Ingredients

• 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch, whisked with 1 tablespoon cold water
• Pinch ground white pepper
• 4 to 6 large bao buns, steamed, or soft sandwich buns
• Spicy Shrimp and Ground Beef Buns:
• 1 ounce dried shrimp
• 5 or 6 small dried Chinese (shiitake) mushrooms
• 1 tablespoon peanut oil
• 1 ounce smoked bacon or pancetta, finely diced
• 1 shallot, smashed and finely diced
• 8 ounces ground beef
• 4 ounces shredded bamboo shoots, drained and diced
• 1 jalapeno, stemmed and finely diced
• 1 green pepper, seeded and diced
• 1 to 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Shaoshing rice wine
• 6 pickled cornichons, finely sliced, for serving
• Chili oil, optional, for serving
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro, for serving
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped peanuts mixed with 2 tablespoons sugar, optional, for serving

Instructions

1. For the spicy shrimp and ground beef buns: Combine the shrimp and dried mushrooms in a bowl and pour 1 cup boiling water over to cover. Let stand at least 10 minutes, and then drain, reserving the liquid, and finely chop.
2. Heat a wok over medium-high heat and add the peanut oil. Add the shrimp, mushrooms, bacon and shallots and fry, stirring constantly, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the ground beef, breaking the meat up with a spatula and cooking until no longer pink, 3 to 4 minutes.
3. Add the bamboo shoots, jalapenos and green peppers and toss 1 to 2 minutes. Drizzle in about 1/2 cup of the mushroom soaking liquid along with the light soy sauce, dark soy sauce and rice wine and bring to a simmer. Stir in the cornstarch slurry and cook until thickened and glossy, about 1 minute. Season with the white pepper.
4. To serve, spoon about 1/2 cup of the mixture (depending on the bun size) onto each bun and garnish with the cornichons, a drizzle of chili oil, if using, and the cilantro. Sprinkle the peanuts with sugar, if using, over the top of each bao and serve immediately.