Makes: 8
Prep Time: 1 hr Plus 2hr proofing
Cook time: 25 mins (Bao) plus 3hr Braising
Things you need:
Oxtail:
1.2kg Oxtail
1 Tbsp Olive oil
35g Sliced Ginger (no need to peel)
6 Cloves of garlic (no need to peel)
1.5 Sticks of lemongrass cut in half
4 Star anise
2 Bay leaf
90 ml Soy sauce
30 ml Rice wine vinegar
30 ml Sherry vinegar
2 Tbsp Maple syrup
400 ml Water
Salt to taste
White pepper. Few good grinds on the mill
Bao Dough:
120 ml Milk 2%
80 ml whipping cream
1 large egg
25g Sugar
35 g All purpose flour
6g Cornstarch
240g Bread flour
5.5g Instant yeast
4g Salt
Bao filling:
1 Tbsp Olive oil
1 Leek finely sliced
200g Mushrooms thinly sliced
180ml Stock from braised oxtail
1 Tsp cornstarch
350g Braised oxtail chopped
Splash Sherry vinegar
1 Tbsp Maple syrup
Salt & Pepper to taste
Crack Sauce:
See previous video recipe.
Steps:
Wipe and clean the oxtail with kitchen paper. Rub some olive oil all over and massage into the oxtail and season with salt and pepper all over. Set aside.
Heat up 1 tbsp of olive oil in a heavy pan or dutch oven and sear the oxtail all over to brown it nicely. Set aside. Drain off 80% of the left over fat and oil. Add ginger, garlic, lemongrass, bay leafs and star anise to pan. Season to taste. Cook for 1-2 mins. Add soy sauce, vinegars, and water. Add oxtail back in bring up to the boil. Cover and put Dutch oven into a preheated oven, set at 325 F and braise for 3hr or until tender.
Once cooked, take out the oxtail and pick through the meat making sure there is no bristle, clumps of fat or bones. Drain and reserve the cooking liquid. Set both the meat and braising liquid in the fridge so the fat solidifies to the top.
- Net day scrape off the fat from the cooking liquid. (Save this for roasting any veg you have). Underneath you will have some lovely meat jelly. Add enough boiling water to this to make 180ml in total. Set aside. Portion out 350g of the braised oxtail and roughly chop it up. Set aside.
Next sauté the mushrooms for 3-5 mins in 1 tbsp olive oil, until a lot of the water has been released and cooked out. Add leeks and cook for 1 min. Add oxtail, cook for another minute. It should break up with the heat of the pan. Add 1 tsp of cornstarch to the braising stock and add this to the oxtail mixture.
Reduce everything to a nice sticky mixture, not to wet as per video. Then season to taste and add 1 tbsp maple syrup and a good splash of sherry vinegar. Mix through and set aside to cool down.
Add the bao dough ingredients into a stand mixture and mix for 10-15 mins as per video instructions.
Knead the dough briefly. Put into a bowl and cover with a damp tea towel and let proof for 60-90 mins or until doubled.
Degas and flatten the dough to take out air bubbles and roll into a ball as per video. Weigh and divide by 8 and that’s how big each bao will be.
Roll the bao as per video and fill with the oxtail filling. 2-3 tbsp in each. It’s best to weigh your filling and divide by 8 if you want to be precise. MAKE SURE YOU SEAL THE BAO PROPERLY OR IT WILL POP OPEN IN THE OVEN WHEN BAKING.
Put on baking sheets lined with greaseproof paper, 3 inches apart. Cover with a tea towel proof for 1 more hour.
Preheat oven to 400F. After 1 hr egg wash the buns. You can tuck the buns in to make them more round at this stage as well. Place into the preheated oven and turn it down to 350F and bake for 25 mins or until golden brown.
Put onto a wire rack to cool for a little while. Serve with crack sauce drizzled all over the top. Enjoy friends.
Tips:
Don’t be intimidated by the recipe. You can break it up into stages. Make the oxtail and fillings days in advance.
Can freeze the leftovers.
Use extra oxtail in pastas, pies.
Make sure your hands are not greasy when sealing the buns as the dough won’t stick
You can always reshape them after proofing, so don’t worry if they aren’t perfectly round.
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