Now let’s cook
Nothing here needs rushing: while the dough proves, the pork and sauerkraut braise.
Ingredients
- 900 g pork bellyboneless pork belly in one piece: the fatty cut from the pig’s belly
- 1 tbsp vegetable oilmade from plant seeds or fruit
- 720 ml waterplain tap water
- 3 tbsp soy saucenaturally brewed from soybeans, wheat, salt and water
- 41 g brown sugarwith molasses in it
- 3 garlic clovesa whole peeled clove, lightly crushed
- 15 g gingerfresh ginger root
- 2 star anise podsdried star-shaped fruits, used as a spice
- 3 dried chilliespods of a hot pepper in dried form
- 224 g sauerkrautshredded white cabbage that has been fermented, which gives it a sour edge
- 350 g wheat flourground from wheat grains
- 13 g sugarwhite granulated sugar
- 7 g dry yeastbaker’s yeast, dried, which raises the dough
- 5 g baking powdera dry mix of bicarbonate of soda and an acid, which raises the dough
- 3 g saltfine table salt
- 240 ml milkcow’s milk
- 2 tbsp vegetable oilmade from plant seeds or fruit
- ¼ tsp vegetable oilmade from plant seeds or fruit
- 2 tbsp vegetable oilmade from plant seeds or fruit
- 960 ml waterplain tap water
- 60 ml hoisin saucea thick dark condiment, usually made with soya beans, garlic and spices
- 1 tbsp soy saucenaturally brewed from soybeans, wheat, salt and water
- 45 g spring onionscallions, or Japanese long onions: green tubular leaves and a white base
- 20 g fresh corianderthe leaves, also called cilantro
Method
Cut 900 g of skin-on pork belly into strips about 2 cm wide, then across into 16 equal pieces 5–6 cm long. Heat 1 tbsp of vegetable oil in a heavy-based pan over a medium-high heat, lay the pieces in a single layer and brown them for 15–20 minutes, turning them over once, halfway through, until golden.
Mix 720 ml of water, 3 tbsp of soy sauce and 41 g of brown sugar. Pour the mixture into the pan and add 3 garlic cloves, peeled and lightly crushed, 15 g of ginger cut into three, 2 star anise pods, 3 dried chilli pods and 224 g of sauerkraut, weighed with its juice, without squeezing it. Bring to the boil over a high heat, then turn it down so that the liquid keeps a steady, fairly strong simmer, cover the pan and braise for about an hour, stirring from time to time, until the pork is tender and a fork goes into the meat with almost no resistance: at least 71 °C in the thickest piece. Test the thickest piece with a fork: if it goes in with effort, braise for longer and check again.
While the pork braises, put 350 g of flour, 13 g of sugar, 7 g of dry yeast, 5 g of baking powder and 3 g of salt in the bowl of a stand mixer with a dough hook and mix on low speed for about 30 seconds. Pour in 240 ml of warm milk (about 38 °C) and 2 tbsp of vegetable oil and mix for about 2 minutes, until no dry flour is left. Then knead on medium-low speed for 5 minutes, until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Take it out onto the work surface, knead it briefly and shape it into a smooth ball.
Grease a bowl with ¼ tsp of vegetable oil, put the dough in, roll it in the oil, arrange it seam side down and cover the bowl. Leave it to prove until the dough has doubled in volume, about 1 hour. When the pork is ready, lift the pork and the sauerkraut into a bowl with a slotted spoon and throw away the garlic, ginger, star anise and chilli. Strain the liquid, skim the fat off it and return it to the pan. Boil it over a medium heat for about 15 minutes, until about 240 ml is left. Put the pork and the sauerkraut back in, cover the pan and keep it on the lowest heat until serving.
Cut sixteen 10 cm squares from baking parchment. Turn the dough out onto the work surface, press it with your palm to push out the air, knead it briefly and shape it into a ball. Cut it in half and cover one half. Roll the other into a 20 cm log and cut it into 8 equal pieces, about 37 g each.
Pat each piece with your fingertips into a disc about 0.6 cm thick, fold the edges to the middle and pinch them. Turn the ball seam side down and round it with your hand. Cover the balls, then do the same with the second half of the dough.
Roll each ball out into an oval 15 cm long, brush it lightly with oil, lay an oiled chopstick across the middle and fold the oval in half over the chopstick. Lift the bun by the chopstick, move it onto a square of parchment and pull the chopstick out. Brushing all the buns and the chopstick takes 2 tbsp of vegetable oil. Cover the buns and leave them to prove for about 30 minutes, until they are slightly puffy.
Bring 960 ml of water to the boil in a wide frying pan or wok. Arrange 8 buns on their parchment in the tiers of a bamboo steamer so that they do not touch, stack the tiers and cover them. Set the steamer in the pan, turn the heat down to a simmer and steam for 10 minutes without lifting the lid. Take the pan off the heat and leave the buns covered for 5 more minutes. Steam the remaining buns the same way.
Open the warm buns and put a piece of pork into each, then spread all the braised sauerkraut equally among them. Mix 60 ml of hoisin sauce with 1 tbsp of soy sauce and divide it equally among the buns. Sprinkle the buns with 45 g of sliced spring onion and 20 g of chopped fresh coriander. Serve straight away.
