Xiaolongbao (; ) is a type of Chinese tangbao (), traditionally prepared in a xiaolong, a small bamboo steaming basket. The xiaolongbao originates from the city of Changzhou in Jiangsu province, and is an iconic dish of Jiangnan cuisine.
Different cities across the Jiangnan region have varying styles of xiaolongbao. Outside of China, the Nanxiang xiaolongbao associated with Shanghai is the most well known. In the Shanghainese language, they are known as or xiaolong mantou, as Wu Chinese-speaking peoples use the traditional definition of mantou, which refers to both filled and unfilled buns. The Suzhou and Wuxi styles are larger (sometimes twice as large as a Nanxiang xiaolongbao) and have sweeter fillings. The Nanjing style is smaller with an almost translucent skin and less meat.
In English, the xiaolongbao are often referred to as "soup dumplings", but "soup dumpling" in Chinese may translate to the broader culinary category known as tangbao, which includes the xiaolongbao and other related dishes, such as the Kaifeng tangbao.
Xiaolongbao originated in Changzhou, Jiangsu province. It evolved from the guantangbao (soup-filled dumplings/buns) of Kaifeng, Henan province, which was the capital city of the Northern Song Dynasty (960âÂÂ1127).
There are numerous styles of xiaolongbao in Jiangnan cuisine. Shanghai-style xiaolongbao originated in Nanxiang, which was a neighboring village of Shanghai in Jiangsu that eventually became an outer suburb of Shanghai's Jiading District. From there xiaolongbao became popular in downtown Shanghai and promptly spread outward.
Chinese buns, in general, may be divided into two types, depending on the degree of leavening of the flour skin. Buns can be made with leavened or unleavened dough. Those made with unleavened dough use clear water for mixing; the skin is thin and the fillings large. It is frequently made in Nanxiang but is imitated elsewhere, called âÂÂXiang-styleâÂÂ. Steamed buns made with raised flour are seen throughout China and are what is usually referred to as mantou. Steamed xiaolongbao made with partially raised flour are more commonly seen in the south. This means that their skin is tender, smoother, and somewhat translucent, rather than being white and fluffy. As is traditional for buns of various sizes in the Jiangnan region, xiaolongbao is pinched at the top prior to steaming, so the skin has a circular cascade of ripples around the crown.
Xiaolongbao are traditionally filled with pork. More modern innovations include other meats, seafood, shrimp, crab meat, and vegetarian fillings. Some restaurants offer creative fillings including sea urchin, foie gras, cheese, garlic, and truffle as well as dessert fillings like yam, red bean, chocolate, taro, and black sesame.
Soup dumplings are created by wrapping solid meat aspic inside the skin alongside the meat filling. Heat from steaming then melts the gelatin-gelled aspic into soup. In modern times, refrigeration has made the process of making tangbao during hot weather easier, since making gelled aspic is much more difficult at room temperature.
Xiaolongbao are traditionally eaten for breakfast. The buns are served hot in the bamboo baskets in which they were steamed, usually on a bed of dried leaves or a paper mat, although some restaurants now use napa cabbage instead. The buns are usually dipped in Zhenjiang vinegar with chili crisp.
Traditionally, tangbao soup dumplings are a kind of dim sum (ÃÂ la carte item) or xiaochi (snack). The buns are usually dipped in Zhenjiang vinegar with ginger slivers. They are traditionally served with a clear soup on the side. Around Shanghai, "tangbao" may be eaten throughout the day, although usually not for breakfast. They form part of a traditional Jiangnan-style morning tea (). In Guangdong and the Western world, it is sometimes served as a dish during Cantonese tea time. Frozen tangbao are now mass-produced and a popular frozen food sold worldwide.
Restaurants serve xiaolongbao hot in bamboo steamers, sometimes with lettuce or parchment paper at the base to prevent them from sticking to the bottom. There are various methods of eating xiaolongbao. To avoid spilling the soup, one way to eat the bun is to hold the bun with the eater's spoon and bite a hole to suck the soup before eating the remainder, while others may place the bun and any condiments in the spoon and ingest it in the mouth at one time.
The modern form of xiaolongbao originated during Qing dynasty. A place named Yinggui Teahouse is where people in Changzhou go to have xiaolongbao. The buns from Changzhou are known for its thin wraps, and the soup that spills out after each bite. Among the types, crab-filled xiaolongbao is the most well known type in Changzhou, and are eaten after the Mid-Autumn Festival.
In Shanghai, xiaolongbao are usually filled with pork; crabmeat and shrimp are also present but in the minority.
Goubuli baozi are a brand of tangbao created in 1858 by a restaurant in Tianjin.
Kaifeng xiaolongbao, created during the Song dynasty, is also known as soup-filled xiaolongbao. Many famous cooks created their own ways of making soup-filled dumplings in Kaifeng and improved the techniques throughout history. Kaifeng xiaolongbao looks like a "lantern" when they are lifted, and a "flower" when it sits in the steaming basket.
Hong Kong xiaolongbao look like Changzhou xiaolongbao but have a slightly spicy taste, due to the addition of ginger and sometimes spring onion in the filling. The wrapper is chewier and harder than the normal ones. Despite the difference, it is labelled as Shanghai xiaolongbao.