Char Siu Inspired Mushroom Bao Buns with Fresh Peanut Cucumber Salad

Prepare Ingredients:

Preheat oven to 220°C. Wash the fresh produce. Pat mushrooms clean with a damp paper towel and cut into ½ cm slices. Thinly slice cucumber. Roughly chop peanuts.

Marinate Cucumber:

In a medium bowl, toss cucumber with half of rice vinegar, half the sugar, and a pinch of salt. Set aside to marinate at room temperature. Remove paper backing from bao buns. Place 3 buns at a time on a large plate, cover with cling film and microwave for 1 minute. Repeat with remaining buns.

Make Char Siu Sauce:

In a large bowl, whisk together remaining rice vinegar, remaining sugar, Chinese 5 spice & white pepper, ¾ of the soy sauce, half of hoisin sauce, bean sauce, and the honey.

Marinade Mushrooms:

Add mushrooms to the same bowl and stir to coat. Set aside to marinate at room temperature for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine remaining soy sauce and remaining hoisin sauce and set aside.

Roast Mushrooms:

On a lined baking tray spreading across 2 if required, arrange mushrooms in a single layer. Roast until mushrooms are tender and sauce has caramelized, about 12 minutes.

You Plate It:

Drain cucumber and divide evenly between plates. Top with peanuts. Spread hoisin-soy sauce mixture onto buns using as much or as little as desired. Divide mushrooms evenly between buns and divide between plates to serve. Enjoy!