Happiest Plates On Earth: Pork Belly And Soft Egg Steamed Buns- Inspired By ‘Mulan’

Let’s get down to business!

Okay, there was literally no other way I could have started this post.

Welcome to our newly-designed site!  We decided it was time for an upgrade.  Going forward, we will be working our way through the older posts and optimizing them for the new layout, including but not limited to the new recipe-writing program I can use now.  There will now be a ‘Jump to Recipe’ button at the top of the page for people who are just here for the food (crazy, right?), and have little to no interest in my ramblings and gif-spams of random semi-Disney-related material.

Mulan is an interesting film, because while it is of the caliber of the early- nineties Disney films, such as as The Little Mermaid or The Lion King, it is sometimes more forgotten or considered to be from a later period.  I think the one-two punch of Pocahontas and Hunchback slowed down the unstoppable juggernaut force of the Disney Renaissance films.  Therefore, Mulan, Hercules, and Tarzan all are less-remembered as classics.  And while I may somewhat agree with that for the latter two, I feel fairly sure that if Mulan had come out in 1995 instead of 1998, it would be held up with the ‘Big 4’ of the Renaissance.

I mean, it has a strong female lead character, beautiful animation, an underrated score by Jerry Goldsmith, pre-Shrek Eddie Murphy voice work, and one of the greatest Disney songs off all time.

However, despite my general love for this movie, it was actually a recipe that I still hadn’t really established until about twenty minutes before I started cooking.  With some movies, I come up with an idea immediately and it evolved naturally in my brain until I’m chomping at the bit to make it and can’t wait to get to it.  And sometimes I’m struggling right up to the finish line.  This was one of those, at least at the start.  By the time it was done, though, it became one of my more unique and downright appealing dishes that I’ve made.

My initial ideas I found scribbled in a notebook read as:

‘Chinese food?  Breakfast?’

Pretty deep, huh?

Generally, when I start my initial brainstorming on recipes, I try to incorporate any themes the film is trying to impart.  But Mulan is about a woman dressing like a man in attempt to save her father from fighting in a war.  And I’ve already done a ‘ hero sandwich‘  a couple times before, so I went back to my original thoughts.  Chinese? Breakfast?  Chinese breakfast?

Chinese breakfast!

I also am looking to try new things whenever I can use the excuse of doing it for this site; and steamed buns are something that I love to eat and have always been scared to try.  I’m of a hearty German stock and I will eat anything that is bordering on a dumpling or a parcel of dough filled with stuff.  There are two or three foods that are featured in the film, the most famous one being the ‘happy’ congee that Mushu makes for Mulan.

Okay, so let’s take the basic flavors of bacon and eggs and make them into a hybrid of a steamed bun and a breakfast sandwich.  In the place of an English muffin or my beloved biscuit (see my post on ‘The Rescuers’), I made my very first steamed bun.  Steamed buns are something that I always loved eating, but had assumed would be too complicated to make.  In reality, like a lot of things I make for this project, it was a bit futzy, but not difficult.  As my grandma would say ‘first, you make a dough’.  Like other dough recipes, you make the dough, let it rise, roll it out and shape it, let it rise again and then cook it.

I made the crispy pork belly in the pressure cooker, something I never knew I always needed.  After cooking it down in a liquid that consisted of soy, vegetable stock, and ginger beer, I placed it under the broiler to get it to crisp up.  This was a technique I’ve never done before, and it turned out pretty well.  The skin got crispy, similar to a cracklin, and retained the succulent quality underneath.

To the pork, I added some awesome white cheddar cheese called ‘Red Dragon’ (geddit? geddit?) that was infused with whole mustard seed.  We found it at a local specialty shop called Looks that was featured on ‘Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives’ recently.  I placed a soft-boiled egg on top, as well as some toasted sesame seeds, some fresh cilantro, and green onions.

And the sauce.

Guys, we need to talk about Duke’s mayo here for a minute.  I’d read about Duke’s being the greatest mayo for a long time and had never really believed it before.  Mayo is mayo.  It’s there to add moisture to something.  There’s not going to be that much of a difference in mayo brands.

I was so wrong.  Duke’s mayo is hands-down the best mayo I’ve ever tasted and the sauce that I made with this mayo I wanted to just drink (a note to my doctor: I didn’t).  I took my amazing mayo and added a drizzle of maple syrup and a dollop of white miso paste.  Miso, for those who don’t know, is fermented soybean paste that is used a lot in Asian cooking.  Sounds delicious, no?  It give a great umami-ness to the dipping sauce that I can’t say enough good things about.  Seriously, I would eat a shoe if it was smothered in this stuff.  I added some toasted sesame seeds to the top to give it one extra pop of flavor.

I know that this recipe seems like it is a bit overwhelming, but it was a delicious combination of flavors and textures.  If you love Asian flavors and/or breakfast flavors, give this recipe a try!  It’s savory and sweet and mysterious as the dark side of the moon!

