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Bao making: Mix water and sugar in a bowl. Add the dry yeast, mix and let rest 10 minutes.
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Add flour, yogurt and olive oil and knead, medium speed, a couple of minutes. You should get an elastic, not sticky, bready dough.
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Cover it with a cloth and let rise a couple of hours.
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Take the dough to a working surface (you shouldn’t need flour on it) and work it with your hands into a rectangle. Fold it in the middle and roll it out again. You may use a rolling pin or your hands: you don’t need regular shapes. Repeat a couple of times.
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Cut the dough in 6-8 equal pieces. Display them over the working surface, cover them with a cloth, and let them rest at least 20 minutes.
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Model each piece, with your hands, into an irregular sphere and press it down into an oval.
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Cut out 6-8 squares of parchment paper (5 inches – 12 cm), plus 6-8 smaller squares (3 inches – 7 cm).
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Fold each dough oval over itself with the smaller paper square in the middle, for edges to stay separated. Place it over the bigger paper square. Cover them with the cloth and let them rise one more hour.
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Finally, display baos (with parchment paper and all) over a steamer. Place a few cups of water in a large pot, add the steamer, cover and cook buns 7 minutes. Uncover for a few seconds to lower temperature, cover and cook 3 more minutes. I had to cook 2 baos at the time, my steamer is quite small.
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Chicken making: In a bowl, mix cashew milk, sugar, salt, sesame oil, shallot and cloves.
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Place chicken thighs in a Dutch oven or casserole. Add the milk mixture and marinate 2 hours-overnight.
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Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
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Bake the chicken 1 hour, covered.
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Remove chicken thighs. When cold enough, tear out the meat.
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Meanwhile strain the marinating, add the cornstarch and mix well. Before serving, bring it to a boil and simmer 3-5 minutes, until it thickens.
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Serve the bao buns filled with the chicken meat, sauerkrauts and the chicken gravy. And, well, dip them in the gravy too.