Chinese Cocktail Buns…

One of my favorite places in San Francisco is China Town. Growing up in the Bay Area, I spent a lot of time in that section of the city. My experience got became more fun when I visited China Town with my Stepmother, Kit.

Kit was born in Hong Kong; her family immigrated to America when she was seven years old. Like most who immigrate here, their entire family worked hard and became legal citizens. I admire, Kit and her siblings, they truly know the value of hard work. As children here in the states, they would attend school during the day, and work in a sweatshop at night. I have been told it was common for them to fall asleep on the clothing they were making only to get up and repeat the process over again.

Many of us have gone to Chinese food restaurants; some of us have sampled the deserts. The first thing you notice is they are not very sweet, compared to American standards. The reason is Chinese people do not like overly sweet foods.

 On one of our trips into China Town, Kit introduced me to her favorite Chinese bakeries, The Golden Gate, on Grant Street. Kit’s favorite was the dan tats (egg custard tarts) mine was the Gai Mei Bao (cocktail buns.) I have been told the bakery is no long there, what a shame. To buy the buns or custard pies, you stood in a line that always went out of the door and halfway down the block, they were that good!

 For the past seven years, I have been looking for a recipe for the cocktail buns that came close the ones from the bakery. The cocktail bun is a sweet yeast dough formed into a four to five inche long bread stick. It is called a cocktail bun, because the translation is chicken tail bun. There is a creamy, pale yellow filling inside, kind of like a Twinkie. If you did not know what the filling was, you would not know it was coconut. I have taken a few recipes to get the filling where I remember it.

The dough recipe comes from about dot com, and does not have the egg wash top on it. I think the egg wash makes a big difference. Prior to baking, beat one egg, brush the egg onto the dough to them glaze them before baking. You can also sprinkle sesame seeds on top of you like

 I hope you enjoy them!

For the dough:

·         1/3 cup (75 ml) very warm water

·         1 teaspoon (5 ml) granulated sugar

·         2 teaspoons (10 ml) active dry yeast

·         1/3 cup (75 ml) granulated sugar

·         1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) salt

·         3 tablespoons (50 ml) cooking oil

·         1/4 cup (60 ml) boiling water

·         1 large egg, fork-beaten

·         Approximately 2 1/4 cups (550 ml) white bread flour

1. Stir warm water and first amount of sugar in small dish until sugar is dissolved. Sprinkle yeast over top. Let stand for 10 minutes. Stir to dissolve yeast.
2. Stir second amount of sugar, salt and cooking oil in large bowl. Add boiling water. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Stir in egg and yeast mixture.
3. Slowly work in enough flour until soft dough forms. Turn out onto lightly floured surface. Knead for about 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Place dough in large greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover with greased waxed paper and tea towel. Let stand in oven with light on and door closed for 1 1/2 to 2 hours until doubled in bulk. Punch dough down. Cover. Let rest for 5 minutes. Shape into 12 inch (30 cm) log. Cut into 12 pieces. Fill, shape and bake buns according to desired recipes. Makes 12 buns.

For the filling,

½ cup of white sugar

2/3 cup flour

½ stick of butter, softened

2 egg yokes,

2/3 cup coconut, finely shredded

Mix all ingredients together with a mixer until light and fluffy

Spoon filling into dough

Let rise one hour

Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

For a glossy coating, beat 1 egg in a bowl, and brush each bun with a little beaten egg. Sprinkle each bun with a few sesame seeds.

Bake in the preheated oven until the buns are golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes. Allow to cool before serving.