Name: Sheng Jian Mantou Recipe {Shanghai Pan Fried Pork Buns}
Prep time: 1 h
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 495 g all-purpose flour, about 3 cups, organic unbleached preferred; 270 g water, see notes; 1 tsp active dry yeast; 12 g cane sugar, organic unrefined preferred; 1/8 tsp Himalayan pink salt; 25 g avocado oil; 1 lb ground pork, home-ground preferred; 2 tbsp Shaoxing wine; 1 tbsp natural soy sauce, or dark soy sauce; 2 tbsp light soy sauce; 2 tsp Zhenjiang vinegar; 1 tbsp sweet fermented bean paste {Tian Mian Jiang}; 1 egg, cage-free or organic; 1 tbsp arrowroot flour; 1 tsp cane sugar, organic unrefined preferred; 1/4 tsp star anise powder; 1/2 tsp coriander seeds powder, freshly ground preferred; 1/2 tsp ginger powder; 2 stalks of green onions, finely chopped; 2 tbsp avocado oil, see notes; 1 tbsp roasted sesame seeds, either black or white; 5 cups of water, about; 1 stalks of green onions for garnishing, finely chopped, optional

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Sheng Jian Mantou {生煎馒头} or short for Sheng Jian, also known as pan-fried pork buns, is a traditional Huai Yang style food native to China’s Yangtze River Delta area. They are especially popular in cities such as Shanghai and Suzhou.

Sheng Jian features dumpling size round buns filled with tasty pork fillings. “Sheng” means “raw” in Chinese, “Jian” means “pan fry”. People pan-fry these pork round buns first and then finish up cooking by steaming. As a result, Sheng Jian Mantou has a crispy bottom but soft top.

Authentic style Sheng Jian Mantou has a firm bite texture wrapper and juicy pork filling that has a hint of sweetness.

Sheng Jian Mantou {Easy Authentic Way} — Sheng Jian {Easy Authentic Way}

The iconic firm bite texture comes from a semi-leavened dough that provides a satisfying firm bite, but still enough sponginess. Huai Yang style absolutely adores dough that offers a firm bite texture. It gives you this refreshing feel and taste. The classic Yang Chun noodle is another example of this.

Pork filling with a hint of sweetness is very typical of Huai Yang style. Shanghai Soup Dumplings and Pork Sweet Rice Flour Dumplings are just a couple of examples.

Growing up in Suzhou, Sheng Jian is one of my favorite breakfast items.

How to make Sheng Jian Mantou Easy Authentic Way from scratch?

Make the Optimal Dough:

Make a smooth dough using the ingredients listed under “For the Dough”. Read here for a detailed step-by-step on how to make a yeast dough for buns. Note we use less active yeast for a semi-leavened dough for Sheng Jian.

Cover the mixing bowl with a damp kitchen towel and let it rest for about 30 minutes at room temperature. You can use the time to do prep work including get the pork filling ready.

This means you can make the wrapper as soon as you have completed the prep work. Do not let the dough leaven for longer than that. The dough will continue to leaven as we make wrappers and wrap the buns, both take time.

Make the Perfect Pork Filling:

See here for a step-by-step tutorial on how to make tasty pork filling for buns and dumplings.

To adapt to Sheng Jian’s authenticity, use 2 tsp sugar for every pound of pork and add 2 tbsp Sweet Fermented Bean Paste {Tian Mian Jiang 甜面酱}. This helps the extra savory taste with a hint of sweetness, exactly what we want for Sheng Jian.

Prepare Sheng Jian Wrappers:

We use the same method as the dumpling wrappers and use the same 3.5-inch diameter cookie cutter to cut the dough sheet into rounds. Read here for a detailed step-by-step tutorial.

The differences between making Sheng Jian wrappers vs. dumpling wrappers are: we are using a semi-leavened dough, and we make the wrapper slightly thicker than that of dumplings.

For the KitchenAid Stand Mixer pasta maker attachment, I use setting 2 for Sheng Jian, instead of 4 for Shanghai Soup Dumplings and 3 for Jiao Zi {Northern China Boiled Dumplings}.

Cookie cutter to cut dough sheet into Sheng Jian Wrapper

Sheng Jian Wrapper Using a Pasta Machine and Cookie Cutter — Cookie cutter to cut dough sheet into Sheng Jian Wrapper

Wrap Sheng Jian Mantou:

Authentic Sheng Jian Mantou is dumpling-size round buns. They are similar in size to Shanghai soup dumplings but use thicker semi-leavened dough wrappers instead of thinner regular dough wrappers. They are round instead of pleated buns.

