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Nikuman Recipe

Nikuman Recipe

Nikuman are Japanese steamed hot buns with ground pork filling.  The white bread part is made from both yeast and baking powder, and it is soft and tender.  The filling is pork with chopped vegetables seasoned with soy sauce and other flavorings such as oyster sauce and ginger.  The name Nikuman comes from the meat (Niku) and the cake (Man from Manjyu).  Even though Manjyu are Japanese sweet cakes, this is a savory Manjyu Japanese people love eating for a snack and light meal.

It originated from Chinese Dim Sum steamed buns, but Nikuman has made its own evolution to fit to Japanese tastes over the last 100 years.  The meat used for Nikuman is usually ground pork, and the seasonings are mainly Soy Sauce but with a hint of Chinese flavor, from oyster sauce and sesame oil.  Nikuman could be eaten at Chinese restaurants in Japan, but they are more often found in hot deli boxes at convenience stores during winter.  It is a great hot snack in the cold season there rather than restaurant food.   Nikuman is the most popular kind, but there are variations of Nikuman, like Curryman and Pizzaman (yes, cheese too inside the bun).

Another good way to find Nikuman in Japan is the freezer section of supermarkets.  Frozen Nikuman is a very convenient food which can be ready in a couple of minutes in a microwave oven.  You can get frozen Nikuman at anytime of the year as opposed to convenience stores’  seasonal treat.  On the other hand, our home-made Nikuman is not really a convenient food. It may be a rather complicated food to make for a beginner cook.  However, taste-wise or if Nikuman are hard to find, it is a very good option.  Watch our video, and you’ll know exactly what to do.  And after a couple of times of practice, you’ll be a master!  After all, it’s not that difficult to make – it’s just Nikuman.

What would be a good condiment for Nikuman?  It is pretty well seasoned, so you don’t really need to put anything on it.  However, if you like, you can use soy sauce and vinegar dipping sauce, or Japanese yellow mustard, or both.

Nikuman Recipe
Print Recipe
5 from 1 vote

Nikuman Recipe

Cuisine: Japanese
Keyword: bread
Servings: 8 pieces

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Ingredients

Bread Dough

Filling

  • 200 g ground pork
  • 2 dried Shiitake mushrooms rehydrated and chopped finely
  • 50 g water chestnuts chopped finely
  • 2 green onions chopped finely
  • 1 tsp ginger root. grated
  • 2 Tbsp Soy Sauce
  • 1 Tbsp Sake
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • 1 tsp oyster sauce
  • 1 Tbsp corn starch
  • 1 Tbsp sesame oil
  • 1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

  • For the bread dough:
  • Dissolve the yeast in the warm water and let it sit stand for 5 minutes.
  • In a separate bowl mix the flour, sugar and baking powder. Mix yeast water and dry ingredients with oil in a stand mixer using a dough hook for 10 minutes or until the dough becomes elastic and smooth.
  • Shape the dough into a ball and put it back in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let it rise for 30-40 minutes until doubled. Deflate the air from the dough and it’s ready to use.
  • For Nikuman:
  • Chop the vegetables finely, and grate the ginger. Mix well all the ingredients, along with prepared vegetables, for the filling in a bowl.
  • Cut the prepared dough into 8 equal pieces and shape each into a ball. Roll a ball into a 5″ (12.5cm) round, and put 1/8 of the meat mixture in the middle of the dough. Pinch the dough to wrap the filling, and shape into a ball (watch our video to see exactly how). Repeat for the remaining dough and filling to make 8 Nikuman balls.
  • Place the Nikuman balls on 3″ (7.5cm) parchment paper squares. Put them in a hot steamer (place them 2″ or 5cm apart), and cook at medium high heat for 10- 12 minutes.

Video


Nikuman Recipe

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  • grace
    January 27, 2016 at 10:17 am

    how many grams would the 2 shiitake mushrooms and 2 green onions be?

  • Kindra
    March 4, 2016 at 3:21 am

    What brand and size steamer do you have? I have been looking to buy one but I can seem to find a good one!

    • Noriko
      March 4, 2016 at 9:03 am

      Kindra,
      I don’t remenber, but mine is nothing special. Stainless ones are easier to clean though.

  • Karen
    March 25, 2016 at 8:49 am

    Making a double batch of these right now, best recipe I’ve found so far and I’ve tried several. This one is the closest to what I remember the ones from China Town tasting like. I did leave out the water chestnuts but kept the rest exactly the same. Thanks for a great recipe.

  • Steph
    July 27, 2016 at 10:17 pm

    Is there any reason this wouldn’t taste good in the basic bread recipe? I’m more comfortable with making that than learning how to make a new style bread.

  • Yusra
    August 5, 2016 at 6:06 pm

    I know that “Niku” means “meat”, so can I make them out of ground beef? For religious reasons, I can’t eat pork, so would it still be Japanese food if I put beef in there?

    • Noriko
      August 19, 2016 at 12:19 pm

      Yusra,
      yes, you could. Any meat you like!

  • julia
    August 27, 2016 at 12:36 pm

    Can you freeze the uncooked buns to steam later?

  • Joanna
    September 8, 2016 at 3:01 am

    if we have access to fresh shiitake, how many grams would you recommend?

  • Shawn B.
    November 18, 2016 at 11:47 am

    Hi there,

    I like to make nikuman, but I’m not sure if I can make a huge batch and freeze somemail of them.

    Are these able to be made and frozen instead of cooking them right away?

  • Susan Marshall
    January 7, 2017 at 6:49 pm

    Just wondering if these can be put in the freezer or not? And can fresh shiitake mushrooms be used?