Its a wrap!

A couple of days back, I asked Mr DC what he would like me to make. He requested for the sausage buns, something which I made before. He told me that he loved the sweet bun dough and the fat sausages I used I think that buns with fillings are more of an asian style bread. In Singapore, they are hugely popular and can have all sorts of fillings, from savoury to sweet. I guess this is our answer to a sandwich. The dough we use have a slightly sweet aftertaste, with a very soft texture. Sausage (or hotdog) buns are probably the all time classic. The good thing about making them at home is that you can use better quality sausages so you can get a much more statisfying mix of meat and bread. Yum.

The last time I made them, I did not really know how to wrap the dough around the sausages and ended up with fat buns that had far more dough than sausage. Not satisfied with how they turned out, I went out to different bakeries and spied on chefs while they were making buns. There are quite a few bakeries with just a pane of clear glass separating the front shop and the kitchen. I stood at the window and studied how they wrap their buns. Then, I decided to try out this new sweet bun dough recipe I found. I also carefully weighed out each serving of dough so as to get a good mix of bun and meat in every bite. I am pleased to say that the end result was exactly what I wanted it to be! I got 17 60g buns out of this recipe, so I filled the rest of my buns with chocolate, almonds and apricots. Fill these buns with tuna, luncheon meat, egg salad, or even mashed sweet potato and yam. The possibilities are endless.

BASIC SWEET BUN DOUGH (Adapted from Alex Goh’s World of Bread)
(A)
480 g bread flour, sifted
120 g plain flour, sifted
110 g sugar
10 g salt
20 g milk powder, sifted
4 tsp instant yeast

(B)
1 medium egg
300 ml cold water

(C)
60 g butter, melted

Fillings :

10 chicken sausages

Topping n Egg wash :

sesame seeds, lightly toast

1 yolk mix with 2 tbsp water

1. Combine (A)  till well blended. With a mixer fixed with dough hook, add (B)  and knead till dough is formed.

2. Add (C) and continue to knead for about 7 to 10 minutes. Your dough should be sticky and elastic.

3. Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl and coat to prevent from sticking. Cover the bowl with cling wrap and let it proof for about an hour, or until it doubles in size.

4. Press the dough lightly. It should has a slight indentation but the dough should not sink completely.

5. Divide the dough into 10 pieces of 60g each. Set them aside to relax for 10 minutes.

6. Roll the dough into a long strip and wrap it round the sausage. Place it on a greased tray. Repeat with the remaining dough. Place the buns about 2 inches apart.

7. Cover and let them proof for 40 minutes to 1 hour, or until double its size.

8. Glaze the buns with egg wash and sprinkle on the poppy seeds. Baked in a preheated oven for 15 – 20 minutes, till the buns are lightly browned.