P
Chinese · Shanghai
Siu Long Bao — Soup Dumplings Advanced (小笼包精进)
Advanced technical analysis of xiao long bao (XLB): the wrapper must be rolled to a specific thickness (0.8–1mm), the filling must contain sufficient aspic (pork skin jelly) to create soup, and the pleating must seal perfectly while being thin enough to cook through in 5 minutes. The eating ritual — nibbling a hole to release steam, then drinking the soup before eating — is as important as the preparation.
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I
The Market List
The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.
For the aspic
500 g
pork skin
cleaned, excess fat scraped away
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
100 g
chicken feet
optional; increases gelatin yield
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
60 ml
Shaoxing wine
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
30 g
For the filling
300 g
ground pork
fatty cut preferred
Your own market
150–200 g
pork skin aspic
cut into small dice once firmly set; 40–50% of total filling weight
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
For the wrapper dough
300 g
plain flour
plus extra for dusting
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
170 ml
boiling water
for the scald; allow to cool before kneading
Your own market
To line the steamer
8
napa cabbage leaves
or parchment cut to fit bamboo steamer basket
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Each tap is counted, so the stockist sees the demand Provenance sends them.
II
The Method
1
Make the aspic. Place the pork skin and chicken feet in a pot with the Shaoxing wine and ginger. Cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Drain and rinse the solids. Return to the pot, cover generously with fresh cold water, and simmer uncovered for a minimum of 3 hours. Strain the liquid, discard the solids, and refrigerate until fully set. The aspic is ready when it is very firm and holds a clean cut at refrigerator temperature.
From the canon — One of the most beloved dim sum preparations: chicken feet deep-fried until the skin puffs and blisters, then braised in black bean sauce until the skin is g… Chicken Feet — Phoenix Talons (Feng Zhua / 凤爪 Dim Sum) →
2
Make the wrapper dough. Pour boiling water over the flour and stir immediately. Allow the scalded dough to cool to hand temperature before kneading until smooth and non-sticky. Rest the dough, covered, for at least 30 minutes. Properly rested dough yields to gentle pressure and does not spring back sharply.
3
Prepare the filling. Dice the set aspic into small pieces. Combine the ground pork with the diced aspic; the aspic must constitute 40–50% of the combined filling weight. Mix until cohesive but do not overwork. The filling should hold together when pressed and show visible pieces of aspic throughout.
4
Roll the wrappers. Divide the dough into portions of approximately 21 g each. Roll each portion into a round 8–9 cm in diameter, 0.8–1 mm thick — slightly thicker at the centre than at the edge. A wrapper that is uniform throughout will not support the weight of the filling; the thicker base is the structural foundation. The skin should be translucent at its thinnest point when held to light.
5
Fill and pleat. This is where the dumpling lives or dies. Place a portion of filling at the centre of each wrapper. Working around the edge, fold and pinch a minimum of 16 pleats, drawing each pleat toward the centre. The final pleat must close and seal the central button — the ding zi — completely. Any gap at the crown will allow the soup to escape during steaming. Press the sealed top firmly; it should feel taut and show no open seams.
6
Steam precisely. Line the bamboo steamer baskets with napa cabbage leaves or parchment. Arrange the dumplings with sufficient space between them. Steam over vigorously boiling water for exactly 5 minutes — never more. At 5 minutes the wrappers will be set and translucent, the skin tender but intact. Steaming beyond this point causes the skin to thicken and the soup to begin migrating through the wrapper.
7
Serve and eat in sequence. Transfer the steamer directly to the table. The eating ritual is integral: nibble a small hole in the side of the wrapper to release steam, drink the soup from within, then eat the remainder. The soup should be abundant, fragrant, and clear — a collapsed or dry dumpling interior indicates insufficient aspic or a failed seal.
III
Quality Hierarchy
01
Reserve — Din Tai Fung's documented standard observed: 21 g per dumpling, minimum 18 pleats, aspic from a long-simmered pork skin and chicken foot stock of exceptional clarity and set.
02
Estate — House-made aspic from pork skin simmered 3 or more hours with Shaoxing wine and ginger; wrappers hand-rolled to 0.8–1 mm with the correct graduated thickness; 16 or more pleats fully sealed.
03
Market — Aspic made from pork skin alone without chicken feet; pleating sound if fewer than 16 pleats; soup present but lighter in body.
04
House — Filling contains insufficient aspic — below 40% by weight — yielding little or no soup on opening; acceptable as a filled dumpling but not a true xiao long bao.
IV
Sensory Tests
◇Touch. The set aspic holds a clean-cut edge and does not yield at refrigerator temperature — it is firm enough to dice without smearing.
◇Touch. Rested dough yields slowly to a fingertip and does not spring back; it rolls without tearing.
◇Sight. Rolled wrapper is translucent at its thinnest point and measurably thicker at the centre than at the edge.
◇Touch. The sealed ding zi feels taut and resists gentle pressure; no gap or soft spot is present at the crown.
◇Sight. After exactly 5 minutes of steaming, the wrapper is uniformly set and glistening, the filling visible through the skin as a shadow.
◇Where it lives or dies. The pleating and sealing of the ding zi is the single point of failure: an imperfect crown loses the soup entirely.
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VI
What to Pour
A delicate, lightly oxidised Shaoxing rice wine served warm — its savour echoes the wine used in the aspic stock and does not compete with the fragrant pork broth within the dumpling. A pale, dry Chinese oolong serves equally as a non-alcoholic parallel.
The whole pairingPillar VII
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Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
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