Saturday, April 12, 2008

For The Sack of Nostalgia- A recipe of Caterpillar Bread

Caterpillar bread


Growing up, the time that we kids looked forward the most was when the bread van pull into the neighborhood. We usually called the man behind the wheel- "the bread van uncle". Sadly, I don't recall having another nicer name for the movable vendor who sells various kinds of Asian breads, pastries and snacks out of the back of his van. Normally, we could hear the unmistakable rumbling of his weathered engine with the loud and clear honking miles away, and would patiently wait for it to arrive at its designated stop, usually under a shady tree, 2 houses down from ours at 4p.m.

IMGP7866


My younger brother Alan would always get a hot dog bun, I think he is a devoted hot dog buns follower. Sometime I would get something chocolatey, such as a chocolate cream bun, or sometime I would join him and get a hot dog bun.

So where is this going and what does this have to do with the Caterpillar Bread, you ask? Well, I believe that this caterpillar breads that surfaced and proliferated in many Asian bakeries in late 90's was a derivative of my brother's favorite hot dog bun. And wouldn't it be fun if I could recreate his childhood favorite bread and surprise him when we meet again? I have a feeling that the hot dog bun may still be his favorite bun now. Some things just never change. :p

hotdog bun


My creation


I don't think mine turned out looking like caterpillars, they looked more like turtles, but it was a fun project to undertake on a weekend nonetheless! OCT like to bring them to work on busy days when he doesn't have time for a proper lunch.

IMGP7871


I used the basic sweet dough from the pork floss bun recipe, and squeezed light mayo and ketchup on top of the breads, together with pork floss before baking. A taste which is reminiscent of home.....

*I will type out the detailed recipe soon, but trust me, the step by step instructions above is easier to follow. :)*



Caterpillar Bread

one batch of basic sweet bun dough
1 pack of sausages/franks
mayonaise
ketchup

Divide the basic sweet dough into 70g pieces and mould them into balls. Let them rest for 10 minutes, then roll them flat with a rolling pin.

Put the sausage on the center of the dough and fold the dough into halves. Lightly pinch to seal. Cut each folded dough into 8 small portions, leaving 1/3 from the sealed edges uncut. (The dough should resemble a comb at this point.)

Twist first cut portion to the left, and second to the right, repeat this for the rest of the portions. Place the shaped dough onto a greased baking sheet and press each lightly. Let the dough prove for 45 minutes.

Brush with egg wash, and drizzle ketchup, followed by mayonaise on top.

Bake at 375F for 15-20 minutes or until the breads look golden brown. You can pipe some mayonaise and ketchup on top if desired (for presentation) and sprinkle the optional pork floss.

50 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:44 PM

    this looks amazing! i have never seen a caterpillar bread before and this is really something unique. the technique is very interesting. wow! beautiful pictures! and nice story about the van man too:)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous4:19 AM

    Ohh that's awesome! That shall go on my list of things to make.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh, I hope you do explain a bit more of whatever you did on top. These would be super fun to make.

    ReplyDelete
  4. That is fantastic!! I'm trying to recall if they have this in Bread Talk here. I can't wait for the recipe, Mandy!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. That's like the coolest thing ever! I want to make it!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous8:38 AM

    Those just look AWESOME - Great presentation!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Wow! I have never seen anything like this and I love it! Cute story to go along with it. Where do you find pork floss?

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous2:59 PM

    Fantastic! Love the sausage in the bun. Pork/Chicken floss is another favourite of mine. I really want to try this.

    ReplyDelete
  9. What a great post! I hate hot dogs but Lon loves the Chinese hot dog buns. I have to make this caterpillar bread for him.

    ReplyDelete
  10. How adorable!! I am going to have to give these a try just because they look cute.

    ReplyDelete
  11. These are so cute! I've never heard of caterpillar bread before but they're adorable!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I always get the hot dog bun when I go to the chinese bakery -- it's topped with a buttery green onion topping which makes it extra special. I've considered trying to replicate it at some point. Aside from the topping, the bun is quite similar to yours except it's round instead of long.

    The pictures are very helpful - thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous8:49 PM

    Brilliant! My brother looooves these, always gets them at the local Asian bakeries and now I can make fresh ones for him at home :D

    ReplyDelete
  14. WOW! That looks awesome! I'm imagining the taste and it's making me hungry.

