Chinese Hot Dog Buns (2024)

The Chinese Hot Dog Bun. The Asianbakery classic, the food of my childhood, and the inevitable result of years of cultural assimilation.

As I got older, I came to realize how…actually disappointing these Chinese hot dog buns often are. After a long car ride from Chinatown, a cold hot dog of questionable origin wrapped in bread that has gone slightly soggy is notgood eating. Very quickly, the hot dog bun went from beingallI wanted from the Chinese bakery, to the last thing I wanted…replaced by the likes of the much more palatable coconut buns and pineapple buns.

Until this past weekend (when we baked these suckers), I hadn’t had a hot dog bun in over 10 years. After my mother discovered her cousin’s brilliantly easy Asian milk bread recipe, however, it was time to revisit this classic, and really do it up right.

As I see it, there are three main problems with the typical Chinatown hot dog bun:

1. The quality of the hot dog: not good.

2. Thedough is usually wrapped around an uncooked hotdog before baking. The result? A total lack of flavor and a rubbery texture.

3. If they put them out in the morning, and you get there at 3:00 in the afternoon, you’ve already lost.

Alas, the Chinese hot dog bun was long overdue for redemption. In our version, you choose what brand of hot dogs you want to use. We sear thembefore they get wrapped in dough, and it makes all the difference. The result is a what I’ve always wanted a hot dog bun to be.

One can also get pretty creative with this concept, add some ingredients and make some cool hot dog recipes – maybe just some foreshadowing but for now, on with it!

Chinese Hot Dog Buns: Recipe Instructions

In the bowl of a mixer, add the heavy cream, milk, egg, sugar, cake flour, bread flour, yeast, and salt (add it in that order).

Using the dough hook attachment, turn on the mixer to “stir.” Let it go for 15 minutes, occasionally stopping the mixer to push the dough together.

After 15 minutes, the dough is ready for proofing. Cover the bowl with a damp towel and place in a warm spot for 60-90 minutes. The dough will grow to double its original size. Check out our original milk bread recipe for photos of this process!

In the meantime, heat a tablespoon of oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the hot dogs, and allow them to crisp slightly and get some color on them. Set aside on a plate to cool.

After the hour of proofing, put the dough back in the mixer and stir for another 5 minutes to get rid of air bubbles. Dump the dough on a lightly floured surface and cut into 12 equal pieces.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Take each piece of dough and roll it into a 10-12 inch rope, keeping the middle thicker than the ends.

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Roll the rope around a hot dog, tucking in the ends. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet (keep the buns 2-3 inches apart).

Repeat until all the buns are assembled.

Cover the baking sheet with a kitchen towel and allow the buns to rise in a warm place for another hour. The buns should close to double in size.

Brush with egg wash, and bake the buns for 14 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking.

Remove from the oven to a cooling rack and immediately brush your Chinese hot dog buns with sugar water. This last step gives them that signature Chinese bakery shine.

Enjoy these Chinese Hot dog buns!