Brussels Sprouts with Lap Cheong Bao

Cook Time 2 hours

Servings 8

Ingredients

Steamed Chinese Buns

1 × 7g sachet dried instant yeast 
2 ¼ tbsp caster sugar  
265g (1 ¾ cups) plain flour, plus extra for dusting 
½ tsp salt 
1 tbsp vegetable oil  
½ tsp baking powder

Brussels Sprouts
1kg Brussels sprouts, quartered 

4 lap cheong sausages, thinly sliced diagonally
2 celery stalks, finely chopped 
1 bunch coriander, leaves picked, stalks and roots cleaned and finely chopped   
50g butter 
70g caster sugar  
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 long green chillies, thinly sliced 
Juice and zest of 2 limes 
½ cup roasted peanuts, roughly chopped

Serve
Pork Crackling
Kewpie Lime Mayo

Method

Buns
Combine the yeast, 1 tsp of the sugar and 185ml (¾ cup) lukewarm water in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook and set aside for 5 minutes or until the yeast has activated and become foamy. Add the flour, salt, oil and remaining sugar and knead on medium speed for 5-8 minutes or until the dough is smooth and elastic and starts to come away from the side of the bowl. Add a little extra flour if the dough is still sticky.

Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel and place in a warm, draught-free place for 1-1½ hours or until the dough triples in size. Punch down the dough and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Sprinkle over the baking powder and knead for 5 minutes or until well combined.   

Shape the dough into a 5cm thick log, then cut crossways into 8-10 3cm-wide buns. Place each bun on a small rectangle of baking paper. Cover with a tea towel and set aside for a further 15 minutes to rise and double in size. 

In batches place the buns in a steamer over a saucepan of simmering water and steam for 8–10 minutes  or until soft and fluffy.  

Brussels Sprouts
Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan-forced.  
Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the lap cheong, celery, coriander roots and stalks and fry for 3 minutes to colour. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the lap cheong, celery and coriander bits to a large bowl and set aside, leaving any rendered fat behind. 

Melt the butter in the frying pan, then add the sprouts. Cook, tossing, for 1 minute or until well coated in the butter. Transfer the sprouts to a large baking tray and spread them out in a single layer. Roast for 20–25 minutes or until the sprouts are soft in the centre but a little burnt at the edges.  

Wipe out the frying pan with paper towel. Make a caramel by stirring the caster sugar and fish sauce in the frying pan over medium heat. Jiggle the pan so the fish sauce dissolves the sugar evenly as it heats. Let it bubble away for 2 minutes or until a sticky caramel starts to form. Add the green chilli and peanuts and bubble away for 2 minutes, then remove from the heat. 

Add the caramel, lime zest and juice to the roasted sprouts, then add to the lap cheong mixture and toss to combine. Serve the Brussels sprouts in steamed bao buns with pork crackling, kewpie lime mayo and coriander leaves.