The Popular Chinese Dish Chef David Chang Hates Making 'More Than Anything'

Chef David Chang has been in the business for over 20 years and has spent that time making a multitude of unique and delicious dishes for customers to enjoy. However, as is always the case when being committed to a craft for so long, there are certain aspects of it that begin to get old, and in Chang's case, he's over making one key Chinese dish that many fans of the cuisine know and love: steamed pork buns. 

The immensely popular dish has been a constant for Chang, who revealed his mild annoyance with it in an Instagram Reel posted by Food Network. "I probably hate making the pork bun, our steamed pork buns, more than anything," Chang told the Food Network team, "but I wouldn't be here talking to you guys right now if we didn't make that pork bun."

The chef is, of course, talking about the steamed pork buns served at Momofuku, Chang's fusion chain that Anthony Bourdain held as a shining example of a truly great hybrid restaurant. Momofuku's pork buns in particular have become an iconic and highly sought-after dish since the restaurant opened in New York City back in 2004. Thus, after two decades of being a top seller, it's no surprise that the dish has become something the chef dreads making more than the rest.

Now, the reason why David Chang is cursed to make so many steamed pork buns is because of just how remarkable and masterfully crafted Momofuku's version of the dish truly is. Momofuku has been making the steamed pork buns the same way for its entire existence, leading to a dish that has been lauded as remarkably consistent over the years. However, according to Tony Kim, former co-chef de cuisine at Momofuku, different chefs have imparted small variances to the dish over the years. "We've passed a lot of pork buns through these doors," Kim explained in a 2014 interview with Eater. "We teach [the cooks] mechanics and what the end product needs to be, and each cook develops their own style."

What truly makes the steamed pork buns so iconic, though, is that each ingredient has been a part of the recipe for all these years. For starters, Momofuku uses high-quality bao buns, which are naturally incredibly fluffy — sourced from Peking Food, allowing Chang to skip in-house production. However, the meat — pork belly, to be exact — is prepared fresh at the restaurant each day, being cured in sugar and salt for 24 hours and roasted the following day to be added to the bun. The steamed pork buns are also lightly spread with hoisin sauce (which is often mistaken for oyster sauce), dressed with raw scallions and cured cucumbers to complete an absolutely delicious dish.