    ReplyDelete
  15. OMG! the buns look sooooo good! they look exactly like the ones selling in local bakeries!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Wow! This is simply beautiful and thanks for the step-by-step pictures. Great use of pork floss too! :)

    ReplyDelete
  17. That looks so, so good!!!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous11:57 PM

    How cute! I love fancy shaped bread, should make it more often.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Mandy, you're a genius! These look even better than those in bakeries! Yum yum...

    Warm sharing on childhood memories. It made me recollect some childhood memories of mine, bread stuff alike...

    ReplyDelete
  20. What an awesome idea! My girls would love this!!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Looks so beautiful.
    I have bookmarked them to make them when i have a bit of free time

    ReplyDelete
  22. These are too cute! I forwarded the post to my brother, who has two little boys, who love hotdogs!

    ReplyDelete
  23. I have never seen these before, but how fun!! I bet kids would love these especially, but I just may have to try it for my husband and I!

    ReplyDelete
  24. That looks very nice and appetizing and certainly reminds me of my school days where I packed these buns for lunch/bf.
    I didn't know it's that easy to make them :)

    ReplyDelete
  25. That is sooo Cool... :)

    I have tagged you..I hope you do not mind.

    ReplyDelete
  26. The bread look amazing!! Thanks for the step by step presentation and I will definitely try this out.

    ReplyDelete
  27. These breads look great. I like sweet and soft bread.

    ReplyDelete
  28. this looks awesome, never heard of caterpillar bread, but i love it!! i am totally down for trying this out with my smart dogs, yumm!

    ReplyDelete
  29. This would be awesome to do with y neighbors' kids! Love it!

    ReplyDelete
  30. This is the cutest idea. I'm bookmarking this one to make at our next neighborhood gathering!

    ReplyDelete
  31. Now I know the secret of making it look like caterpillar! Right, I did not know about it. You are so clever, and as usual...your delicate and skilled fingers that made such wonderful creations :)

    ReplyDelete
  32. Thanks for this great idea, my children love baking with mom and this is going to be a hit...

    ReplyDelete
  33. Mandy... your shots're so amazing...
    I feel like I wanna try all your recipes here.

    ReplyDelete
  34. This is fantastic. I can't wait to try it. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  35. thanks everyone for your lovely comments. I hope the step by step instructions are helpful. I need to make more interesting recipes like this. :)

    Sarah,
    pork floss is optional here, you can buy it from the Asian grocery stores. :)

    ReplyDelete
  36. Anonymous12:09 AM

    Bellissimi,da provare assolutamente!

    ReplyDelete
  37. Mandy, absolutely beautiful bread! I really want to try this recipe.

    ReplyDelete
  38. This is gorgeous! IIt's making me hungry...:) Thanks for the clear illustration. :)

    ReplyDelete
  39. Your work and your blog is fantastic, I congratulate you!

    ReplyDelete
  40. Anonymous1:42 PM

    I just found your blog and WOW! This looks gorgeous. I can't wait to try it and have all the ingredients except the dried milk powder. Do you think it is possible to substitute with real milk (if so, how much do you think I should use). Thanks for the great blog!

    ReplyDelete
  41. Anonymous3:52 PM

    made this one hour ago. looks nice, tastes nice. thank you for the idea.

    ReplyDelete
  42. Omigosh! I am so glad I saw this recipe! I really miss this bread (as well as the BreadTalk Floss bread that you posted in the other post). I am SO going to make this...

    Thankyou thankyou thankyou!!!

    ReplyDelete
  43. I made these recently and they turned out just exactly as how I've wanted them to. Thank you so much for showing the detailed steps. Many people skipped it in their blog posts. Mine turned out awesome!

    ReplyDelete
  44. Anonymous9:55 PM

    That looks soooo delish! YUMMMMMO! OK...starting to sound like Rachael Ray... I can't wait to make this, esp with the pork sung on top - perfection!

    ReplyDelete
  45. wow, i want to try this so badly how!

    ReplyDelete
  46. so beautifully done.

    ReplyDelete
  47. Hi there! I saw this recipe months ago andit kinda stuck into my brain. So I made it last weekend for a friend's party and it was a HUGE success! Thank you for sharing and making us so happy.

    Efthimia

    ReplyDelete
  48. Looks delicious! ... I will try :)

    ReplyDelete
  49. I've just made it yesterday, its very easy to made but turned fantastic and delicious. I posted also in my blog. Thanks for sharing the recipe to us! ^_^

    ReplyDelete
  50. Anonymous8:22 PM

    Yes! Yes, I thought this looked familiar. Yes. They sell this in Korean bakery shops. I never knew this is how you make it. I will try! My kids will love it. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete