Pillowy, steamed Asian bao buns filled with beef birria, cheese, onion, and cilantro, served with a side of hot broth (consommé) for dipping or of your choice.

Ingredients 
Filling:
1 ancho chilli
1 chipotle chilli
1 guajillo chilli
2 Supreme Red whole Chilli
½ tsp dried thyme
½ tsp dried oregano
1 Supreme Clove
1 Supreme Bay Leaf
½ tsp Supreme Coarse Black Pepper
½ tsp Supreme Cumin Powder
1 large tomato, cut into quarters
1 medium onion, peeled and cut into quarters
1 tbsp Supreme Ginger Garlic paste
1 cup boiling water
1 tbsp vinegar
½ tsp sugar
¼ cup oil
1 Supreme Cinnamon Stick
600g beef, cut into large chunks
¾ cup water
Salt to taste

1 medium onion, peeled & finely chopped
⅓ cup finely chopped coriander
2 cups grated mozzarella & cheddar
Juice of 1 lime
Oregano
Whisked eggs

Dough:
2 cups warm milk </span
1 tbsp yeast
1 tsp sugar
5 cups bread flour
¼ cup Supreme Milk Powder
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
½ cup oil

Method 

Birria:

Remove stems and seeds (optional) from the chilies.

Heat a pan over high heat. Once heated, add in all the chillies and toast for 2-3 minutes. Add chillies to a bowl and pour over 1 cup of boiling water. Soak chillies for 10 minutes or until softened. In the same pan, cook onions and tomatoes until they are browned.

Add onions and tomatoes to a blender along with soaked chillies (including the water) cloves, thyme, oregano, bay leaves, cumin powder, ginger garlic paste, vinegar, salt to taste, coarse black pepper and sugar. Blend all the ingredients until smooth.

Add the beef to a pot and pour the sauce over the beef along with cinnamon stick, 3/4 cup of water and oil. Mix well and bring the beef to a boil then cover and turn the heat down to low. Transfer to a small/ medium burner and cook for about 1- 1 ½  hours or until beef is tender.

Use a slotted spoon and remove the beef. Once it’s cool enough to touch, shred the beef and pour over some consommé to rehydrate the beef. Cover and cool overnight in the fridge.

Remove and uncover the beef. Add chopped onions, coriander, grated cheese and lime juice. Mix well and set aside.

Dough:

Add warm milk, yeast and sugar to a bowl/ jug. Set aside for 10 minutes to activate the yeast. In another large bowl add bread flour, milk powder, baking powder, salt and oil. Mix well then slowly pour in the milk mixture. Mix until well combined then turn the shaggy dough onto the worktop and knead until a soft dough forms. Place the dough back into the bowl, cover and prove for 1 hour.

Uncover the dough and place it on the worktop. Divide the dough into 4 and roll into the logs. Divide each log into 10 portions and roll into balls. Dust the dough balls with flour and set aside.

Coat the dough ball in flour and roll out into 4 inch circles and add 2 heaped tsps of the birria mixture in the middle. Fold and pinch the edges in to form a ball and place on a lined baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough and birria.

Preheat the oven at 180°c. Brush the buns with whisked eggs and sprinkle some oregano on top. Par bake the buns in the oven for 8/9 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely. At this point you can freeze the buns.

To serve:

Preheat the oven 180°c. Place the buns on a baking sheet and bake (frozen) for 15-17 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Serve warm or at room temperature.