The bite
A pan-fried bun, golden-crisp on the bottom, soft on top, sesame and scallion stuck to the lid. Bite the side and hot pork soup floods out — same aspic trick as xiaolongbao but the skin is thicker, leavened, fluffy. Eat with black vinegar. The signature crackle is the bottom; if it's pale or soggy, the cook didn't let the oil-water mix dry out fully on the pan.
Where it comes from
A Shanghai street food from the early 1920s, when small teahouses started selling them as morning snacks alongside dou jiang. Some sources point to Wanshou Zhai near the Bund. Distinct from xiaolongbao in two ways from the start: leavened dough (heavier, fills you up faster) and a dry-fry finish, suited to a worker's quick breakfast rather than a leisurely tea-house meal.
What makes it work
The cook arranges raw buns pleat-side up in a flat-bottomed iron pan with oil, sears the bottoms, then pours in a thin water-flour slurry and clamps the lid — steam cooks the top, water boils off, oil takes over and crisps the bottom in one continuous move. Two-stage cooking in one pan. Buns must be packed tight against each other or they fall over and the seal collapses; loose pans are how home cooks get a soggy mess.
On the Palate
What goes into it
How it's made
- 1
Prepare dough by mixing flour and yeast with water, let it rise.
- 2
Mix ground pork with ginger, scallion, soy sauce, and pork skin aspic to form filling.
- 3
Roll dough into small balls, flatten and fill with pork mixture.
- 4
Pinch edges to seal, ensuring a tight closure.
- 5
Pan-fry buns on medium heat until bottoms are golden and crispy, then add water and cover to steam until fully cooked.
- 6
Sprinkle with sesame seeds before serving.