See here for a detailed easy to follow tutorial on how to wrap Sheng Jian easy authentic way.

Cook Sheng Jian Mantou:

Turn the heat to medium and heat a hard-anodized fry-pan for 1 minute, add 2 tsp avocado oil, and spread evenly using a mini rubber spatula.

Add Sheng Jian to the pan, leave a bit of room in between for them to expand during the cooking. Garnish the Sheng Jian top with roasted sesame seeds.

Brush the top of Sheng Jian with a bit of egg white helps the sesame seeds to stick to the buns.

Pan fry for about 3 minutes, or till the bottom of Sheng Jian Mantou turns into golden and crispy.

Pour water into the pan, enough that about one-third of the buns are under the water. For a 12-inch fry-pan, that is about 1 2/3 cup of water; for a 10-inch fry-pan, that is about 1 1/4 cup of water.

Cover the pan with a lid and cook for 10 minutes. Water should disappear by the end of 10 minutes. Remove the lid, garnish the buns with finely chopped green onion. Turn the heat to low and cook for another 5 minutes.

How do you eat pan-fried pork buns {Sheng Jian Mantou}?

Traditionally, Sheng Jian is a popular breakfast item. However, you can enjoy them for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Pair it either with a bowl of porridge or soup. Sheng Jian with a steaming bowl of hot and sour soup is my kind of meal.

Sheng Jian Mantou pair with Hot and Sour Soup

Pan Fried Pork Buns Frequently Asked Questions:

How do you reheat pan fried pork buns?

Freshly cooked Sheng Jian features a crispy bottom and soft top with juicy pork fillings. To reheat them is a bit tricky. However, you can still do it by using a combination of microwave and griddle. Use the microwave to warm up the Shen Jian, especially the pork filling.

First, place them on a microwave-safe plate and cover them with a plate glass cover (to maintain the moisture) and microwave for 30 seconds.

Then heat a cast iron griddle on high heat for 1 minute. Turn the heat to medium and add buns and grill for 3 minutes.

Can I freeze freshly wrapped Sheng Jian?

Yes, you can. Use the similar method as you do with Jiao Zi {dumplings}. Lay them flat on a sheet in the freezer for a few hours or till they are firmed up. After that, place them into your favorite freezer storage container or Ziploc freezer bag.

How do I cook frozen Sheng Jian?

Cook them as frozen, no need to thaw them first and use the similar method as you cook the fresh ones.

Heat a quality non-stick fry-pan on medium-high for 1 minute. Spray 2 tsp cooking oil using a homemade oil sprayer and then lay the frozen buns in the pan. Cook for 3 minutes or till the bottom is crispy and golden.

Add 1 1/4 cup water for a 10-inch pan and 1 2/3 cup of water for a 12-inch pan, cover with a lid, and steam for 10 minutes. The water should disappear by the end of the 10 minutes.

Turn the heat to low, remove the lid, sprinkle with finely chopped spring onions and leave the lid off and cook for another 5 minutes.

Sheng Jian Mantou Recipe {Shanghai Pan Fried Pork Buns}

Yield: 4 servings

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Sheng Jian Mantou {生煎馒头} or short for Sheng Jian, also known as pan-fried pork buns, is a traditional Huai Yang style food native to China’s Yangtze River Delta area including Shanghai and Suzhou.

Ingredients

For the Dough:

495 g all-purpose flour, about 3 cups, organic unbleached preferred
270 g water, see notes
1 tsp active dry yeast
12 g cane sugar, organic unrefined preferred
1/8 tsp Himalayan pink salt
25 g avocado oil

For the Pork Filling:

1 lb ground pork, home-ground preferred
2 tbsp Shaoxing wine
1 tbsp natural soy sauce, or dark soy sauce
2 tbsp light soy sauce
2 tsp Zhenjiang vinegar
1 tbsp sweet fermented bean paste {Tian Mian Jiang}
1 egg, cage-free or organic
1 tbsp arrowroot flour
1 tsp cane sugar, organic unrefined preferred
1/4 tsp star anise powder
1/2 tsp coriander seeds powder, freshly ground preferred
1/2 tsp ginger powder
2 stalks of green onions, finely chopped

For Pan Fry and Steaming:

2 tbsp avocado oil, see notes
1 tbsp roasted sesame seeds, either black or white
5 cups of water, about
1 stalks of green onions for garnishing, finely chopped, optional

Instructions

Make the Doug:

Measure out ingredients using a kitchen scale and measuring spoons. Add the flour, cane sugar, avocado oil, and salt in a large mixing bowl, water in the 2-cup glass measuring cup, and the active dry yeast in a small bowl.
Add some water from the measuring cup, about 1/4 cup, to the active dry yeast bowl, and use a mini whisk or a pair of chopsticks to mix really well until it dissolves and turns into a smooth paste.
Add the yeast paste to the big mixing bowl, and gradually add the rest of the water while kneading, until forms a smooth dough.
Read here for a detailed step-by-step on how to make smooth dough.
Sheng Jian Mantou uses semi-leavened dough. I use less active dry yeast for this dough compared to regular fluffy buns.
Cover the mixing bowl with a damp kitchen towel to let it rise while you prepare the pork filling.

