What is mantou?
Mantou, or Chinese steamed buns, were thought to have originated from the Qin State during the Zhou Dynasty in China circa 300 BCE. Its origin is often connected to the story of Zhuge Liang, which is where these Asian buns got their name mántóu (meaning “barbarian heads” in Mandarin). These round or semi circle-shaped, sweet steamed buns are a food staple in Northern China these days, along with rice and noodles. These steamed buns might look slightly familiar because they also look like baozi or bao for short. The main difference between mantou and baozi is that the latter has a sweet or savory filling added, like char siu bao. I’ve mainly eaten two types of mantou (both steamed and fried varieties) at local Chinese restaurants (some of my favorites are Happy Family and Capital Seafood). Since mantou has a very simple flavor, they typically come with condensed milk as a dipping sauce. As a food staple in Chinese culture, you can also find them premade in the refrigerator and frozen aisles of your local Chinese grocery stores like 99 Ranch. Some brands I’ve seen are Chimei, I-Mei, and Ley Grand. You can find so many different types of mantou these days: plain milk, sweetened, whole wheat, taro, chocolate, and even matcha.
Types of flour for mantou vs bao
My recipe for mantou is similar to my char siu bao recipe except it uses wheat starch (this is NOT the same as all-purpose flour, but an entirely different ingredient) instead of cornstarch and it has a different process in how to handle the dough. If you see mantou in restaurants, you might be familiar with its ultra-white coloring that comes from using white bleached flour and often wheat starch. The addition of wheat starch can give the mantou a super soft and bouncy texture due to its very low gluten properties. If you cannot find wheat starch nearby, you can also use cornstarch, but your steamed buns might differ in color and softness. Wheat starch is used in many Chinese recipes like cheung fun, steamed bao buns, and char siu bao. You can find wheat starch at your local 99 Ranch or Chinese grocery stores, but you can also buy wheat starch online (they might be more expensive than in-store prices). It’s important to note that if you do not use white bleached flour and wheat starch, you may not get the ultra white color of traditional steamed rolls. Some people say to add vinegar to the water as you steam, but this does not work. For my mantou, I use unbleached flour so the color is more cream-colored than pure white.
Tips for making Chinese steamed buns
After making batches and batches of mantou, here are some tips I’ve learned along the way:
Use a scale to weigh out all your ingredients for a fool-proof recipe!Use your pointer finger to press down on the top edge of the dough to flatten it. This thinned out edge will help you seal the log of dough after rolling. Brush on some water before rolling to get the dough to stick to itself and seal better. Use the palms of your hands to roll out the log of dough. This will help combine all the layers and keep them from spreading too much. Allow the dough to sit in the steamer over warm water and proof for 20 minutes, but not more than that, or it will overproof and wilt after it steams. Proofing will give you soft and fluffy Chinese bread texture. After it’s done steaming, move the steamer off the heat and let it rest without removing the lid for at least 4 minutes. Resting lets the temperature inside the steamer come down and doesn’t shock the mantou. Sometimes when you remove the lid too quickly after steaming the mantou will collapse and become wrinkled.
Serving and storage
To serve mantou, eat it plain or with condensed milk. You can also eat it with some savory dishes like char siu. If you have extra steamed rolls, you can keep them in an airtight container in the fridge. They should last up to 3-4 days in the fridge. To reheat them, I wrap them in a damp paper towel and microwave them in 30-second intervals until they are nice and warm.
