Siopao ala Chowking

Whenever I eat at Chowking restaurant I usually ordered siopao asado. I love their siopao asado so I tried cooking it, why not! hehe

Good thing the ingredients are easy to find in the grocery. Malamang nasa kitchen nyo na rin ang ibang ingredients. We will be having three sets of ingredients and instructions, one for the siopao dough, next is for the asado filling and last is for the sauce. Lets start!

Ingredients

Siopao Dough

250 ml warm milk (evap or fresh milk)
2 tsp dry instant yeast
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 kilo all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
100 grams sugar
2 tsp vegetable oil
lime

Asado Filling

1 tsp canola oil

1 small onion, peeled and chopped

2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1 pound pork butt or shoulder, cut into large chunks

2 1/4 cups water

1/2 cup soy sauce

2 tsp oyster sauce

3 tsp sugar

2 star anise

1 tsp cornstarch

Sauce

1 cup water

1-1/2 tbsp cornstarch

1/3 cup sugar

3 tbsp soy sauce

1 clove garlic, chopped

2 tbsp white vinegar

Instructions

Siopao Dough

• In a bowl, combine milk, yeast, the 2 tablespoons sugar and salt. Stir well until dissolved. Let stand for about 5 to 10 minutes or until mixture is foamy.
• In a large bowl, combine flour, the 100 grams sugar, baking powder, and vegetable oil, Mix well. Add a few drops of lime juice into the flour mixture (to make the buns whiter).
• Add yeast mixture to the flour mixture. Mix together until it forms a dough. Continue to mix and knead until the dough is smooth and no longer sticky. 
• Cover with a plastic film and allow to rise in a warm place for about 2 hours or until double in size.
• Remove the dough from the bowl, place on a clean work surface, and form into a long log. 
• With a knife, cut the dough into 10 equal size pieces and then form each piece into smaller balls. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and allow to rise for about 30 minutes.

Siopao Filling

• In a pot over medium heat, heat oil. Add onions and garlic and cook until softened. 
• Add pork and cook, turning as needed, until lightly browned.
• Add 2 cups of the water, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, and star anise. Stir until well-dispersed. Bring to a boil, skimming scum that may float on top. 
• Lower heat, cover, and continue to cook for about 1 hour or until meat is fork tender. You will have about 1 1/2 cups of liquid left in the pot. With a slotted spoon, remove pork from pot and let cool to touch. Using two forks, shred meat.
• Remove about 1 cup of the braising liquid and set aside. Return shredded meat to pot and bring to a boil.
• In a bowl, combine cornstarch and the remaining 1/4 cup water. Stir until smooth and cornstarch is dissolved. Add half of the cornstarch slurry to the pot of meat and stir to distribute. Continue to cook for about 1 to 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from pan and allow to cool.
• In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the reserved 1 cup braising liquid and the remaining half of the cornstarch slurry. Bring to a boil, stirring regularly, for about 2 to 3 minutes or until thickened. This well be the siopao sauce.

Sauce

• In a bowl add water, cornstarch, sugar, soy sauce and garlic. Mix well.
• In a saucepan over medium-high heat add vinegar and heat for 30 seconds.
• Then add in the saucepan the cornstarch soy sauce mixture. Mix well and cook for 2-3 minutes or until it thickens up.
• Serve with siopao. Enjoy!