Xiaolongbao
小笼包
Soup dumplings — a jelly that melts, a thin skin, a careful bite. Shanghai's project dumpling.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: 小笼包.
0 people cooked this in the public kitchen yet. Kitchen-tested by I Want Some Food. Not a purchased rating.
- Prep
- 1 hr
- Cook
- 15 min
- Rest
- 4 hr
- Total
- 5 hr 15 min
- Difficulty
- A bit of work
- Spice
- No chilli
- Cost
- Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Xiaolongbao are steamed dumplings whose filling includes a cooled meat aspic that melts into soup. The wrapper must be thin and the pinch pleated. This is a home Saturday version: pork, ginger, a simple gelatine or chilled stock jelly, and shop dumpling skins if rolling 20 wrappers will kill the mood. Name the shortcut. Bite the top, slurp, then eat. Chill a rich pork stock with gelatine or a reduced aspic so it sets, then mix cubes of that jelly into seasoned minced pork and ginger. Wrap in thin rounds — shop skins are the Saturday shortcut — and pleat to a closed top. Steam on paper or napa so they do not stick. Bite the top, slurp the soup, then eat. A burst wrapper is a thin wrapper or an overfilled one. Name the shortcut if you did not roll twenty skins.
Ingredients
- Pork, mince, a bit fatty300 g
- Chicken, strong stock, for the jelly300 ml
- Ginger15 g
- Soy sauce15 ml
- Toasted sesame oil4.9 ml
- Wheat flour, or 20 thin dumpling wrappers250 g
- Water, for dough, if making wrappers120 ml
- Vinegar, black vinegar, to serve30 ml
- Salt3.7 ml
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Jelly: simmer stock with ginger and spring onion 15 minutes. Dissolve 1.5 tsp powdered gelatine (or reduce hard and chill). Chill until set, 3 hours. Dice small.
20 minStep 2
Mix pork with soy, sesame, salt, minced ginger. Fold in the jelly cubes. Fill wrappers, pleat closed. Keep covered so they do not dry.
35 minStep 3
Steam on napa or paper 8 minutes. Vinegar and ginger slivers. Bite, slurp, then eat. They burn the impatient.
10 minWatch: The soup is lava. Wait 30 seconds.
Adapt this recipe
The canonical recipe stays intact. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are maths, not AI.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 10 October.
Substitutions
Gelatine jelly → Finely chopped set aspic from leftover roast juices
The original method. Better flavour.
Tips
- Shop gyoza skins work if you roll them a little thinner. They are not Shanghainese. They still soup.
- A leaky dumpling is still dinner. Call it a steamed bun and move on.
History & culture
Jiangnan / Shanghai restaurant craft that home cooks attempt once and then respect. Nanxiang is the pilgrimage story. Jiangnan and Shanghai restaurant craft that home cooks attempt once and then respect. Nanxiang is the pilgrimage story. Soup dumplings are a basket you share. Vinegar and ginger shreds on the side. They are not Cantonese siu mai, even if a taxonomy file is sloppy. Treat them as a steamed soup dumpling from the east.
Soup in a dumpling via aspic is a 19th–20th century Jiangnan idea that became a global basket. Soup inside a dumpling via aspic is a nineteenth- and twentieth-century Jiangnan idea that became a global steamer basket. The pleat count is craft, not law. You are wrapping seasoned pork and melted-stock jelly. That is xiaolongbao. Shop skins are an adaptation. Say so.
Modern adaptation
Provenance: Editorial adaptation.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips — not a chatbot.
How long does Xiaolongbao take?
5 hr 15 min all in — 1 hr prep, 15 min cook, 4 hr rest. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 4 people (about 20 dumplings). Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
A bit of work.
How spicy is it?
No chilli.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Wheat. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Dairy-free.
What does it cost to cook?
Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Mixing bowl, Saucepan.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at ¾ tsp.
How much soy sauce?
1 tbsp of Soy sauce.
How much toasted sesame oil?
1 tsp of Toasted sesame oil.
How much vinegar?
2 tbsp (black vinegar, to serve) of Vinegar.
What can I use instead?
Gelatine jelly → Finely chopped set aspic from leftover roast juices. The original method. Better flavour.
What should I watch for?
The soup is lava. Wait 30 seconds.
Any tips from this recipe?
Shop gyoza skins work if you roll them a little thinner. They are not Shanghainese. They still soup. A leaky dumpling is still dinner. Call it a steamed bun and move on.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
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