Fluffy, soft mantou buns are a traditional complement to many traditional Asian dishes. Mantou buns are just like bao buns, but without any sweet or savory filling.
You can make any shape or color, but this pink rosebud shaped mantou buns are extra special for that special someone on Valentine's or Mother's day!
Why You Will Love This Recipe
Steamed mantou buns are a delightful and easy-to-make treat. The basic mantou recipe is very adaptable, as shown with these cute steamed buns shaped like pink rosebuds!
You can make them plain, or add fillings when shaping them. With no filling they are called mantou buns, with filling they are bao buns!
Either method you choose, you are going to have soft and fluffy steamed mantou buns!
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Ingredients
Join us as we take you through the steps required for making wonderful mantou buns from scratch at your own kitchen table!
- Milk - any dairy or non dairy milk or cream.
- Sugar - or honey.
- Salt
- Yeast
- Vegetable oil
- All purpose flour
- Red food color
- Green food color
- Nitrile gloves - to prevent staining your hands.
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
How to Make Steamed Mantou Buns
Read on as I guide you through the recipe step-by-step and show you how to make your own tasty mantou buns at home!
Prepare the Mantou Dough
- Mix the salt, sugar, vegetable oil, and yeast in a bowl. Add room temperature milk and stir.
- Add some of the flour and mix with a spoon.
- Adjust the dough with a little extra flour if it is still too sticky. Roll the dough into a ball an transfer to a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to bulk rise for 1 hour.
- Pinch off about 2 tablespoons of dough and put in a small bowl. Add a little green food color and mix in (wearing nitrile gloves will prevent your hands from staining). Tint the remaining dough with the red food coloring.
PRO TIP: These mantou buns are even faster to make plain, with not artistic shaping and coloring!
- Use nitrile gloves when kneading the food color into the mantou dough. Use a fresh set of gloves for each color.
- Roll out the dough and use a small 1.5" to 2" round cookie cutter to cut out 18 small circles of dough.
Prepare the Mantou Bun Steamer
- First, set the bamboo or stainless steamer up so that it is ready when the rosebud mantou buns are ready to steam. Be sure to place parchment paper liners on each level you are using. Set the bamboo steamer over the pot with hot water and set it to a medium heat.
If using a stainless steel steamer, wrap a terry towel around the cover lid, under and over. Secure at the top where the handle is. This way any condensation will be absorbed by the towel and not make soggy buns. Add some water in the bottom portion and set on a medium heat.
Shape the Rosebud Centers
- Overlap three of the dough circles into a strip. Roll the strip of overlapped dough circles into a roll, starting from the short end.
- Cut the roll of dough petals in to two halves, making two small center rosebuds. Cutting seals the rosebud centers at their base.
Position Rosebud Centers
- Cut out six 2.5" round piece of dough. You can also hand shape the circles with small balls of dough.
- Center one of the two rosebud centers in the middle. Make 6 equal cuts around the rosebud center.
Wrap The Petals Around the Centers
- Pick up one wedge shape and wrap it around the center bud. You can use a drop of water to help the petal corners to stick.
- Do the same to the opposite wedge shape. Repeat this process with remaining petal circles and rosebud centers.
Steam the Rosebud Mantou Buns
- Make leaves out of the green dough by pinching off small pieces and shaping them. Attach when on the bottom of the rosebuds so they peek out from underneath.
- Let the buns rest to rise for 30 minutes, then place in a steamer with a parchment paper liner. Turn heat up so water is at a steady simmer. Steam for 12 to 14 minutes. Remove top and serve immediately.
Serving Suggestions
Serve these stunning steamed pink rosebud buns anytime, but they will be especially delightful on Mother's Day, or Valentine's Day.
Any variety of Chinese steamed mantou buns go naturally with our Miso Baked Branzino, Bok Choy Pho, Asian Crab Salad, Air Fryer Japanese Green Beans, and Air Fryer Teriyaki Salmon.
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Related Recipes
Substitutions
Instead of using some pink food color for the pink, you can make them with no colorant as every day steamed mantou buns.
You can also knead in about ½ cup of mashed sweet potato, squeezed spinach, or black squid ink for a rainbow of colors!
Variations
This basic mantou recipe is used to make a rainbow of colored steamed mantou buns and filled steamed bao buns! Your imagination is the only limitation. See some of our ideas below.
- Spicy Pork Filled Steamed Bao Buns - Make our steamed mantou buns recipe. When making the shape of buns you decide on, tuck a small amount of cooked spice pork filling. The filling is usually a sweet and savory flavor.
