Steamed Buns with Teriyaki Turkey

Kiddo prefers home lunch over school cafeteria food. His favorite is onigiri or japanese rice balls. Sushi and steamed buns with various fillings comes a close second and third.

After Thanksgiving, how do I deal with leftover turkey? I make Steamed Buns with Teriyaki Turkey! It's my Japanese spin on Turkey leftovers for the 5 Star Makeover--Turkey Leftovers.

To my wonderful friends, Mindy and Michelle W., maybe you'll like this easy recipe. Make it with turkey, chicken or beef teriyaki filling.

Bun Dough
1 -1/4 cup flour
2 tsp white sugar
2 tsp baking powder
5 Tbsp + 1 tsp warm milk

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar and baking powder. Slowly pour warm milk while stirring. Knead dough until it is soft and pliable (around 5 minutes). Be careful not to overhandle the dough. Cover dough with plastic wrap and set aside while preparing the teriyaki turkey filling. Double the dough recipe if you are making more than 8 dimsum sized buns.

Teriyaki Turkey Filling
1 cup shredded leftover turkey
1 Tbsp rice wine
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp mirin
1-1/2 Tbsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp grated ginger
1/2 tsp cornstarch

In a small saucepan, mix rice wine, soy sauce, mirin, brown sugar, grated ginger and cornstarch. Adjust the sweetness of the filling by adding more or less sugar. Let the mixture simmer and thicken. Stir in leftover turkey, remove from the heat and cool. You will have more filling than needed for 8 buns.


Assembly:
Divide the dough into 8 balls. Flatten dough balls and place about a teaspoonful of filling in the center. Gather the dough to the top to seal the filling in. Make sure the filling does not leak out. Place filled buns seam side down in a steamer. Steam over high heat for 15-20 minutes. Yum!