Xiao Long Bao..Let Me Explain....
Like the good American’s we are, we celebrated Presidents Day with a long-standing tradition of gorging on Xiao Long Bao aka Soup Dumplings. Four score and 20 year ago our first pioneering fathers feasted each February on soup dumplings and copious amounts of steamed pork buns and pan-fried shrimp and chive pillows. It’s a fact; I read it in on the Internet so it has to be true.
With that being said, it was the ultimate showing of respect. We met at China Mama on our beloved Spring Mountain Road. It was half of our usual foodie crew but twice the normal appetite. I will preface this by saying the service (or lack there of) was non existent to the point where we had to tap the waitress on the shoulder and let her know we were done 20 minutes prior and in need of the check. That’s neither here nor there because we’re here to talk about the food.
Is it appropriate to start with “today I ate jellyfish”? I believe it is. And that’s what I did. I cold jellyfish salad with sesame oil and cilantro. I like to be a little adventurous and this dish falls under that spectrum. I was a little hesitant however; I must say it wasn’t bad. It was a lot like eating an al dente noodle just a few minutes away from being cooked al the way through. It almost had a peeled vegetable like consistency. Far from fishy but a lot of that may have had to do with the sesame oil and it being pickled.
We then ordered and assortment of Xiao Long Bao, Pan Fired Shrimp and Chive Pillows, Tin-Jin Style Steamed Pork Buns and Beef Rolls. I’m probably missing some because when we order I tend to black out and order the menu, especially in Chinatown. Surprisingly, the Beef Rolls were one of the most memorable of the lot. The beef was rolled in a sweet pancake with green onions and caramelized beef. It was that salty sweet umami you look for but in a carb meet protein way. The soup dumplings also up there in the flavor power rankings however they were smaller and had less “soup” then I was used to. I like to poke the hole and burn the hell out of my mouth when I eat them. You mean to tell me you don’t? And we’re friends? The pillows were a little bit of let down when I found out you couldn’t sleep on them. The pork buns saved the day. They picked up where the pillows lacked in depth. Super soft and yes, pillowy. They were chewy and filled with salty pork and green onions. 10/10 would rest my head on and digest in my stomach again.
Was it the best ever? Nope. Memorable? Meh. Am I channeling my inner McCauley Culkin in Uncle Buck? Yup. Should I end my blog post on a question? Probably not. Am I still no a foodie? Hell na bruh, we eatin.
