Rigging equipment for steaming large amounts at once

I am making steamed BBQ pork buns for a work potluck. I have some steamer equipment, but small scale. I'm looking at making 60+ buns, and would really like to cook them as quickly as possible the morning before I go to work.

How can I create a large steamer setup? I thought my rice cooker and instant pot could be put to use as steamers. It is a standard large office setup, so not sure if the humidity from the steam would be a problem.

Best Answer

Assuming that you're planning to do the steaming at home (your question is kind of confusing that way), the cheapest way to go is to create ad-hoc "steam ovens" using disposable aluminum foil pans.

Buy some disposable aluminum foil baking pans, as large/deep as possible, like a 20" x 12" x 3.5" pan.
line the bottom of these with cookie cooling racks (if you don't have these, use an appropriately-sized disposable rimmed cookie sheet and punch holes in it).
pour in a little bit of water, below the tops of the racks.
put in the buns (should hold a lot of them in each pan)
seal tightly with extra-wide, heavy-duty foil on top.
bake in your oven at 350F

Now, the catch to this is that the cooking time will be different than it would n a regular steamer, because you're getting some heat from the top, and I don't have a ready conversion for you; you'd have to test a bit.

If this is something you do a lot, I'd recommend buying a Thai/Vietnamese-style multi-level steamer, which would allow you to steam batches of 12 to 30 buns pretty rapidly. You can buy these steamers at Asian grocery stores a lot cheaper than you can find them online.

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What equipment do you need to steaming?

You only need two simple pieces of equipment to steam food on the stove top: a pot and a steamer basket. The pot is filled with a small amount of liquid that is brought to a simmer; the item to be cooked is placed in a basket suspended above the liquid, and the pot is then covered.

How do you stack steamers?

While plastic plates may not melt in the steamer, it's better to be safe by using oven-proof, microwave-safe, heat-resistant, or tempered glass plates. In addition, cool plates on the counter to avoid shocking and cracking the glass.

What plates can be used for steaming?

Using a steamer basket inside the cooker pot should work; I'd recommend sticking with just the basket itself if possible; stainless steel is plenty safe. If you are going to put a bowl or dish in there, use ceramic or stainless steel - both of those should be fine, and unlikely to leach strange things into your food.

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