Chocolate-filled bao

To begin, roll the proved bao dough into a long cylinder, roughly 3–4cm in diameter, then cut the cylinder into 3–4cm thick pieces. Roll each piece of dough in your hands to form a smooth ball

Take a ball of dough and press down firmly with the palm of your hand to form a flattened circle. Select an array of appropriately-sized chocolates to fill your bao with

Run your thumbs and index fingers around the outside of the circle of dough, while pressing down relatively firmly, to make the circle big enough to place a chocolate in the middle

Place the chocolates in the centre of your baos, then hold the dough lightly in the cupped fingertips of your non-dominant hand. Using the thumb and index finger of your dominant hand, start to bring the sides of the dough up around the sides of the chocolate until you are able to close the filled bao entirely

Tightly pinch the dough together at the top of the bao, twisting the dough to close it and maintaining a smooth sphere around the sides

Turn the bao over and place on the work surface, twisted-side down. Cover with a damp cloth and set aside to rest for a further 15–20 minutes

Set up a steamer over a pan of simmering water and steam the baos for approximately 10–15 minutes. Serve warm dusted with cocoa powder