December 17, 2023
Winter in New England is truly a wonderful experience. The temperature has steadily dropped as well, which means out comes the winter hats, gloves, scarves, thick sweaters, and cozy socks. The transition to winter is an exciting time in New England since there is just so much to do not just in Massachusetts but also in the neighboring states. Over the last couple of months, Z has grown into such an energetic toddler. To help expend some of her energy, we’ve been taking her to a ton of local events in the neighboring states. Here are some photos from our latest adventures:
Z wanted to pick out her own pumpkin for fall.
Z is eagerly waiting for food in her Thanksgiving outfit.
Thanksgiving Day meal is prepared and ready to serve.
The star of the meal and sides are ready for enjoying.
Z and grandma are checking out one of the trees at Castle Hill on Crane Estate.
Z is taking a stroll through the surrounding areas at Castle Hill on Crane Estate.
Aside from all these adventures with Z, I’ve been actively working to develop more recipes to share on my site. A few months ago, when I was developing my recipe for egg tarts with a twist, I was simultaneously working on a recipe for my take on bo lo bao (or pineapple bun). Pineapple bun is a beloved bakery item that I grew up eating in Brooklyn. Contrary to the name, there is no pineapple in the bun (although, I have seen some bakeries incorporate pineapple into the actual buns). The name comes from the golden yellow cookie topping that is perfectly positioned at the top of a fluffy milky bun. The cookie topping forms a crack while baking in the oven. Once baked, the cookie topping resembles the appearance of a pineapple or bo lo. I wanted to combine my family’s love for bo lo bao with another family favorite, char siu bao, and ended up creating a barbecue chicken bo lo bao. My barbecue chicken bo lo bao is essentially a twist on a twist of two classic Chinese bakery buns combined into one. I grew to love bo lo bao mainly because my dad loves it. He would buy bo lo baos at the local Chinese bakeries near my childhood home in Brooklyn for breakfast, lunch, and even dinner at times. His love for bo lo bao spilled over to my brothers and I, and we often find ourselves craving bo lo bao whenever we walked by a Chinese bakery. Kevin, on the other hand, grew up in Hong Kong and has had his fair share of bo lo baos throughout his time living there. He remembers fondly the features of truly delectable bo lo baos especially when they are freshly baked and eaten straight out of the oven. For both of us, the hallmark of an excellent bo lo bao is the balance of a fluffy milky bread base and a crunchy cookie topping baked to golden perfection. A bo lo bao isn’t a bo lo bao unless there is a golden yellow cookie topping resembling the appearance of a pineapple positioned perfectly on top of the fluffy bread. Bo lo baos are best enjoyed when they are still warm out of the oven with the crunchy cookie topping intact. When I set out to recreate the bo lo bao, I thought back to my memories of the perfect bo lo bao before diving into research to recreate a version as close as possible to the ones I ate throughout my childhood. One bread baking technique that is often used in Chinese bakeries is tangzhong (or water roux). Essentially, you precook a portion of the liquid and flour to create a roux and then fold the roux directly into the bread dough during mixing. The addition of the tangzhong is what contributes to the ultra-fluffy, super soft bread texture. Tangzhong is often used in milk breads to help them achieve the signature fluffy texture. The tangzhong combined with letting the dough sufficiently rest is what results in the ideal pillowy texture of the bread. Ever since I incorporated tangzhong into bread baking, it has become such a game changer. Time after time, batch after batch, the bread always turns out ultra pillowy and soft. I’ve started to incorporate tangzhong into baking as often as possible whenever I want a reliably fluffy bread. On colder days, all I want to do is to bake up batches of these delicious bo lo baos to serve alongside some milk tea. For me, there is nothing more relaxing on a cold weekend than enjoying a bo lo bao straight out of the oven with a cup of steaming hot milk tea.
