Chinese dumplings, or Jiaozi (饺子), are one of the most symbolic foods eaten during the Chinese New Year. Their shape resembles ancient Chinese gold ingots, making them a powerful symbol of wealth, prosperity, and abundance. In many families, dumpling making is a communal activity, with everyone gathering around the table to wrap dumplings together on …
Cheung fun (肠粉) is on the menu of every Dim Sum restaurant. It is a popular classic dim sum dish apart from the famous triumvirate of dim sum quintessential- Shrimp Dumpling, Shumai, and Char Siu Bao. Cheung fun has a light and soft texture, non-oily, and is served hot right from the steamer. You only …
What is an image in your mind of a pineapple bun look like? You may visualize it as a bun with some pineapple jam as the filling. But in reality, there isn’t any pineapple in the bun. Eighteenth years ago, I visited a cafe called Polo Bun, serving these pineapple-shaped buns as the main menu …
My xiao long bao story To be honest, I only had the first bite of xiao long bao when I was in my 20’s! I grew up eating Cantonese dim sum when I was a kid. Every Sunday, my parents and I head to the old-fashioned dim sum store for breakfast. I would eagerly wait …
Lion’s Head Pork Meatballs (Lion’s head meatballs) is a highly regarded Chinese cuisine that catches everyone’s attention because of its size. It measures up to 1.5 to 2 inches in diameter, juicy, fluffy, and served with an umami-packed gravy. It is different because the pork meatballs are stewed in a braising liquid, instead of the …
In this article, I want to explain how to prepare the Chinese-style stuffed cabbage roll I made as a teenager. The flavor of these traditional cabbage rolls still lingers on in my memory after a lapse of so many years. (Imagine my son has already married!) I still vaguely remember the process and have tweaked …
I’ve just made these Pineapple Tarts for the upcoming Chinese New Year, and they are truly irresistible. The crust is buttery and crumbly, breaking under your fork with a satisfying crunch, while the pineapple filling is reduced into a dense, flavorful jam. In Hokkien, pineapple is pronounced “ong-lai (旺来)”, which sounds like “prosperity is arriving.” …
Taro cake (yam cake, wu tao gou,芋头糕, 芋頭糕) is a popular Chinese dessert for breakfast and tea break. It is one of such savory delicacies that you can find in the Dim Sum shops serving breakfast, along with shrimp dumplings, Char Siu Pao, Shumai, and others. If you want to throw in some Asian flavor …
Today, I want to show you how to prepare a traditional Cantonese dessert called red bean soup 红豆沙. Red bean soup is in the category of Cantonese desserts called tong sui (糖水), which means sugar water. It is a popular item on the menu of most Chinese dessert houses in Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Singapore. …
Chinese salted egg pastry (蛋黄酥, 鹹蛋酥, Harm Tarn Soh) is an all-time favorite among the Chinese, particularly during the Mid-Autumn Festival and Chinese New Year. It is prepared by encasing the salted egg yolk in sweetened red bean paste or lotus paste, then wrapped in the flaky Chinese pastry. It has a unique taste of …