Haute stuffed buns

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Do you remember yourself as a kid?

Do you remember that nursery rhyme – hot cross buns? Well, that is the first thing that came to my mind when I made these delectable beauties.

My food is simple. It comes from a place in my heart and I infuse it with my soul. Hence, my recipes may look eclectic but trust me, they are anything but. They are easy to make.

The original recipe for these buns calls for lesser stuffing. But, when I bite into a stuffed bun, I want them chock full of stuffing. Hence, I ensured that my recipe has a thin shell and more meat on the inside. Yeah, literally!

There are two steps to this recipe – the bun and the stuffing.

INGREDIENTS FOR THE BUN

• 500 gms all purpose flour (maida)
• ¼  cup Milk (lukewarm)
• ¼  to ½ cup Lukewarm Water , (approximately)
• 25 gms of active dry yeast
• 1 tablespoon Sugar
• Salt , to taste
• 3 tablespoon olive oil/light refined oil (Extra Virgin Olive Oil would be better)
• 1 teaspoon sesame seeds (black/white or you can use pumpkin or melon seeds).
• For brushing the bun – 1 tsp milk + 1 egg. Whisk them together and keep aside.

 INGREDIENTS FOR THE STUFFING

1. ½ kg mined chicken or any other meat
2. 1 large onion, chopped fine
3. 1 large tomato, chopped
4. ½ cup Red, green and yellow bell peppers, chopped
5. 1/4^th cup chopped coriander leaves or parsley
6. 1/4^th cup green onion stalks
7. 5-6 fat cloves of garlic, chopped fine
8. 1 inch piece of ginger, chopped fine.
9. 1 green chili, chopped fine (optional)
10. 2 Tbsp refined oil/olive oil
11. Salt and pepper to taste
12. ½ tsp red chili powder
13. 2 tsp coriander powder
14. 1 tsp cumin powder
15. ½ tsp garam masala (optional)
16. Juice of half a lemon
17. 1 tsp dark soy sauce

METHOD FOR MAKING THE STUFFING

1. Heat oil in a non stick pan and add the ginger and garlic. Mix for half a minute and then add the onions. Stir and let them wilt a bit before adding the chili.
2. Add the bell peppers. Let them wilt down a bit (lose some of their water) and then add the tomato. Cook for about 2 minutes.
3. Add the meat or ingredient of your choice. Mix well. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Add the chili, cumin and coriander powder.  Mix well. Cover the pan with a lid and cook for about 20 minutes or till the meat is tender.
5. Remove the lid and cook on an open flame for a further 5 minutes or till the water evaporates. Add the lemon juice, garam masala and soy sauce. Mix well.
6. Lastly, add the coriander leaves and green onion stalks.
7. Cool completely before using.

Note –  Vegetarians can use soaked soya granules, crumbled cottage cheese/paneer, chopped mushrooms or even chopped mixed veggies. Just make sure that once you have the stuffing of your choice, it needs to be dry/devoid of moisture as it needs to be stuffed inside the dough and then baked.

METHOD FOR MAKING THE BUNS 

1. Heat the 1/4^th cup milk. The temperature is crucial here so ensure that it should be the temperature of the milk you would feed to an infant about 43 deg C or 110 deg F. This is absolutely vital for the yeast to activate. Any hotter and the yeast may not activate.
2. To this warm milk, add the sugar. Mix well so that it dissolves completely.
3. Next, add the yeast. Mix it well (vigorous mixing till the yeast granules dissolve somewhat and the solution turns a pasty tendency). Cover that and set aside for 10 minutes to allow the yeast to froth and activate. (Note -If the activation does not happen then you should to discard it completely and start the process again).
4. In a large mixing bowl add the flour. Make a dent in the middle and add the water, oil, salt (as per taste) and yeast mixture. Bring it all together into dough. You may need to add more than 1/4^th cup water. Make sure it is lukewarm though.
5. Once the dough comes together, is smooth and does not stick to the side of the bowl, keep it in a warm place to rise for an hour (it will double in size). However, cover the bowl with a cling film. This is essential. This will help trap the heat as the yeast does its work.
6. After an hour, knead the dough further to knock it down (at this point it should have doubled in size). That’s the yeast at work.
7. Pinch off parts of the dough and roll into balls (approx 2 – 2 ½ inches wide).
9. Take one of the balls and flatten it in the palm of your hand. Stuff it with approx 1 ½ tsp of the stuffing and pinch the ends together. Roll this very gently in the palm of your hand to give it the shape of the bun.
10. Set them on a greased baking tray. Take the milk and egg mixture and lightly brush the tops of the buns with it. Sprinkle the sesame seeds on top. Vegetarians can omit the egg and just brush lightly with the milk. (The egg adds a shine). Set them aside till the oven preheats. They will swell up a bit in size on the tray too. That is normal. Just the overzealous yeast at work.

1. Preheat oven to 190 deg C. Once done, bake the buns for about 20-25 minutes (depending on appliance used and size of the buns)

2. Serve hot with ketchup or chutney of your choosing.