xiao = little (3rd pitch)

long = cage (2nd)

tang = soup (neutral)

bao = dumpling (neutral)

Bon Journal

Shanghainese soup dumplings

I have been on an unofficial quest for the best Shanghainese soup dumplings - "xiao long tang bao" in Chinese. Actually they are steamped dumplings that contain delicious soup. I grew up on them in Okinawa and got used to the delicate ones made by the husband-wife team in their Nanking Restaurant in Koza, just off Gate Two of Kadena Airbase.

Yesterday in Monterey Park LA I ordered it for me and my four friends. It was the closest thing to what I grew up with.

The secret is not having too much meat in it. The soup should ooze out of the dumplings and into your mouth, creating a heavenly experience. These dumplings are dipped in black vinegar and thinly sliced fresh young ginger. No soya sauce is needed.

The ones I tried in a so-called Shanghainese restaurant in London's Chinatown were overcrowded with meat. The chef was Cantonese. No wonder!

The ones I tried on 17th September in New York Chinatown called "Lao Fan Dian" were also not quite there. "Lao fan dian" translated literally to mean "old rice shop" or old or favourite restaurant originates from the popular restaurant of the same name in Shanghai. Gourmet magazine had reviewed it as having the best Shanghainese soup dumplings in the City. If that's the case, I wonder if the reviewers got paid to write that or if Manhattan was as starved of authentic Shanghainese cuisine as London is.

The dumplings in Taiwan and Houston's Chinatown are close enough -- but again I'm biased.

I suppose I'd have to go to Shanghai to find out what these dumplings ought to taste like. Otherwise, memories from my childhood will continue to reign.

29 September 2003 Monday

After the dumplings in Monterey Park, LA

I am wearing one of my creations.