Xiaolongbao — Shanghai Soup Dumplings

About This Recipe

Xiaolongbao (小籠包) are the pinnacle of Chinese dumpling craft. Each thin-skinned parcel hides a pool of fragrant broth that, when bitten carefully, floods the palate with concentrated pork richness. The soup isn't poured in — it starts as a solid aspic (pork skin jelly) mixed into the raw filling, then melts during steaming into liquid. The technique requires patience but produces something genuinely extraordinary. The name translates as 'small basket bao' — a reference to the bamboo steamers they are cooked in.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 300 gplain (all-purpose) flour(plus extra for dusting)
• 150 mljust-boiled water(allow to cool 2 minutes before using)
• 250 gpork mince(20% fat content — do not use lean mince)
• 100 gpork skin or trotters(for making the aspic jelly)
• 500 mlwater(for cooking the aspic)
• 2 tbspsoy sauce
• 1 tbspShaoxing rice wine
• 1 tspsesame oil
• 1 tspfreshly grated ginger
• 2 stalksspring onion(finely chopped)
• 1 tspsugar
• 1/2 tspwhite pepper
• 1 tspsalt
• 3 tbspblack rice vinegar(for dipping)
• 1 tbspfresh ginger(julienned, for dipping)

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the pork aspic

   Place pork skin or trotters in a small saucepan with 500ml water. Bring to a boil, skim off any foam, reduce to a simmer and cook for 1.5 hours until the liquid is reduced by half. Strain, discard solids, season lightly with salt. Pour into a shallow container and refrigerate 3–4 hours until firmly set into jelly.

   If pork skin is unavailable, dissolve 8g of leaf gelatine in 300ml rich pork stock as a shortcut.

2. 2

   Make the dough

   Place flour in a bowl. Pour in the just-boiled water gradually, mixing with chopsticks or a fork. When cool enough to handle, knead on a lightly floured surface for 8–10 minutes until smooth and slightly tacky. Wrap in cling film and rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.

   Hot water produces a silkier, more pliable dough that is easier to pleat and yields thinner wrappers.

3. 3

   Prepare the filling

   Finely dice the set aspic jelly into small cubes (approx 5mm). Combine pork mince, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, ginger, spring onion, sugar, white pepper and salt. Mix vigorously in one direction for 3 minutes until sticky and smooth. Fold in the diced aspic cubes gently. Refrigerate the filling while you roll the wrappers.

4. 4

   Roll the wrappers

   Divide the dough into 4 pieces. Roll each piece into a log, cut into 6 equal pieces. On a lightly floured surface, use a small rolling pin to roll each piece into a circle approximately 8cm in diameter — thinner at the edges, slightly thicker in the centre.

5. 5

   Fill and pleat

   Place 1 rounded teaspoon of filling in the centre of each wrapper. Hold the dumpling in one hand and use the thumb and forefinger of your other hand to fold and pleat the edges towards the centre. Aim for 16–18 pleats, twisting to seal at the top. The top should close into a tight spiral.

   Don't overfill — 1 tsp is enough. Overfilled XLB split open during steaming.

6. 6

   Steam and serve

   Line bamboo steamer baskets with napa cabbage leaves or baking parchment with holes poked in. Place dumplings 2cm apart. Steam over vigorously boiling water for 8–9 minutes exactly. Serve immediately in the basket with black vinegar and ginger strips for dipping.

Variations

• •

  Crab & Pork XLB: replace 30% of the pork with fresh crabmeat for an upscale version.

• •

  Vegetarian: use a mushroom-tofu filling with vegetable stock aspic made with agar instead of gelatine.

• •

  Larger Soup Dumplings (Guantang Bao): regional variants are palm-sized and eaten with a straw.

Storage

Uncooked xiaolongbao freeze brilliantly — place on a parchment-lined tray, freeze solid, then bag. Cook from frozen adding 2–3 extra minutes to steaming time. Do not refrigerate uncooked dumplings for more than 2 hours.

Frequently Asked Questions