China · East Asia

Asado Siopao (Steamed Pork Buns)

Name: Asado Siopao (Steamed Pork Buns)
Prep time: 60 min
Cook time: 15 min
Yield: 12 buns
Cuisine: China
Ingredients: 500 g (4 cups) all-purpose flour; 60 g (1/4 cup) sugar; 7 g (2 tsp) instant yeast; 1 tsp baking powder; 240 ml (1 cup) warm milk; 3 tbsp oil; 1 tsp salt; 500 g pork shoulder, diced; 3 tbsp soy sauce; 2 tbsp oyster sauce; 1 tbsp hoisin; 2 tbsp sugar; 1 onion + 3 cloves garlic; 1 tbsp cornstarch + water

Pillowy steamed buns with sweet-savory pork asado

🛂 Passport Stamp No.021 · Postmarked in China

60m

Prep

15m

Bake

12 buns

Makes

Intermediate

Level

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Postmark · China

🏛 A little history

Siopao — 'steamed bun' in Hokkien — is the Filipino take on Chinese baozi and char siu bao, brought by Chinese migrants and now a street-food and dim-sum staple across the Philippines.

The asado version fills the soft white bun with pork braised in a sweet-savory soy sauce. It's traditionally steamed, not baked, giving that signature cloud-soft, pull-apart bun.

👩‍🍳 Let's bake!

Make the filling: sauté garlic and onion, add the pork with soy, oyster, hoisin, sugar, and a little water; simmer until tender. Thicken with the cornstarch slurry and cool.
Mix the dough ingredients and knead until smooth. Rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
Divide into 12 and flatten each into a disc, thicker in the middle.
Spoon in the cooled asado, pleat the edges up, and twist to seal. Set each on a parchment square, sealed side up.
Proof 30 minutes until puffy.
Steam over rapidly boiling water 12–15 minutes until risen and set. Serve warm.

💡 Chef Axl's tips

A pinch of baking powder keeps the buns bright white and fluffy.
Cool the filling fully before wrapping, or it tears the soft dough.

Pantry

All-Purpose Flour

The everyday workhorse for cakes, cookies, and breads.

🧺 Pantry staple

Pantry

Sugar

Sweetens and helps bakes turn golden and tender.

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Pantry

Butter

A rich, creamy base for doughs and frostings.

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Pantry

Eggs

They bind, lift, and enrich almost every bake.

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Tools

Parchment Paper

Non-stick lining so nothing sticks to the pan.

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Tools

Rolling Pin

Tapered hardwood pin for smooth, even rolling.

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Tools

Bench Scraper

Cuts dough and scoops up your workspace in one move.

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Asado Siopao (Steamed Pork Buns)

🏛 A little history

👩‍🍳 Let's bake!

💡 Chef Axl's tips

Shop this recipe

All-Purpose Flour

Sugar

Butter

Eggs

Parchment Paper

Rolling Pin

Bench Scraper

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