the dough of the siopao bun:
dissolve yeast in lukewarm water.
add sugar and 3 and half cups of rice flour, baking powder and mix to make a soft sponge like dough. squeeze and beat thoroughly or mash. transfer to a floured board and knead with your hands, using a pushing motion, until the dough is smooth. keep doing this for about an 20- 40 minutes. (really depends on the quality of the flour)
set aside on a lightly oiled large bowl (large enough, to hold the dough once it expands or rise), cover it with a clean slightly damp cloth or towel and wait for it to rise until almost or double in size. (for some say 20 - 30 minutes). after reaching the expected size, add the remaining flour and 1/4 cup shortening. mix well. knead until smooth. punch down once, re-cover with the cloth or towel and leave to rise again for another 30 minutes. but sometimes me and my dad waited for about 2-3 hours! just be patient and just wait until it almost double in size. (again, this all really depends on the quality of flour).
once the dough is set, divide the dough into two. now form each half into a rod by hand-rolling it on the board. cut each rod into 12-24 pieces (the more the number, the lesser the size of the dough becomes). take a piece of dough and flatten it with your hands, pulling the sides to form a circle or balls. set aside on a clean, dry surface.

the filling of the siopao bun:
in a sauce pan, heat oil. saute garlic and onion.
reduce heat, add chicken strips and cook till lightly brown
now add water, soy sauce, , sugar, ground pepper, , and corn starch or corn flour, hoi sin sauce, MSG
stir continuously until sauce boils, reduce heat. if you want the filling to be thick, add in more of the cornstarch.
let it simmer uncovered for 2 minutes. turn off heat.
add the chopped hard boiled eggs to the cooked filling, stir in to mix. set aside.
once cool, freeze it to the freezer. (this is optional, for some they just let it cool for 5 minutes or so then starts filling in the buns. i find it so messy and difficult. my dad came to the idea of freezing it then thaw it a lil' bit so it's just the perfect time to start filling in the siopao buns if the filling is a bit solid).

on how to fill the siopao buns:
take each ball of dough and roll out on floured surface.
place one round of dough in palm of hand.
flatten or deepen a bit the top of the dough and put one table spoon of filling in center of siopao dough.
press edges of dough together.
take the 2 ends of bun, bring them up over the pinched edge and twist together firmly.
cut 12 pieces of wax or greaseproof paper into 3 inch square. or depending on the number of ball doughs you've made. a plain coupon bond will also do just fine.
brush one side of the paper lightly with oil if using only a coupon bond.
place the bun upside down, so the smooth rounded side is uppermost.
or just simply place each siopao on a piece of wax paper or greaseproof paper.
arrange on a steamer. keep doing this to the rest of the stuffed dough buns. just set aside excess stuffed dough buns if steamer is full. can also be stored frozen and steamed in the future.

on steaming the siopao buns:
i steam the buns in a 3 layer aluminum steamer setting but originally done in 4-5 layers of native steamer of bamboo setting. with the ground floor comprising water with vinegar---before i forget, don't forget the vinegar as i always forgot even now. vinegar would certainly help to keep your buns white and attractive. the second layer is empty. the third or upper most layer is where i place the siopao buns to steam.
steam the stuffed siopao buns for approximately 12-20 minutes or the siopao buns are a bit soft already.

enjoy a deliciously unique treat!