- Saffron Steamed Mantou Buns - I love saffron, the color and the slightly earthy fragrance are intriguing.
Equipment
Equipment can have a big impact on how a recipe turns out. Below are some of my favorite pieces of equipment that I use when making Chinese mantou steamed buns.
- Asian Bamboo 3 Tier Steamer
- 3 Tier Stainless Steal Steamer
- Round Cake Pan Parchment Papers
- Round Air Fryer Basket Liners
- Clear Vinyl Kitchen Gloves
Storage
Store any leftover mantou buns in a covered container in the refrigerator. Reheat by wrapping in a damp paper towel and microwaving for 15 seconds.
Tips for Success
- Don't crowd the mantou buns in the streamer, as they will expand and stick together if you do.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can! They reheat better though if you let them completely defrost first.
Don't over proof the dough. The mantou buns will continue to rise a bit more while steaming. If you over proof though, they will collapse a little from the over proofed air in them.
The bamboo steamer will give you better results. Because it's a porous natural steamer, it breathers. Stainless steal can create too much condensation.
Use round parchment paper to line the steamer. The round air fryer liners work perfectly!
Food Safety
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
See more guidelines at USDA.gov.
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📖 Recipe
Steamed Mantou Buns
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup Milk
- 2 tablespoon Sugar
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 1¼ teaspoon Yeast
- Vegetable oil
- 1½ cup All Purpose flour use a little more if dough is too sticky
- Red Food color drops as needed, about ½ teaspoon max
- Green Food color drops as needed, about ¼ teaspoon max
- cup All Purpose flour about ¼ cup extra for adjusting dough texture, kneading, and shaping
Instructions
- Place the salt, sugar, vegetable oil, and yeast in a bowl. Pour in room temperature milk and stir. Add some of the flour and mix with a spoon. Gradually add the rest of the flour and knead the dough with your hands. The dough will be a little sticky.½ cup Milk, 2 tablespoon Sugar, ¼ teaspoon Salt, 1¼ teaspoon Yeast, Vegetable oil, 1½ cup All Purpose flour
- Adjust the dough with a little extra flour if it is still too sticky. Roll the dough into a ball and transfer to a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to bulk rise for 1 hour.cup All Purpose flour
- While the dough is bulk proofing, set your pan with water on the stovetop. Heat on medium to prepare for steaming. If using a stainless steel steamer, wrap a terry hand towel around the cover lid, under and over. Secure at the top where the handle is. This way any condensation will be absorbed by the towel and not make soggy buns. Add some water in the bottom portion and set on a medium heat.
- Pinch off about 2 tablespoons of dough and put in a small bowl. Add a little green food color and mix in (wearing nitrile gloves will prevent your hands from staining). Tint the remaining dough with the red food coloring. Use nitrile gloves when kneading the food color into the mantou dough. Use a fresh set of gloves for each color.Red Food color, Green Food color
- Roll out the dough and use a small 1.5" to 2" round cookie cutter to cut out 18 small circles of dough. Overlap three of the dough circles into a strip. Roll the strip of overlapped dough circles into a roll, starting from the short end.
- Cut the roll of dough petals in to two halves, making two small center rosebuds. Cutting will seal the rosebud center at the bases so they don't unravel. Repeat with the remaining small circles so you have a total of 6 rosebud centers.
- Cut out six 2.5" round pieces of dough. You can also hand shape the circles with small balls of dough.
- Center one of the rosebud centers in the middle. Make 6 equal cuts around the rosebud center.
- Pick up one wedge shape and wrap it around the center bud. You can use a drop of water to help the petal corners to stick.
- Do the same to the opposite wedge shape. Repeat this process with remaining petal circles and rosebud centers.
- Make leaves out of the green dough by pinching off small pieces and shaping them. Attach when on the bottom of the rosebuds so they peek out from underneath.
- Let the buns rest to rise for 30 minutes, then place in a steamer with a parchment paper liner. Turn heat up so water is at a steady simmer. Steam for 12 to 14 minutes. Remove top and serve immediately.
Notes
- Remove Mantou buns from the steamer as soon as they are finished cooking, 12 to 14 minutes, depending on size and heat variations.
- Do not proof the second time for more than 30 minutes, this will prevent the steamed buns from collapsing or wrinkling on top.
- Don't crowd the mantou buns in the streamer, as they will expand and stick together if you do. Leave at least 1½" between buns.
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