The steamed buns made with fermented glutinous rice can also be called "ancient steamed buns". The steamed buns made with it have a faint wine aroma of fermented glutinous rice and a sweet wheat aroma. They have a delicate and soft texture, but still have a chewy texture. If you don’t have yeast or starter at home, you can use fermented glutinous rice instead to experience the different flavors.
If you use fermented glutinous rice to make it, there are two key points that you need to remember, otherwise the noodles will not be successful.
1. Use bulk mash: canned mash like the kind found in supermarkets cannot be used to make steamed buns. The reason is very simple. First, after the mash has been sterilized, the yeast inside has lost its activity and must no longer have the ability to ferment. Secondly, canned glutinous rice has added additives, so it is better to eat less. It ended up tasting too watery and not fragrant.
So, which one to use? Of course, it is best to make it yourself. If not, go to the vegetable market and buy it in bulk, and ask the boss to put some fermented glutinous rice juice in it for later use.
2. The dough should be hard when kneading: add less warm water, and add it in small amounts multiple times. Because kneading the dough with fermented glutinous rice is relatively sticky, if the kneading dough is too soft, the dough will be even softer after proofing, which is difficult to operate and has a high failure rate.
Okay, let’s go into two different versions of the method. The first method, direct fermentation method
Ingredients: 500 grams of flour, 150 grams of fermented glutinous rice (with fermented fermented glutinous rice juice).
Production process:
(1) First pour the flour into a basin, add the fermented glutinous rice and juice and mix well, then add warm water in several batches while stirring with chopsticks. Stop adding water when the dry powder is no longer visible and there are large pieces of floc.
(2) Start kneading the dough. It is normal for it to be a little sticky at the beginning. Knead more and use the inner kneading. When the dough is smooth, seal it with plastic wrap.
(3) Pour the dough into the pot and heat it until it is slightly hot. Turn off the heat, put the dough into the water and cover it. ——(Note that the dough should be placed in a warm place to shorten the proofing time. Also, after putting the dough in, do not turn on the fire, even if it is a low fire, the dough will be steamed).
(4) After 3 hours, take out the dough to see if it has risen. The simplest and most direct method is to stick dry flour with your fingers, and then insert it into the middle of the dough. Rebound means the awakening is successful. Or tear open the dough and see if there is a honeycomb network inside.
Sprinkle dry flour on the cutting board, add the dough, and knead until it reaches the size before fermentation, which will take about 10 minutes. This step is the key, commonly known as secondary kneading, and is not recommended to be skipped. It determines whether the steamed buns have a smooth skin and size. ——(Add a little flour when kneading the dough, commonly known as "choking flour". The advantage is that it does not stick to your hands, and the steamed buns have a chewy texture).
(5) When the dough is kneaded until there are no air holes, divide it into pieces one by one, knead it into a steamed bun embryo, cover it with a layer of cloth, and let it rise for half an hour or 40 minutes. ——(Note, the reason why it takes so long to wake up the noodles is that fermented glutinous rice is not as fermented as yeast powder. The former ferments slower, so you need to be patient to make delicious steamed buns).
(6) After the time is up, prepare for steaming. After the water is boiled, add the steamed bun embryos. Be careful to leave space between them to avoid expansion and sticking together during steaming. Then turn to medium heat and steam for 20 minutes, then turn off the heat and simmer for another 5 minutes. ——(Note that the steaming time depends on the size of the steamed buns and the heat of the stove, so it should be increased or decreased appropriately according to the actual situation). The second method, indirect fermentation method
In fact, the method is similar, but the early steps are different. The following are instructions:
①. First pour in the glutinous rice with juice (300 grams) In the basin, add water (300 grams) and 200 grams of flour, stir evenly, seal with plastic wrap, and ferment for about 4 hours. If the ferment floats, it means it is ready. Or put it in the refrigerator the night before and make it the next morning.
②Put 1000 grams of flour into a basin, pour in the yeast water, and stir with chopsticks until it becomes flocculent. ——(Note: You don’t have to pour all the yeast water, it mainly depends on whether the dough can be mixed into dough)