Shanghai — the quintessential street breakfast of the city, rivalling xiao long bao for Shanghainese identity
Shengjian mantou: pan-fried pork soup dumplings — larger than xiao long bao, with a thicker dough, cooked in a flat pan with oil and water. The bottoms become crispy golden while the tops stay soft and are garnished with sesame and spring onion. The interior contains a pork filling and gelatinised soup that liquefies when eaten.
Crispy bottom, chewy leavened dough, rich pork soup interior — a textural contrast unique in the dumpling canon
{"Dough must be leavened slightly — yeast gives shengjian its characteristic chewier texture (unlike xiao long bao's unleavened wrapper)","Oil then water in pan — creates steaming-frying environment simultaneously","Cover to steam the tops, uncover at end to crisp the bottoms","Soup is created by adding cold aspic (gelatinised stock) to filling — melts during cooking"}
{"Listen for the crackling sound — it tells you the water has evaporated and crisping has begun","Garnish with black sesame, white sesame, and thinly sliced spring onion immediately before serving","Eat from the side, not the top — the soup will burn you otherwise"}
{"Using fully unleavened dough — loses the distinctive shengjian chewiness","Too much water added — prevents bottom from crisping","Lifting lid too early — escaping steam leads to underdone tops"}
Land of Fish and Rice — Fuchsia Dunlop