HaoChi 好吃Homestyle Cornmeal Buns (Wo Tou)
玉米面窝头
Homestyle Cornmeal Buns (Wo Tou) — a Northern Chinese Snack Chinese recipe, ready in about 45 minutes. Step-by-step instructions with photos.
Total time: 45 min Yield: 6 servings Cuisine: Northern Chinese Snack Category: Chinese home cooking Comfort FoodQuick & EasyVegetarian
Ingredients
- coarse yellow cornmeal
- all-purpose flour
- warm water
- fine sea salt
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine cornmeal, all-purpose flour, and salt. Stir with chopsticks until evenly distributed.
- Gradually pour in warm water while stirring with chopsticks. When shaggy dough forms, switch to hands and knead gently for 2 minutes until cohesive but still slightly rough. (Dough holds together when squeezed but shows faint cracks on surface.)
- Cover bowl with damp cloth and let rest at room temperature (22–25°C) for 20 minutes — this relaxes gluten and improves shaping.
- Wet your palms lightly. Pinch off 80 g portions, roll into balls, then press thumb deeply into center to form a conical hollow. Gently pinch base to taper into a classic ‘bird’s nest’ shape.
- Place shaped buns in a bamboo steamer lined with parchment or cabbage leaves. Steam over vigorously boiling water for 25 minutes on medium-high heat.