Prep Pork Filling:

Add everything under "For the Pork Filling" in another mixing bowl.
Use bamboo or wooden spatula to break down the pork and fold the pork into the seasoning ingredients. Once everything is loosely mixed, turn the spatula in one direction swiftly, either clock or counter-clockwise, until everything churned into a consistent & cohesive meat paste.

Make the Wrappers either using a rolling pin or a Stand Mixer

For making wrappers using a rolling pin:

Knead & deflate the dough.
Divide the dough into a few equal portions and roll each portion into a long cylinder.
Cut into Sheng Jian portions with each Sheng Jian dough weight about 25 g. Use a kitchen scale to help measure consistent sizes.

For making wrappers use a Stand Mixer's past roller:

Knead & deflate the dough.
Divide the dough into a few equal portions, and organize each portion into long rectangular dough slabs.
Roll the dough slab once gently using the rolling pin to deflate & flatten the dough slab, and then roll through the pasta roller setting 1 and then again setting 2. This corresponds to the second to the thickest setting.
Use a 3.5-inch diameter cookie cutter to cut the dough sheet into rounds.
For the corners and patches left behind after you cut the rounds, you can re-knead them together and re-use them, and turn them into a dough sheet.
Read here for additional information on making bun wrappers at home.

Wrap Sheng Jian Mantou:

Open the left hand (the less dominant hand) with four adjacent fingers to form a flat platform and pace one wrapper onto the platform. Add about 2 tsp filling to the center of the wrapper.
While your left hand (or the less dominant hand) holds the wrapper with the filling in the center, your right-hand pleat and pinch the outer edge of the wrapper, starting from the lower right corner.
Continue to pleat and pinch counterclockwise. When you are almost halfway through the circle, rotate the wrapper on your left hand slightly clockwise so that it is easier for your right hand to continue to pleat the rest of the circle.
Continue to pleat and pinch in a full circle and pinch the tip to seal the bun.
Flip the bun upside down, while the left hand loosely holding the bun, use the right-hand thumb and index finger curbed area to gently while firmly squeeze while turning at the same time to form a dome shape.
One Sheng Jian is wrapped! Continue to finish the rest.

Cook Sheng Jian Mantou:

Lightly brush the top of the buns with egg white and then gently hold the bun upside down and dip it in the sesame seeds pile.
Turn the heat to medium, and heat a 12-inch hard-anodized fry pan for 1 minute. Add 2 tsp avocado oil into the pan, and spread evenly using a mini rubber spatula.
Add buns into the pan, spread them out, and leave a bit of room in between to allow expansion during the cooking.
Let it cook for about 3 minutes, or till the bottom of Sheng Jian Mantou turns golden and crispy.
Pour water into the pan, enough that barely covers the buns. For a 12-inch fry-pan, that is about a little less than 2 cups of water.
Cover the pan with a lid and cook for 10 minutes. Water should disappear by the end of 10 minutes.
Remove the lid, and garnish the buns with finely chopped green onions. Turn the heat to low and cook for additional 5 minutes.
All done. Remove the Shengjian from the pan and repeat to cook the next batch.
Enjoy some tasty soupy Sheng Jian Mantou either by themselves or with soup or porridge!

Notes

For precision purposes, I use the unit of a gram to measure the ingredients required for the dough. The amount of water required depends on the types of flour and the environment's humidity level, especially the latter. I recommend you go extra slow when you have about 20% water left, and knead the dough continuously while gradually adding drops of water. Our goal is to form a smooth dough.
This recipe makes about 60 Sheng Jian Mantou.
You can either freeze Sheng Jian Mantou as raw, just like Jiao Zi or dumplings. Or you can freeze the cooked Sheng Jian. Either way is fine.
I use a spice grinder to grind my own organic coriander seeds powder. A spice grinder is a very handy gadget in the kitchen.
I use a mini food processor to chop fresh herbs into a paste. Cut green onions into coarse pieces and then use a mini food processor to chop/grind them into a paste.
Read here for additional information on how to make tasty pork filling.