Pagoda Tree Flower Egg Buns
"Locust flowers have been a familiar flavor since childhood — delicately fragrant and sweet. They are rich in vitamins and minerals and are traditionally valued for clearing heat, detoxifying, and supporting healthy blood pressure and lipid levels. When the flowers are in season in spring, I pick some and sun-dry them for storage. Today I steamed these locust flower and egg buns to revisit the taste of spring."
Ingredients
Dried pagoda tree flowers
As needed
Flour
As needed
Eggs
7
Green onions
2
Instructions
1
Step 1
Prepare an appropriate amount of flour, add yeast and a suitable amount of sugar, then mix with warm water to form a dough.
2
Step 2
Prepare dried pagoda tree flowers, eggs, and green onions...
3
Step 3
Knead the dough to a soft-to-medium firmness according to your taste. Personally, I prefer a firmer dough because the bun skin turns out smoother... Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let it rise.
4
Step 4
Wash the dried pagoda tree flowers clean and soak them in warm water for 20 minutes to rehydrate. Beat the eggs in a bowl and set aside.
5
Step 5
Heat oil in a pan, add the eggs, quickly scramble them, chop them into small bits with a spatula, then transfer to a bowl to cool.
6
Step 6
Drain the rehydrated pagoda tree flowers, then add the chopped green onions and scrambled egg bits~
7
Step 7
Add appropriate amounts of salt, light soy sauce, oyster sauce, chicken bouillon, Sichuan pepper powder, and a generous amount of cooking oil—since pagoda tree flowers are dried, more oil gives a better texture. If you like spice, you can also add some chili powder.
8
Step 8
Take out the risen dough, knead it to release air, cut it into pieces of similar size, and roll them into wrappers. My rolling skills are pretty bad 😅
9
Step 9
Wrap the buns and let them proof again at room temperature for 15 minutes.
10
Step 10
Place the twice-proofed buns directly into the steamer. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to medium heat and steam for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let them sit for 5 minutes before opening the lid.
11
Step 11
The finished buns—flavor is great, although my bun-wrapping technique isn't great.
12
Step 12
My dough is on the firmer side... so the bun skins aren't very fluffy, but they're nicely chewy~ Just personal preference.
