Jjinppang Mandu (Steamed Pork Buns)

Ingredients

For dough

• 1 cup warm water (under 100 degrees Fahrenheit), or more if it's winter
• 1 Tablespoon instant dry yeast
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1 tsp. granulated sugar
• 3 cups all-purpose flour

For filling

• 1 cup chopped onion
• ½ cup chopped carrot
• 1½ cup chopped zucchini
• 1½ cup chopped green onions
• 2 cups chopped white mushrooms
• 14 oz. ground pork
• 1 tsp. soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 cloves of minced garlic
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

Directions

Make the dough:

1. In a large bowl add the warm water, dry yeast, salt, vegetable oil, and sugar. Mix well until the dry yeast is fully dissolved.
2. Add the flour to the yeast water. Mix with a wooden spoon, then knead for 2-3 minutes.
3. Set aside in warm place until the dough doubles in size, about 30 minutes.
4. After the dough has risen, knead it again for 1 minute to remove any extra gas. Set it aside in warm place, covered, for 30 minutes.

Prepare the filling:

1. In a large bowl, place the onion, carrot, zucchini, green onions, and white mushrooms.
2. Sprinkle 1 tsp. salt over top and mix it up by hand. Set aside for 10-15 minutes.
3. Squeeze the excess water out, most easily done with a cheesecloth.
4. In a mixing bowl, place ground pork, soy sauce, salt, garlic, sesame oil, and black pepper. Mix it by hand and set aside.
5. In a heated pan, add 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil and sauté the chopped vegetables for 2-3 minutes. Transfer them to a large bowl.
6. Heat up the pan again, and cook the seasoned pork for 3 minutes until fully cooked.
7. Put the pork into the bowl with the vegetables and mix it all up.

Make the buns:

1. Split the dough into 16 smaller pieces.
2. Take a few dough balls and put them on a floured cutting board. The rest of balls should be in the bowl with the lid closed, to prevent them from getting dried out.
3. Roll out each ball into a disk 4-inches in diameter.
4. Place a disk into your palm and add 2-3 tbs of filling mixture to the center of it.
5. Lift the edges of the disk up around the filling, then press the edges together to seal the filling snugly inside the bun.
6. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling, until you've made 16 buns.
7. Put 6-7 cups of water in the bottom of a large steamer and place each bun on the rack. (Place cheesecloth or cotton cloth on the steamer rack before adding each bun. Baking cups also work well.) When you place the buns on the rack, leave a 1 inch gap between them because they will get bigger when steamed.
8. Wait for 20 more minutes to let the dough rise even more.
9. Bring to a boil over high heat, and steam for 20 minutes.
10. When the buns are cooked, turn off the heat and remove the lid quickly to prevent water from the top of the lid from dripping over the buns. (That will create ugly, yellow blisters.)
11. Serve with dipping sauce and enjoy!
12. Yields 16 buns.

Dipping sauce:

• Combine 1/3 cup soy sauce, 2 Tbsp. of vinegar, and 2 tsp. sugar in a small bowl.
• Add 1/2 cup chopped onion, chunks of green chili pepper, and roasted sesame seeds.