Gluten-free Pan-fried Veggie Buns

Steam chopped Kabocha squash for 20 minutes. Mash them into puree and set aside. Soak vermicelli noodles in a bowl of water for 15 minutes until soft.

In a frying pan heat olive oil over medium-high heat, sauté garlic until fragrant, then add shiitake mushrooms to pan-fry until golden brown. Add carrots & cabbage to fry roughly (we want to keep their crunchiness). Push everything to one side, then add vermicelli noodles & water and bring to a boil. Simmer everything for about a minute, until the noodles have absorbed all the liquid but are still elastic. In a small bowl stir tamari and cornstarch together and stir into the pan. Use chopsticks to lift and mix everything. Season with salt and ground white pepper, then taste and adjust flavors if necessary.

Turn off the heat and stir in chives/scallions and sesame oil. Transfer to a bowl. Add squash puree and solid coconut oil (to create bun juice!) and mix to combine. Chill for 30 minutes before use.

Whisk flours & starch, xanthan gum, baking powder, sugar and yeast together. Pour in 1/3 of the soy milk and olive oil and mix with a stand mixer with the dough hook over medium speed. When everything starts to combine, pour in another 1/3 soy milk while mixing. Observe the texture of the mixture to adjust the amount of soy milk you add, as the consistency of soy milk may vary from brand to brand. Add the remaining or your adjusted amount of soy milk to the mixture. A dough should be formed and the texture should be a bit sticky but not wet. Continue to knead for 5 minutes more. You can choose to mix and knead by hand.

Wrap the dough and let it rest for 5 minutes in the refrigerator.

Dust a working surface with white rice flour and knead the dough for around 2 to 3 minutes with your hands. Roll the dough into a long strip and divide them evenly into 16 portions (25 to 26 grams each), then roll each into a small ball. Cover them with a damp towel while working.

Flatten a dough ball with your palm and roll it into an around 4-inch round disk with a rolling pin. Roll the edges thinner.

Add 2 teaspoons filling to the centre, then fold the bun up by gathering all sides. Repeat until all are assembled.

Proof the buns under room temperature until they become double in size, for about 15 to 20 minutes.

Before turning on the heat, put buns on a 11-inch non-stick frying pan and pour oil all over the pan to cover the bottom of all buns. Now turn on medium-high heat and cook until the bottom becomes slightly golden.

Pour water into the pan (be careful of the splashing oil!). Place a lid over and simmer until the buns have absorbed all water and the top becomes soft. Pour more water and simmer for longer if the buns are still not soft enough. Turn off the heat and sprinkle white sesame & scallions over the top. Serve warm with balsamic vinegar or chilli oil!