Pork Belly And Soft Egg Steamed Buns w/ Maple Miso Dipping Sauce

mainstreetbaker55

A breakfast-inspired play on a classic steamed bun

Print Recipe

Prep Time 2 hrs

Cook Time 1 hr

Course Breakfast

Cuisine Asian

Servings 4 people

Equipment

• Pressure Cooker
• Cast Iron Skillet
• Steamer

Ingredients

  

For the Maple Miso Dipping Sauce

• 1 tbsp white miso
• 2 tbsp real maple syrup
• 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1/2 cup mayo

For The Crispy Pork Belly

• 2 lbs pork belly
• 1 can ginger beer
• 2 cups vegetable stock
• 1 red onion finely chopped
• 2 tbsp fresh garlic finely chopped
• 2 tbsp hot Chinese mustard
• 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp iodized salt
• 1/4 cup baking soda

For The 7 Minute Egg

• 6 shell eggs

For The Steamed Buns

• 2 tsp active dry yeast
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp warm water
• 2 1/4 cups all- purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

For The Garnish

• 1 bunch green onions thinly sliced
• 1 bunch fresh cilantro chopped
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds toasted
• 6 oz sharp white cheddar ( I used Red Dragon, which has mustard seed in it) shredded
• 1/4 cup hot sauce

For The Steamed Buns

• 2 tsp active dry yeast
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 8 tbsp warm water
• 2 1/2 cups AP flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tsp kosher salt

Instructions

 

For The Steamed Buns

• In a mixing bowl, add the yeast, sugar, oil, and water and stir until everything is combined. Set aside for 5 minutes, or until the yeast starts to get foamy.
• Sift the dry ingredients to the yeast mixture and mix to form a rough dough, adding 1 to 2 tablespoons more water if the dough is too dry or 1 to 2 tablespoons more flour if it's too dry. Using the dough hook, mix the dough on medium for 5 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and elastic.
• Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and put in a warm place and allow to rise for approximately 45 minutes.
• Cut 12 squares of parchment paper, about 3-4 inches in size. On a clean, floured counter, roll out the dough to about a 1/4 inch thickness. Using a glass or a round cookie cutter, cut out 12 rounds of dough. Place each circle on a square of parchment on a cookie sheet and brush with a small amount of vegetable oil. Fold the dough over, so it's doubled in half. Cover the buns with plastic wrap and allow to rest for another hour. Work on your other ingredients while your dough is resting.
• Once the other ingredients are fully ready, start on steaming the buns. Working in batches, transfer the dough to a steamer basket or strainer over a pan of simmering water. Steam for 8-10 minutes.

For The Crispy Pork Belly

• Flip the fresh pork belly over on the cutting board and score the underside, slicing through the meat in diagonal lines. Flip it back over and cut the slab into thick strips or smaller chunks.
• Except for the baking soda and salt, add the remaining ingredients into the bottom of a pressure cooker. Place the pork belly fat-side-up on top of the liquid. Try to make sure the fatty top is not covered with liquid, since we want it to get crispy.
• Set the cooker for a high-pressure cook for a 20 minute cook with a 15 minute natural release. Always allow the pressure to release naturally, unless you would like to be badly burned.
• Once the cooker has stopped hissing and it's safe to open, carefully unlock the pot and take the pork belly out. Place it on a cutting board and put a sheet of paper towel over the top of the skin, allowing it to absorb any extra liquid that might be there. Let pork cool for a few minutes before removing the paper towel. Poke the top of the pork belly, piercing the fatty layer. Next, brush the top of the pork belly with vegetable oil and then sprinkle with the baking soda and the salt. This will allow the pork belly to really get crispy under the broiler.
• Place the pork on a baking rack on a sheet pan in the oven and bake for 15 minutes at approximately 425-450 degrees, depending on your oven. It will get brown and bubbly on the top.
• While you are resting and cooking the pork belly in the oven, move the remaining liquid from the Insta Pot to a saucepan on the stove top and reduce it down, skimming off excess oil as you do. The onions will get very soft and sweet and make and excellent addition to your sandwich at the end.
• Cut your finished pork belly into smaller pieces and drizzle with the reduced sauce you've made from the pan drippings and onions. Allow to rest until you are ready to build your sandwiches.

For The Soft Egg

• Select a pot that will comfortably hold 6 shelled eggs, preferably several days old to make them easier to peel. Fill the pot 2/3 with water and place on burner. Bring to a boil. Gently lower the eggs into the hot water, using a slotted spoon and being careful not to crack them on the bottom of the pan.
• Set a timer for 6 1/2 minutes and allow the eggs to boil. While the eggs are cooking, prepare a large bowl with water and ice. As soon as the timer goes off, use the same slotted spoon to move the eggs to the ice bath. Submerge the eggs and allow them to sit for 5 minutes. This will stop the eggs from cooking any further.
• Get a bowl and fill it with warm water. Pull one egg out of the water and roll it across the counter to crack the shell. Working under fresh cool running water from the faucet, carefully remove the shell on the soft egg and place it in the warm water. Repeat the process until all of your eggs are peeled and resting in the warm water.

To Assemble The Pork Belly Sandwich

• Slice a freshly steamed bun down the center, following the line that was created by folding the dough. Place some sliced pork belly on the bun, followed by some extra reduced sauce and onions, if desired. Add a sprinkle of cheese. Carefully slice a soft egg in half and add one piece to the sandwich. Add the fresh herbs and a drizzle of the maple miso sauce.