Siopao is one of my favorite Filipino snacks. It is so easy to make with a vegan filling that is tasty and bursting with delicious flavors! It’s very fluffy, soft dough that you and your family will love!

What is Siopao?

The word siopao literally means “steamed buns” made of flour and ground meat filling. It was made famous by the Chinese Ma Mon Luk when he went to the Philippines in the year 1918. He also became the founder of siomai, siopao and mami business in the Philippines.

Indeed it became and it still is a favorite snack of Filipinos. It is a delicious snack that fits your budget.

Tips on How to Make Vegan Siopao:

• Do not overmix the dough as it will cause your final product of siopao to be hard. Just make sure that all ingredients are well-incorporated and no flour lumps are there.
• Give enough time for your dough to rise. It helps make the dough texture soft, flaky, it doubles the size of the dough to give you more yield.

How to Make Vegan Siopao:

Listed below are all the ingredients you will need:

Ingredients for the dough:

• warm soy milk (plant-based milk)
• yeast
• sugar
• all-purpose flour
• baking powder
• soy milk

Siopao Filling:

• TVP
• water
• dried shitake mushrooms
• water
• vegetable oil
• garlic, minced
• onion, minced
• chayote, diced
• vegetarian oyster sauce
• soy sauce
• white pepper
• rock salt
• brown sugar
• chives
• water
• cornstarch

For the Dough:

In a small bowl, add ⅓ cup soy milk, yeast, sugar, and mix well.  Set aside the yeast mixture for 10 minutes or until the mixture is foamy:

In a mixing bowl, add flour, baking powder, sugar, and mix until well combined.  Then add yeast mixture and mix very well:

Then add the remaining soy milk:

Mix together until it forms a dough:

Continue to mix and knead until the dough is smooth and no longer sticky. If you have a mixer, mix it for about 5 minutes:

Cover with a plastic wamp or a damp towel and allow the dough to rise by setting it aside for at least an hour or until it doubles in size:

Punch and knead the dough for about 5 minutes and on a clean work surface, form dough into a log and cut into 8 equal slices.  

Divide the dough into pieces, which for this recipe, I did eight of them:

Flatten each of the dough using a rolling pin until the dough forms into a circle:

For the Filling:

Soak TVP in 1 ½ cups of water for 15 minutes, then drain water. In another bowl, soak dried mushrooms for 15-20 minutes or until mushrooms are soft. Drain water and dice mushrooms:

In a frying pan over medium heat, heat oil. Add onions and garlic and cook until translucent:

Add diced shitake mushrooms and TVP until colors it’s golden brown:

Add chayote and continue to saute:

Add 1 cup of water and allow it to simmer:

Then add soy sauce:

Add oyster sauce and continue to mix until well combined:

Add salt:

Add onion powder and sugar:

Add in chives:

Then add cornstarch mixture and mix well:

The siopao filling will be creamy:

To Assemble Siopao Buns: 

Place1- 2 tablespoons of the meat filling in the center:

Gather the edges of the dough around the filling:

Gently twist to fully secure the filling:

Place bun on a piece of parchment or wax paper. When I did this, I used banana leaves which I cut into squares. Repeat with remaining dough and filling. Place the siopao in a steamer and steam for 15 minutes or until it turns white and fluffy.

Serve hot and enjoy!

Frequently Asked Questions for Vegan Siopao:

Q: How many siopaos does this recipe make?

A: This recipe yields eight to ten pieces of siopao, depending on how big your dough is.

Q: What food goes well with siopao?

A: It’s so good to eat this with smoothies like Guyabano, Avocado, and Jackfruit smoothies.

Q: Can I use other kinds of oil instead of vegetable oil?

A: Yes, I believe you can use coconut or palm oil.

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More recipes to try!

• Vegan Cansi
• Guyabano Smoothie
• Filipino Avocado Smoothie
• Jackfruit Smoothie
• Monkey Bread
• Mini Phyllo Tarts

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