Taiwanese Gua Bao (刈包) Recipe: Fluffy Steamed Buns with Braised Pork

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1. 1Step 1: Slice the pork into strips. Roughly 1 inch thick, 3 inches tall and 4 inches in width.
2. 2Step 2: With a tablespoon of oil, fry the pork strips until the color has changed and some fat has been rendered down. About 3 minutes. Remove from pot.
3. 3Step 3: In the same pot that the pork was fried, leaving only 1 tablespoon of oil, smash the garlic, chili and ginger and add to the pot. Fry for 10 seconds then add the sugar until it turns slightly brown and caramelized.
4. 4Step 4: Add the pork back followed by two cups of soy sauce. Be careful the sauce might splatter. Give it a good stir and add enough water to cover the pork.
5. 5Step 5: Add the star anise and bring the pot to a boil then turn the heat down to low. Simmer the pork until soft and tender. 30 minutes to 1 hour. I usually let it simmer until all my other ingredients are ready.
6. 6Step 6: Mix all the dry ingredient and oil in a mixing bowl.
7. 7Step 7: Add 3/4 cup of water and mix with a fork until flaky looking.
8. 8Step 8: Knead with your hands until the dough is soft and smooth. Cover and let it rest for 20 minutes. (while you prep for the toppings!)
9. 9Step 9: After 20 minutes, punch the dough down and divide them into 8 even pieces. Roll each piece out into an oval that's roughly 5 inches in length. Brush the surface with vegetable oil then fold them in half so they don't stick after steaming.
10. 10Step 10: Place the buns 1.5 inches apart from each other on a steam rack with steam liners and steam on high heat, starting from cold water for about 10 minutes or until cooked. Leave a small crack in the pot while steaming and let the buns sit in the steamer for 5 minutes to cool down slightly before opening the lid so the buns don't collapse.
11. 11Step 11: Take the mustard green out of the package, discard the liquid and dice the vegetable. Finely chop the chili.
12. 12Step 12: Heat one tablespoon of vegetable oil, add the minced garlic and chili, fry for 10 seconds until fragrant.
13. 13Step 13: Add the diced pickled mustard green, stir-fry until fragrant about 2 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon sugar and remove from the pan.
14. 14Step 14: Grind 2 cups of raw peanuts into powder.
15. 15Step 15: In a dry pan, over medium heat, roast the peanut powder until slightly golden and fragrant. Remove from the pan and let cool.
16. 16Step 16: After the powder had cooled, add the sugar and mix well.
17. 17Step 17: To assemble the gua bao, simply open the steamed bun and add a slice of pork top it with pickled mustard green, peanut powder, and cilantro!