Xiaolongbao

Name: Xiaolongbao
Prep time: 2 h
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 3 h
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 280 g flour; 160 ml boiling water; 2 g salt; 250 g ground pork (70% lean / 30% fat); 250 g pork aspic; 1 tbsp oyster sauce; 2 tbsp soy sauce; 1 tbsp black sesame oil; 2 tbsp spring onions; 1 tsp sugar; salt; pepper; 1 tbsp ginger; 1 tbsp spring onions; 1/2 tsp Sichuan peppercorns; 70 ml boiling water; 1 tbsp red rice vinegar (or black); 1/2 tbsp soy sauce; 1/2 slice ginger (julienned)

Originally from Shanghai, certainly the best dumplings you'll find in China, with that fragrant broth that miraculously stays inside. They are, however, definitely one of the hardest to make.

Mode cuisine

Prep

2 h

Cook

1 h

Total

3 h

Serves

Ingredients

For:

servings

Dough

280 g flour
160 ml boiling water≈ 160 g
2 g salt

Filling

250 g ground pork (70% lean / 30% fat)
250 g pork aspic
1 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp black sesame oil
2 tbsp spring onions
1 tsp sugar
salt
pepper

Aromatic water

1 tbsp ginger
1 tbsp spring onions
0,5 tsp Sichuan peppercorns
70 ml boiling water≈ 70 g

Dipping sauce

1 tbsp red rice vinegar (or black)
0,5 tbsp soy sauce
0,5 slice ginger (julienned)

Method

Pork aspic

Several options:

1use leftover pork stock from the last dan dan noodle soup you cooked, or even from a tonkotsu ramen.
2or blanch pork skin for 5 minutes, rinse, scrape off the fat with a knife, clean, cut into strips, and cook for 2h in water over low heat (1 liter for 300g of skin). Discard the skin and refrigerate for 3h. Note: you can add spring onions, ginger, and rice wine for a bit of flavor.
3or mix a chicken stock with gelatin or agar agar (but that's cheating :p)

Aromatic water:

4Chop the ginger and spring onions. Place them in a bowl with the Sichuan peppercorns and pour over the boiling water. Let it infuse for 10 minutes. Remember to strain it just before using.

Filling:

5Process the ground pork. Add the salt, sugar, pepper, soy sauce, and oyster sauce. Process. Add the (strained) aromatic water and the sesame oil. Process.
6Cover and refrigerate so the flavors can blend.
7Chop the spring onions and the pork aspic, and add them at the last moment. Mix thoroughly for 1-2 minutes, always stirring in the same direction.

Dough:

8Mix the flour and salt. Gradually incorporate the previously heated water into the flour.
9Once you have a ball and all the flour is incorporated, cover with a damp cloth and let it rest for 10 minutes.
10Roll the dough into a long rectangle, then roll the rectangle into a cylinder. Rotate 90 degrees and form another rectangle.
11Repeat 5 times. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.
12Repeat the rectangle > cylinder process 3 more times.
13Then roll the dough into a long cylinder 2 cm in diameter. Cut into pieces of 10 g each. Flour them.
14With a rolling pin, roll out round wrappers 9 cm in diameter, taking care to keep thin edges and more thickness in the middle. The result should be thin enough that you can see your finger through it.

Folding:

15Place a wrapper in your left hand. Add a teaspoon of filling in the middle. Make pleats along the edge with the thumb of your right hand, and continue counterclockwise until it's sealed (usually 18 pleats).
16Or, more simply, watch the video in the notes at the bottom of the page.

Cooking:

17Steam for 8-10 minutes on perforated parchment paper.

Notes

To enjoy these delicious morsels, immediately after cooking, place them in a spoon, pierce the outer wrapper with your teeth, and first drink the broth. The rest of the dumpling can be enjoyed afterwards. The magic of this broth staying trapped inside the dumpling wrapper is explained by the fact that pork aspic is used as an ingredient. Indeed, it's solid when cold but turns liquid when cooked. For the pork aspic, I generally use the pork and chicken stock I prepare for a dan dan noodle soup (HK version). I do add a sheet of gelatin, though, because the aspic lacks the firmness needed to make folding the xiaolongbao easier. Option 2 (cooking pork skin) generally gives a more suitable consistency but you lose a bit on flavor. I don't really recommend the 3rd option as it will affect the taste too much. Video showing how to fold xiaolongbao: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osy2qQPwLKk Unlike other dumplings, the dough for xiaolongbao wrappers must be made from scratch and cannot be bought in stores. That's because it needs to be thin while keeping its strength and elasticity. You also need to make the filling and use it quickly to prevent the aspic from melting and the spring onions from turning acidic. Fold and cook quickly without storing, to prevent the moisture from the filling from destroying the dough. The dough wrappers also don't store well, because they will quickly stick to each other and you can't coat them too heavily with flour, otherwise they won't seal as well. In conclusion, you need to be efficient and prepare and cook on the fly. Making these dumplings is a challenge that's not easy to take on. You need a strong urge to dive in, humility, and patience.