Barbecue Chicken Bo Lo Bao:
(makes 6 buns)
For the barbecue chicken filling:
· 1 small chicken breast, diced
· ¼ teaspoon baking soda
· ½ tablespoon granulated sugar
· ½ tablespoon oyster sauce
· ½ tablespoon light soy sauce
· 2 teaspoons dark soy sauce
· ½ teaspoon sesame oil
· 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
· 1 small yellow onion, diced
· 1 clove garlic, minced
For the bo lo bao dough:
· ¼ cup water
· 2 tablespoons bread flour
·1½ cups bread flour, plus additional for rolling out dough
· 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
· 1 teaspoon instant yeast
· 1 large egg yolk
· ½ cup whole milk
· 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed and softened
For the cookie (bo lo) topping:
· 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
· 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
· ½ teaspoon baking soda
· ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
· 1 large egg yolk
· ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
For the egg wash:
· 1 egg
· 1 tablespoon water
Directions:
1) In a medium bowl, combine the diced chicken breast, baking soda, granulated sugar, oyster sauce, light soy sauce, and dark soy sauce. Mix until the diced chicken is coated in the sauce. Set aside for 5 minutes. Heat a skillet on medium heat and add in the sesame oil and vegetable oil. Transfer the diced onion and minced garlic to the skillet and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add in the chicken coated in the sauce and cook the chicken with the softened onion and garlic for 5 minutes. Transfer the cooked filling to a clean bowl and let cool for 20 minutes. Place the bowl with the filling in the refrigerator to chill until ready to use.
2) In a small pot set over medium low heat, add in the ¼ cup water and whisk in the 2 tablespoons of flour. Cook until a roux forms, about 2-3 minutes. The consistency of the roux should resemble a thickened slurry. Set aside to cool for 5 minutes.
3) In a stand mixer with the dough hook attached, add in the bread flour, granulated sugar, and instant yeast. Stir on low speed to combine. Gently add in the egg yolk and whole milk. Turn the speed on the stand mixer up to medium and let the stand mixer mix until a dough begins to form, about 3 minutes. Add in the roux and let the stand mixer continue to mix the dough until combined, another 3 minutes. Add in the unsalted butter, a cube at a time, and let the stand mixer mix until the cubes of butter are incorporated into the dough, about 6 minutes. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
4) While the dough is resting, prepare the cookie topping (the pineapple part of the pineapple bun) by combining the unsalted butter, granulated sugar, baking soda, all-purpose flour, egg yolk, and vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract in a bowl. Use your hands to knead together all the ingredients until a deep yellow cookie dough forms. Roll the dough into a thick log. Wrap the cookie dough in plastic wrap, and transfer the wrapped cookie dough into the refrigerator.
5) After the bread dough has rested, remove the bread dough from the mixing bowl and transfer to a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into six equal pieces. Roll each of the dough pieces into a smooth ball. Set aside.
6) Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Remove the filling from the refrigerator. Use a rolling pin to flatten each dough ball into a thick circle and scoop a tablespoon or two of the filling into the center of the dough. Pleat or pinch the edges toward the center to seal the filling in the dough. Flip the sealed dough over and use one hand to gently roll the dough in a circular motion to form a ball. Transfer the dough ball to the parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat the process for the remaining five dough balls.
7) Space the six filled dough balls evenly on the large parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover the filled dough balls with a sheet of plastic wrap and let the dough balls rise undisturbed for an hour.
8) After an hour has passed, preheat oven to 350°F.
9) Prepare a working surface to roll out the cookie topping. On a lightly floured surface, remove the wrapper and transfer the cookie dough over. Cut the thick cookie dough log into six equal pieces. Roll one of the pieces until nearly flat, about ½ inch in thickness. Use a sharp knife to score the cookie dough diagonally, about 3–4 cuts. Repeat and score diagonally in the other direction, about 3–4 cuts. Gently transfer the scored cookie topping to the top of one of the baos. Repeat the process with the remaining cooking dough and place on the remaining baos.
10) Prepare the egg wash by whisking together the egg and tablespoon of water. Use a pastry brush to brush the egg wash all over the cookie-topped baos. Transfer the baking sheet with the bo lo baos into the oven and bake until the baos are cooked through and the tops are golden yellow, about 15-17 minutes. Let the barbecue chicken bo lo baos cool for a couple minutes before digging in. The filling will still be very hot, so be careful! Enjoy!
Here I am jotting down tasting notes and additional ideas I have for future versions of bo lo baos.
Takeaways: After multiple trials of making bo lo baos, I found that the tangzhong consistently yielded fluffy baos. Even if the baos aren’t consumed immediately, the baos continue to maintain their soft fluffy texture even a couple days later. I’ve stored the baos in the refrigerator for up to two days and warmed them up in the oven right before enjoying. To warm, I usually take one bao, place it on a sheet pan, and place the sheet pan in the oven for 5 minutes at 350°F. Once warmed in the oven, the baos are as good as freshly baked.
I’ve made variations of these bo lo baos when working on developing this recipe. The filling can be removed for a classic bo lo bao or swapped for a red bean version (or even custard version). I’ve even made a matcha topped version by swapping out the vanilla extract and adding in a teaspoon of matcha powder for the cookie topping. These baos can easily be customized to suit any occasion.