Duck Bao

Duck bao buns, or to use correct terminology, duck bao (bao essentially translates to bun, so no need to say it twice) are cute little Chinese steamed buns loaded up with juicy duck breast, flavoured with Chinese five spice and veg. They’re just as fun to make as they are to eat, and talk about loaded with flavour.

I make my bao from scratch, and even if you haven’t worked with yeasted dough before, they’re very simple to make. Much easier than they look.

The filling here is kept simple too. The duck is dusted with five spice first, then sauteed. Don’t be intimidated by cooking duck (as I once was), it’s actually really easy to do and easy to get that crisp, golden skin.

The remaining fillings are just cabbage, coriander (cilantro), chilli and a 2 ingredient hoisin mayo. I add my own homemade sweet and spicy dukkah (recipe further down in the post) or you can just scatter over some sesame seeds and/or crushed peanuts.

Ingredients you’ll need

These duck steamed buns are a recreation of some chicken-filled ones that I had at a restaurant. They were mind-blowingly tasty for such minimal fillings and aside from the swap from chicken to duck, these taste exactly the same. I chose duck, firstly because I thought it could easily be changed up to peking duck flavour too and also because I’ve been wanting to master the art of pan-frying duck breast perfectly.

Jump to the recipe for full ingredients and instructions.

• Bao: You may know them as bao buns, though the “buns” part is technically superfluous. These are a yeasted Chinese steamed bun and this folded style, almost like a taco, is known as a lotus bun. You can use my homemade bao buns recipe or buy them from the freezer section in supermarkets / grocery stores.
• Duck breast: Boneless duck breast is all you need. This recipe is written for skin-on duck breast, though you could certainly make it without the skin too.
• Chinese five spice powder: Chinese five spice is a spice blend of 5 (or sometimes more) dried spices – generally cinnamon, star anise, cloves, fennel and Szechuan pepper. It’s loaded with flavour and along with salt, is all you need to season the duck breast.
• Kewpie mayonnaise: Kewpie mayonnaise is a Japanese mayonnaise that has a real savoury flavour. You can swap for a regular mayonnaise though.
• Hoisin sauce: Hoisin sauce is what’s used when making peking duck pancakes and it’s delicious. Sweet and savoury all at once.
• Vegetables: These are kept simple just using some red cabbage, fresh coriander (fresh cilantro) and slices of red chili. You can also add carrot or use Chinese cabbage / Napa cabbage instead.

How to make bao buns (step-by-step)

Starting your duck bao with homemade bao buns is my preferred option but, if you don’t want to try your hand at creating them from scratch, most supermarkets stock bao in their freezer section.

The steps to cook the duck are actually really simple and I found the most amazing fool-proof tutorial for cooking duck over at hunt gather cook.

Jump to the recipe for full ingredients and instructions.

Cook the duck

1. Prepare the duck: Start by taking the duck out of the fridge about 20-30 minutes prior to cooking. This will help it cook more evenly. Use a sharp knife to score the skin in a criss-cross pattern (trying not to cut through to the meat) (photo 1). Oil and salt the duck and rub all over, then rub the five spice seasoning just into the meat side (photo 2). The duck cooks skin-side-down for a full 8 minutes and it can burn the five spice in this time so I find it best just to spice the meat side.  

3. Rest the duck: Like any meat, resting it helps the juices inside redistribute keeping it juicy all the way through. I let them sit for about 3-5 minutes before slicing (photo 6).

Steam the buns

While the duck is cooking, you can steam the buns.

1. Just bring an inch of water to a simmer in a large saucepan or wok.
2. Add the steamer basket, making sure it’s high enough that the water doesn’t come up through the holes.
3. Place your buns on small pieces of baking paper into the steaming basket and cover them.
4. Steam for 8 minutes.

Assemble the duck bao

1. Make the sauce: The sauce is literally just a combination of Kewpie mayonnaise and hoisin sauce. Just mix that together in a small bowl.
2. Add the fillings: Now add the finely sliced cabbage and coriander (cilantro) to the buns, top with a couple of slices of duck, then drizzle over that sauce.
3. Finish them off by topping with slices of chilli and some peanuts or sesame seeds.

My Asian style sweet and spicy dukkah

You can finish these off with a simple scattering of sesame seeds or crushed peanuts, however, I make a sweet and spicy dukkah that I just love. It only takes 3 minutes to make and it’s delicious.

Roughly chop ⅓ of a cup of salted toasted peanuts or crush them up roughly in a mortar and pestle. Now just stir in 1 teaspoon of brown sugar, 1 teaspoon of Korean chilli flakes, 2 teaspoons of sesame seeds and a pinch each of sea salt flakes and Chinese five spice. Done!

Korean chilli flakes are much milder than dried chilli flakes (red pepper flakes) so go easy if substituting.

Fillings for bao

Much like a taco, bao lend themselves well to multiple types of fillings. Instead of duck buns, try anything from slow cooked pork to shredded chicken or crispy chicken – they all work well meat-wise. You could even use roasted duck for these ones. Then add any vegetables you like.

Yield and storage

Two duck breasts stretch quite far when it comes to these duck bao – they will work for 8-10 bao.

Leftover cooked duck breast should be stored in the refrigerator, in an airtight container or covered well with plastic wrap for up to 3 days.

More recipes you’ll love

• Homemade bao buns
• Turkey san choy bow
• Chinese prawn fried rice
• Spring rolls
• Thai fish cakes
• Beef teriyaki bowls