Peanut Brittle Ice Cream Butter Bao

Method

1. Line a tray with baking paper. Spread the sugar evenly in a 18 cm pan and melt it on medium-low heat for 5 min. Don't stir; swirl the pan gently, and when it turns light amber, add the peanuts and salt, stir quickly and spread thinly on the paper. Melted sugar is hotter than 150 °C and burns badly, so never taste it with your finger.

   Add in this stepSugar (for the brittle) 40 gRoasted unsalted peanuts 40 gFlaky salt 1 pinch

   medium-low heat

2. Leave the brittle to cool at room temperature for 15 min until hard as glass, then put it in a zip bag and bash it with a rolling pin into coarse crumbs.

3. Steam the frozen buns on baking paper in a 24 cm · 1× steamer over boiling water on medium-high heat for 8 min. They need to be soft all the way through so the outside doesn't burn when you fry them.

   Add in this stepFrozen folded bao buns 4

   medium-high heat

4. Melt the butter in a 24 cm · 1× pan on medium heat until foaming, add the steamed buns, still folded, and fry for 2 min, turning, until golden on both sides. Lower the heat slightly if the butter starts to brown too fast.

   Add in this stepUnsalted butter 20 g

   medium heat

5. Mix the sugar and cinnamon on a plate and roll the hot buns in it to coat evenly. They must be hot so the sugar sticks to the butter.

   Add in this stepSugar (for cinnamon sugar) 2 tbspGround cinnamon ½ tsp

6. Gently open each bun, fill with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, scatter plenty of brittle crumbs over, drizzle with a little honey and add a cilantro leaf or two if you like. Eat at once, before the ice cream melts.

   Add in this stepVanilla ice cream 200 mlHoney 2 tspCilantro leaves (optional) 2 g