Buuz (Mongolian Steamed Meat Dumplings)
Local name: Бууз
In short: Round steamed dumplings with a pleated top, filled with juicy mutton or beef, onion and garlic. Mongolia's everyday dish and its Tsagaan Sar tradition. It takes about 1 h 25 min in total and makes 6 servings.
- Prep
- 1 h
- Cook
- 25 min
- Resting
- 30 min
- Total
- 1 h 25 min
- Servings
- 6
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Calories
- 450 kcal
Buuz are the dumplings Mongolians cook by the hundreds before Tsagaan Sar, the lunar new year, and by the dozen on any ordinary weekend. The wrapper is plain and thin. The filling is fatty mutton or beef, onion and garlic, loosened with water so a spoonful of broth forms inside as it steams. Eat them hot and by hand, biting a small hole first to sip the juice.
Instructions
- Mix the flour, salt and warm water and knead for 8 minutes into a smooth, firm dough. Cover and rest for 30 minutes.
- Mix the meat with the onion, garlic, salt, pepper and caraway. Add the cold water a little at a time, stirring in one direction until the filling is sticky and loose. Chill.
- Roll the dough about 2 mm thick and cut out circles 12 cm (4 3/4 in) wide. Roll the edges slightly thinner than the middle.
- Put 1 1/2 tablespoons of filling in the center of a circle. Lift the edge and pleat it all around, making about 12 small folds, and pinch the top shut, leaving a tiny opening if you like.
- Brush the tiers of a steamer well with the oil and set the buuz 3 cm (1 in) apart.
- Steam over rapidly boiling water for 20 to 25 minutes until the wrapper is glossy and the filling reaches 71°C (160°F).
- Serve hot straight from the steamer, with pickled vegetables or a dip of vinegar or soy sauce if you like.
Tips
- Fatty mutton is traditional. If your meat is lean, add 2 tablespoons of finely chopped fat or oil, or the buuz turn dry.
- Potato, cabbage or pumpkin are sometimes mixed into the filling to stretch the meat. Dice them very small and salt them lightly.
Questions and answers
Can I freeze buuz?
Yes. Freeze them raw on a tray, then bag them for up to 3 months. Steam from frozen for 30 minutes.
What is the difference between buuz, bansh and khuushuur?
Buuz are larger and steamed with a pleated top. Bansh are smaller and boiled, and khuushuur are flat half-moon pies that are fried.
How do you eat buuz?
By hand, hot. Bite a small hole in the side, sip the broth inside, then eat the rest in two or three bites.
How long does it take to make Buuz (Mongolian Steamed Meat Dumplings)?
About 1 h 25 min in total: 1 h of preparation and 25 min of cooking.
How many calories are in Buuz (Mongolian Steamed Meat Dumplings)?
About 450 kcal per serving, with 22 g of protein, 52 g of carbohydrates and 17 g of fat. These values are estimates.
Nutrition per serving
| Calories | 450 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 22 g |
| Carbohydrates | 52 g |
| Fat | 17 g |
| Fiber | 3 g |
| Sugar | 3 g |
| Sodium | 800 mg |
Estimated values, calculated from the ingredients.
