Whenever I make bao, there’s always a point where I have to decide: Do I cook the bao with the pleats facing up or down? Sometimes, the dumpling dictates the direction. For example, Shanghai soup dumplings (xiao long bao) have been engineered to be cooked with the pleats up.
Steamed yeast-leavened bao can be cooked facing up or down. In general, however, savory bao are steamed with the pleats up whereas sweet bao are cooked with the pleats facing down. It’s a nice way to mark the different fillings. Some people use dots of food coloring to distinguish the various fillings. In those cases the bao are steamed pleats down.
On the other hand, when I mess up the pleats, an easy way to hide my mistake is to steam with the pleats facing down. Savory Filipino and Vietnamese bao are often steamed with the pleats down, for reasons that are more cultural than practical. Do you want puffy pleats on top? Or do you want a smooth domed finish?
On the left, is a bao steamed with pleats down. The pleats faced up on the right-hand bao.
For the steamed egg custard buns recipe, I did them both ways because I was tinkering with the filling recipe and needed to mark them; the drier looking bao filling on the left had less coconut milk than the one on the right. As you can see from the photo above, the major difference is that the filling is better centered in the bao that was cooked with the pleats facing down. There was more gathered dough below to support the filling.
That’s not always the case. Saucy and raw meat fillings get juicy during steaming and that moisture tends to slightly compress the bottom of the bao. Regardless of which direction the pleats faced during steaming, the bottom of those kinds of bao will not be as puffy as the top. Does that affect overall flavor? Nope.
When making baked bao, the pleats always face down. If the pleats faced up during baking, the bao may not stay closed. Oven heat is different than steam heat.
Sometimes you can choose which direction to point your pleats during cooking. Sometimes you can’t. Do you have a personal preference or guidelines you follow (or have observed)?
Carole Frenche says
I love bao - with vegetables. So tasty!
rental elf says
Very nice, thanks for the information.
TinCook says
Do you guys know how they fold bao to look like this?
http://mmm-yoso.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451b81169e20115701d0eac970c-pi
It's supposed to resemble bound feet. I think the bao folded this way look really pretty (in stark contrast to bound feet /shudder)
I was thinking it maybe uses scissors or a lame' to make slits ala western technique.
PS Got the kindle enhanced version of Asian Dumplings. Pretty cool book, but can't get the enhanced portions to work (the videos...) in the kindle. Thank goodness for your websites.
r4 card says
This Steamed Egg custard Bun Recipe is very nice.I can see here the dish it looks Yummy.you have provided here such a nice information about it.
Teresa F. says
Like you, it depends on how my pleating is that day. It makes sense to use pleats up for savory and down for sweet, but I don't often make both kinds at the same time. I have your book and have tried the steamed boa. My mother have often experimented with boa making with moderate success. It was exciting to share your bao recipe with her.
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Its give such an Awesome Look and i like your sharing of this recipe of the Steamed Egg and buns.This white and the yellow colored attracts all.
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This is such a amazing recipe i never seen this type of food dish. It is new and fresh recipe for me.Thanks for the sharing this.
Spoon and Chopsticks says
Nice tips. Love your blog. Plenty of great info here.
http://spoon-and-chopsticks.blogspot.com/
Mens Bootcut says
the drier looking bao filling on the left had less coconut milk than the one on the right. As you can see from the photo above, the major difference is that the filling is better centered in the bao that was cooked with the pleats facing down. There was more gathered dough below to support the filling.
That’s not always the case. Saucy and raw meat fillings get juicy during steaming and that moisture tends to slightly compress the bottom of the bao. Regardless of which direction the pleats faced during steaming, the bottom of those kinds of bao will not be as puffy as the top. Does that affect overall flavor? Nope.
Christine says
With regard to the picture posted by TinCook--That's interesting because the way I've known this fold is how it's supposed to resemble a leaf; I've never heard of the bounded feet comparison. It's actually done by pleating the folds in one direction, forming an M shape at the beginning and then finishing with a pointed tip at the end. The more numerous the folds are, the prettier it'll look (like Ding Tai Fung's xiao long bao with 18 folds). In Taiwanese bao tradition this type of fold usually accompanies a vegetarian filling.
Doan says
Dear Andrea,
I followed your recipe to make Vietnamese Bánh Bao and Philippine Lumpia. Your recipe asked for stir fry the fillings before steaming and frying. My mother and my wife said that I did not have to pre-fry first, just use the raw fillings and they would be cooked thoroughly later. I liked your step since I could taste the fillings and adjust the taste. But I think they were also correct too.
What are your reason not to follow the traditional Vietnamese way of making Bánh Bao or Chả Giò(Lumpia)?
Kitchen clearance says
This is really very nice recipe and every thing looking really very nice and impressive. I love to eat this recipe. It is my favourite recipe.
Michael Abrahams says
Ive found the same problem with the filling compressing the bottom of my bao when i done it in the restaurant. When i roll the dough i roll it thinner on the outside and leave it about 2mm thicker in the centre, the pleating seems to even it out and it works OK. Tha was for char siu bao
PPI says
I am so interested for cooking and This recipe is really very nice and also very testy. I am so excited for bring this recipe in my kitchen.
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Wow.. So yummy. I like to eat this recipe i never seen this type of food dish. I am so excited for make it tonight.
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Like you, it depends on how my pleating is that day. It makes sense to use pleats up for savory and down for sweet, but I don't often make both kinds at the same time.
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marlon says
There was more gathered dough below to support the filling.
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Awesome!! Thanks so much for sharing!!!
alice says
Why does my pleats on the baozi disappear when is proofing after wrapping?
Andrea Nguyen says
Because the dough puffs! It's natural.