How to Use a Bamboo Steamer

Bamboo steamers are a quintessential part of Asian cuisine, particularly in China. These unassuming and largely unchanged traditional tools are a great way to transform simple ingredients from our Chinese supermarket in the UK into authentic and delicious dishes.

Using a bamboo steamer is really simple – in fact, it is often quicker and easier than other cooking methods! Discover how to make the most of your bamboo steamer for a range of dishes.

What is a Bamboo Steamer?

A bamboo steamer is a simple, round box, often made up of three or more layers and a lid. Each of the layers inside has a floor of woven bamboo strings or slats on top of which sit your food.

Bamboo steamers are placed over a pan of boiling water. The rising steam fills that bamboo basket and cooks whatever lovely foods you’ve placed inside.

Why Bamboo Steamers Are Great for Your Food

Bamboo steamers are one of the best ways to steam your food, a cooking method that is popular worldwide. They’re great not only for your favourite Chinese meals, but other regional cuisines too.

• Healthy – Steaming is a great way to prepare food without using oil, and it can help vegetables retain nutrients.
• Quick – You only need a little bit of boiling water in a pan to start cooking, making it much quicker than preheating an oven.
• Moisture Control – Bamboo naturally absorbs moisture, helping to regulate temperature and leave food crisp and fresh, not soggy.

What Do You Use A Bamboo Steamer For?

You can use a bamboo steamer to not only cook buns and dumplings; you can also prepare breads, rice, vegetables, proteins, cakes and other desserts too. Steaming is also a great method to reheat food; this is because it reintroduces moisture and makes its taste fresh again.

Not only are bamboo steamers great for cooking a variety of foods and reheating leftovers, but the lids also don’t collect condensation; therefore, the taste is not affected by added water that would drip from an ordinary cover.

How to Use a Bamboo Steamer

Using a bamboo steamer is incredibly simple. If you simply want healthy, authentic Asian food, here’s a basic how-to:

1. Boil water in a pan or wok
2. Prepare ingredients and sort by cooking time
3. Line the bamboo steamer (optional)
4. Stack your steamer
5. Cook & Serve

1. Boil water in a pan or wok

First of all, fill the bottom of a pan or wok with water and bring it to a boil.

How much water you use will depend on your pan and steamer. Ideally, fill the round base of a wok with water so your bamboo steamer can sit in the pan but out of the water, leaving it to boil and steam underneath. If you’re using a normal frying pan, just fill it with an inch or two of water, making sure no bubbles can rise up and hit your food while it’s cooking.

2. Prepare ingredients and sort by cooking time

Next, prepare your ingredients for steaming. One of the benefits of bamboo steamers is being able to cook different things on different layers in the same steamer, so sort your ingredients by their cooking time. For example, if you’re doing chicken and vegetables, you will want to put the chicken on the first layer and start steaming that first before adding another layer of vegetables later.

3. Line the bamboo steamer (optional)

You don’t have to always line a bamboo steamer when cooking, but for most things it’s good practice. Things like Chinese dumplings can stick without some kind of lining, and it can also stop the bamboo from absorbing flavours from meat and fish, which can linger the next time you cook.

There is a huge variety of linings you can use, from classic store cupboard linings to authentic Chinese ingredients. Here is a list of some of them:

• Napa cabbage leaves
• Lettuce leaves
• Cheesecloth
• Parchment paper
• Reusable cloth
• Silicone liners

4. Stack your steamer

Once the water is boiling and the steamer baskets are lined, you can insert your ingredients and stack the steamer depending on what needs to cook from the start.

When putting food in the steamer, make sure to leave plenty of space between items. This will ensure there’s plenty of room for the steam to flow, helping to ensure even cooking.

5. Cook & Serve

After that, all you need to do is allow the food to cook. The nature of a steamer means you don’t need to worry about stirring or turning halfway, although you might want to lift the lid periodically to ensure nothing’s being overcooked.

Here at Oriental Mart, we supply all the Asian food and ingredients you need for an authentic cooking experience. We also have lots of Asian recipes for you to try out at home.

While using a bamboo steamer, why not make everything traditional and buy some Chinese tableware? Get your hands on some chopsticks, rice spoons, rice bowls, teacups, and so much more!