Eight things we kept explaining, written down properly
These started as answers given across a counter with a queue behind you, which is a bad place to explain anything. They are free, they are not a course, and nothing here is held back for the classes.
2017 to 2026 Eight notes
Newest first
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8 March 2026
What goes in the buns in spring
The counter changes twice a year without an announcement. This is what is coming in and what is going out.
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28 January 2024
Baking at home with one small oven
Home ovens are smaller, draughtier and less honest about temperature than the recipe assumes. All three are workable.
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19 June 2022
Freezing buns, and reheating them properly
A frozen bun reheated well is better than a fresh bun eaten two days late. Most people defrost when they should not.
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14 February 2021
Steaming without a bamboo basket
We steamed buns for a year in a saucepan with a side plate in it. It works, with three adjustments.
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15 August 2020
Kneading by hand, and when to stop
You cannot really over knead a dough by hand. You can very easily stop too early.
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22 September 2019
Folding a bun so it does not open in the oven
A bun that splits has almost always been failed twice: once by the filling, once by the seam.
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4 November 2018
Choosing flour without overthinking it
There are eleven kinds of flour in most supermarkets and only two numbers on the bag that matter.
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12 March 2017
Proofing dough in a cold kitchen
Recipes assume a warm room. Most kitchens are not one, and dough measures time in degrees rather than minutes.
Where to start
If your dough is not rising, read proofing dough in a cold kitchen. If your buns split in the oven, read folding a bun. If you have no steamer, read steaming without a bamboo basket. If you bought the wrong bag of flour, read choosing flour.
And if you would rather have somebody watch your hands while you do it, that is what the classes are for.