Texas Twinkie Steamed Bao
Jalapeno Popper with brisket, also known as Texas Twinkies are oh, so good! An ultra flavorful fusion filled bun seemed like a great excuse to cook something new with leftover brisket and enjoy the spicy cheese goodness of a jalapeno popper.
An Asian steamed bao is an enclosed sandwich or one bun meal (if you can stop yourself at just one). This combination is so delicious, I the family is stuffed. Ironically, “stuffed” is this week’s Supper Challenge and one year anniversary. I can happily share “stuffed” Texas Twinkie bao or buns. And for those of you that know, I’m finally happy with this perfected steamed bao or perfected Mantou recipe. Phewph!
Taste: Winner winner! The steamed bun is appropriately seasoned with the burst of flavor on the inside. Meat and cheese and spice and BBQ sauce. Its sooooo good!
Texture: Tender steamed bun on the outside with tender meat and cheese filling on the inside
Want to learn more about Steamed Bao? Follow the link!
Texas Twinkie Steamed Bao
Equipment
- Food Processor
- Instant read thermometer
- Steamer
Ingredients
Bao/ Mantou Dough
- 1 ½ teaspoon instant yeast
- ¾ cup /175g warm water 110F
- 2 ¼ cup 348g white unbleached flour
- ¼ cup white sugar
- ¼ teaspoon table salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ cup /39g cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
Texas Twinkie/ Jalapeno Popper Brisket Filling
- 1 jalapeno peppers roasted with skins and seeds removed
- 1 poblano peppers roasted with skins and seeds removed
- 2 oz cream cheese cut into ¼” cubes
- 2 oz Monterey Jack cheese cut into ¼” cubes
- ¼ lb /115g cooked brisket
- 1 ¼ cup / 140g cooked unseasoned shredded cabbage/ coleslaw mix (I pan fried to cook)
- 1/3 cup cooked bacon bits/ crumble
- 1/3 cup BBQ sauce I like Blues Hog Original
Instructions
Prepare Bao / Mantou Dough
- In a measuring cup, add warm water and instant yeast together to start. Yeast will start to foam in about 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large food processor or stand mixer with dough hook, pulse or mix together flour, white sugar, table salt, baking powder and cornstarch.
- Pulse canola oil into the dry ingredients in the food processor.
- While food processor/ stand mixer is running, slowly pour in the yeast water mixture, ensuring all contents are added mixed in.
- Wet sticky dough should form. Knead in food processor or stand mixer for 5 minutes.
- Place dough into a large bowl in a warm area of the kitchen, cover and allow to proof 1 hour.
- Once the dough has doubled in size, place dough onto floured surface and divide dough into 8 equal pieces (for jumbo bao/ buns) or 12 or 16 equal pieces.
- Place each dough piece onto a small parchment square, cover again and allow to proof 1 hour.
Prepare Texas Twinkie Filling
- Cut Monterey Jack Cheese and cream cheese into ¼” cubes and place into freezer.
- In the same food processor bowl used for the dough, add cooked cabbage and roasted jalapeno and poblano peppers. Pulse into finer texture.
- Add brisket to the cabbage and pepper mix in the food processor and pulse. Texture can be a fine or coarse as desired.
- Pour brisket mixture into large bowl.
- Stir in bacon bits/ crumble and BBQ sauce. Set aside in the fridge.
- When bao is proofed, stir in frozen or partially frozen Monterey Jack cheese into the brisket mixture.
Bao Folding and Steaming
- Gently flatten dough and roll out edges, allowing the middle section to be slightly thicker than the edges (1/8” thick).
- Place flattened dough in the palm of your less dominant hand.
- Place a spoonful of the filling into the center of the bao, pinch the center bottom edges together.
- Bring outer edges to the middle to pinch downwards into the middle.
- Continue to pinch outer edges to the middle in downwards motion.
- Seal the top of the bao in towards the center downwards.
- Place filled bao onto parchment and into steamer.
- When steamer basket is full, steam for 20-25 minutes or until the dough registers 195F on an instant read thermometer.