Double Recipe Review: Steamed Buns & Asian Chicken

If you have ever been to a Chinese restaurant for dim sum, you have probably had a steamed bun.   Light as air, fluffy but with a hint of chew.  I think steamed buns are magical.  They have great texture, but don’t overshadow what you put in them.  Sometimes I like to try to make really complicated things that I have no experience with, so off I went, with the magic of the internet, to figure out how to make them.  After looking at several blogs, I realized that making them was going to be no simple task, and I would need some specialized ingredients.


While doing this search, I stumbled upon a blog with the cheaters way of making steamed buns.  I could not believe my eyes.  Could it really be that easy?  When I told Scott, he was extremely skeptical.  I had seen a recipe on the Skinny Taste blog for an Asian chicken that sounded good, and that I felt I could adapt to make a filling for the steamed buns.

Beautiful, easy steamed buns!

So, what is the secret to the steamed buns, you ask? Biscuit dough.  Like, Pillsbury refrigerated biscuit dough.   I’ll give that a minute to sink in.

It works.  I swear it does!  You should do this right now. 

I found out about this on the website steamykitchen.com, and I just want to find that writer and hug her!  It really was as simple as she said.  You just separate the biscuits, flatten them out a little, fold them in half and steam on parchment paper for about 12 minutes.  I haven’t tried this yet with light biscuits, but if I do I will let you know.  Now, the points for this will vary depending on what biscuit dough you buy, so check the package.  Steamykitchen.com recommends the buttermilk kind, and I bought a different one that worked fine.

For a filling for the steamed buns, I adapted the Skinny Taste Asian Glazed Drumstick recipe.  She used breasts that are cut up, but I used whole skinless thighs that I then shredded.  The sauce is main part of this recipe that is important because you can use it on any cut of chicken that you like.  I found that I had to pull the chicken out of the sauce and boil it with about a half a tablespoon of arrow root to turn it into the thick glaze that I was looking for.   Otherwise, the taste was spot on and I highly recommend this recipe. 

Here is the original recipe:

Asian Glazed Drumsticks
Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes 
Servings: 4 • Serving Size: 2 drumsticks • Old Points: 5 pts • Points+: 5 pts
Calories: 213 • Fat: 4.7 g • Protein: 27.5 g • Carb: 12.7 g • Fiber: 0.4 g  

Asian Glazed Drumsticks (or thighs in this case)
with quickly pickled zucchini on the side

• 8 medium chicken drumsticks, skin removed
• olive oil spray (I used my Misto)
• 1 cup water
• 1 tbsp Sriracha hot sauce (more or less to taste)
• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 4 tsp agave nectar (or sugar)
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 tsp ginger, grated
• 2 tbsp chives or scallions, chopped
• 1 tsp sesame seeds

In a heavy large saucepan, brown chicken on high for 3-4 minutes with a little spray oil. Add water, balsamic, soy sauce, agave, garlic, ginger, hot sauce and cook on high until liquid comes to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered for about 20 minutes. Remove cover and bring heat to high, allowing sauce to reduce down, about 8-10 minutes, until it becomes a thick glaze, turning chicken occasionally. (Keep an eye on glaze, you don't want it to burn when it start becoming thick) Transfer chicken to a platter and pour glaze on top. Top with chives and sesame seeds and serve.