame, bringing a gently nutty aroma to breakfast or a sharing meal with braised dishes. This recipe makes eight rolls and uses 20 g sesame seeds.
Times are estimates and include the soaking, proofing or chilling stated below. Some preparation can overlap. Check the ingredient and finished-dish conditions described in the method.
Recipe illustrations; measure ingredients using the written quantities.
Rinse the seeds briefly in a fine sieve as the pack directs and drain thoroughly. In a clean frying pan over low heat, dry them first, then toast for roughly 5–8 minutes until lightly golden and fragrant, stirring to avoid scorching. Timing depends on moisture. Cool, lightly crush half and leave the rest whole.
Mix flour, instant yeast and sugar, add 160 ml lukewarm water and bring together. Knead for 8–10 minutes until smooth, medium-firm and rollable. If dry flour remains, add water 5 ml at a time. Cover and rest for 10 minutes. Avoid hot water that could damage the yeast.
Mix the toasted sesame with spring onion, salt and oil. Roll dough into a roughly 30 × 40 cm rectangle, spread the filling evenly leaving a small border, and fold in thirds from a long side. Cut into 16 pieces and stack them in pairs to make eight rolls.
Press a chopstick lengthways along the centre of each stacked pair. Gently stretch the ends, twist once and tuck and pinch the ends underneath. Place each on its own small piece of steamer paper, or lightly grease a metal steamer tray. Aim to leave 3 cm between rolls.
Cover and leave in a warm draught-free place for about 40–70 minutes until visibly puffy and lighter, with a gentle indentation returning slowly. Allow longer in a cool kitchen. Use the dough condition rather than demanding an exact doubling; investigate inactive yeast if there is no rise.
Add sufficient cold water below the steamer rack. Load the proved rolls, cover and bring to a full boil. Steam steadily for about 15 minutes from boiling without letting the pan dry. Turn off, rest covered for 3 minutes and open the lid away from you. The centres must be fluffy and cooked, without sticky raw dough; steam longer if necessary. If cooking in batches, refrigerate the waiting covered batch to slow proving.
Contains wheat (gluten) and sesame. The Xianyitang dried-ingredient packs state that they are packed in a facility also handling peanuts, tree nuts, sesame and soya. Check the actual labels of every brand used.
Cool promptly and refrigerate covered within 2 hours. Eat within 48 hours or freeze. Reheat only once by steaming until hot throughout; frozen rolls take longer, so check the centre.
