Asian-Style Pulled Pork Bao

Put your Asian-Style Smoked Pulled Pork to work in these delicious steamed bun sandwiches - filled with smoky pulled pork, fresh pickles, and a carrot crunch! With the exception of the protein, this recipe is nearly identical to our Pork Belly Bao. If you’ve already mastered that recipe, this will be a breeze.

Yield: about 4 servings

Ingredients

For the Pickles:

• 1/2 of an English cucumber, thinly sliced on a mandoline

• 4-5 Fresno chiles, seeded and thinly sliced

• 1 cup rice wine vinegar (unseasoned)

• 1 cup water

• 3/4 cup sugar

• 1 tablespoon salt

For the Bao:

• 1 lb. Asian-Style Smoked Pulled Pork

• Hoisin sauce (optional)

• 1 package (24 buns) of frozen bao buns (we usually use Wei-Chuan Lotus Leaf Buns; check your local international or Asian-specialty market) - you’ll only need about 8-12 for this recipe, depending on how much you pack into each bun

• 1 carrot, peeled and julienned

Instructions

Make the Pickles

Place the sliced cucumbers and Fresno chiles in a large heat-resistant dish. I like to combine these in one dish so that the heat from the Fresno chiles blends with the brine to lend a light spice to the cucumbers. You can keep them in separate containers though, if you’d like (such a mason jars).

Make the brine by combining the rice wine vinegar, water, sugar, and salt in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and stir until the sugar and salt are dissolved. Pour the hot brine over the vegetables.

Place a sheet of paper towel over the top of the vegetables to make sure they remain fully immersed in the brine.

Place the container in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to allow the vegetables to lightly pickle and cool down. Make ahead: The pickles can be made a day in advance, just cover the container and stash in the fridge (leave the paper towel in place for at least the first 30 minutes).

Leftover pickles are great for sandwiches or the Asian-Style Pulled Pork Spring Rolls.

Prepare and Assemble the Bao

Warm the Pulled Pork

Warm the leftover pulled pork in a small pan on the stove or in the microwave. If you didn’t add any hoisin sauce to the pulled pork when you made it originally, I recommend mixing in a small drizzle of hoisin (about a tablespoon or so) while you heat up the pork.

Steam the buns

Cook the buns according to the directions on the package. Usually, this will be to heat about an inch or two of water to a boil under a steamer basket. Spray the steamer basket lightly with cooking spray. Place the buns in the basket, cover, and steam for about 8-10 minutes. Remove the buns from the basket and immediately place on a plate and cover with a wet paper towel. The buns will dry out quickly, so it’s best to keep them covered until you’re ready to assemble. This should be a last minute step. Don’t steam the buns too far in advance of assembly.

If you don’t have a steamer (like us), try this hack with a large pot, a metal strainer, two binder clips (just remove the handle portions after getting the clips in place, if needed to fully cover the pot), and an over-sized lid:

Assembly:

Take a steamed bun and open it up (if you’re using lotus leaf buns, just open at the fold; if you’re using full buns, slice the buns in half, just shy of cutting all the way through). Top with an ounce or two of the warm pulled pork, a few pickled cucumbers and Fresno chiles, and some julienned carrot.