My Little Dragon Bags

I've sure most of you have already been to the wonder that is DinTaiFung in Arcadia, California. The only American branch of the famous Taiwanese "little dragon bag" restaurant, DinTaiFung serves up xiaolongbao, succulent little pork dumplings inside a thin layer of dough, like you've never tasted before. The secret is to inject almost-frozen meat juice into the piece of pork before it's cooked, and then wrap it in the dough skin, steam it, and then juice melts into the juicy soup that xiaolongbaos are famous for.

Since we don't have any DinTaiFung chains up here in San Francisco, though, the closest thing to authentic is: Shanghai Dumpling King, located on Balboa Avenue in the Outer Richmond, between 34th and 35th avenues.

This tiny restaurant is literally a hole in the wall, but it's not a secret that this place is good. The Chronicle's reviewed it before and it's known among SF circles to be the best place in the city to get our little dragon bags of pork.

Shanghai Dumpling King serves up Shanghainese cuisine, which means lots of sweet and soy-sauced dishes. Now, here's my honest opinion of the restaurant.

There are only three good dishes on the menu, four if I'm feeling generous and not-so-picky. I'll run through all of them right now.















Our first candidate is the obvious one. Our little dragon bags. Xiaolongbao. They may not make them pretty as one can tell from the picture, but these are pretty darn authentic. I already wrote an entry on how to eat them properly, and these don't disappoint when it comes to juice-sucking. $5 will buy you a steamer of 10. A good deal for some good dragon bags.















Lucky number 2 is the Shanghai rice cakes, or chao niangao. This is super soy-sauced, chewy, hearty, and the tiny slivers of meat and vegetables are perfect for balancing the soy-saucey goodness of the rice cakes. The texture is the best part. Wait, no. The taste is the best part. Wait, no. Okay, they're both good. This is also a must order when you come here.















And our last finalist is the green onion pancake, lovingly known to many as congyoubing. It's got green onion. It's flaky and crispy. I think I've said enough. Go eat it.

There you go. The three good items on the menu. Everything else is standard Chinese food. The shengjianbao, or pan-fried dumplings, can be pretty good too, but sometimes I think they're just a bigger version of our little dragon baos.

So if you're somewhere in the Outer Richmond, braving the fog and the cold on one of Mark Twain's favoritest of summer days, come inside and let the juicy pork warm you up. It's gooood.

Shanghai Dumpling King
3319 Balboa Street
(between 34th Ave & 35th Ave)
San Francisco, CA 94121 (415) 387-2088

After you have a bite to eat here, stroll down Balboa Street and visit the grocery shops, go to the bank, or catch a movie at one of the few independent art-house theaters left in the city: the Balboa Theater. The Outer Richmond is a pretty boring place, but it's still a very San Franciscan neighborhood. There's the local public school where my little sister attends, with all the ghetto fabulous Chinese kids; there's the small eateries spanning from 35th Avenue downwards which the high schoolers frequent during lunch time; there's the fog, of course; there's Muzzy's Attic for your quirky and eclectic furniture needs.

So, yes. Eat your dumplings. Take a walk. Embrace the fog. Watch a movie.

Maybe this popcorn from the Balboa Theater will be enough to entice you.















Till next time,

Peace, love, and little dragon bags!

Chicken Ain't Meat

My family (minus my sister and I) doesn't really understand what being a vegetarian means. When vegetarians say they don't eat meat, my mother thinks that they only don't eat pork, beef, lamb--all the red meats. Chicken is not "meat." Chicken is chicken. Fish is fish. Seafood is seafood. Those things are not meat. They are their own food groups. But most definitely not meat. An example of a common misunderstanding is shown below:

Mom: Oh, let me feed you and your friends the foods!
Viv: Okay, but X doesn't eat meat.
Mom: That's okay. I will make clam chowder.
Viv: Clam chowder has clams in it.
Mom: That's not meat.
Viv: Yes, it is. Clam is meat.
Mom: No it's not! It's seafood!
Viv: Meat is anything that's alive!!
Mom: But clams are seafood!
Viv: Okay, X doesn't eat seafood!
Mom: Oh, okay.

It's not that my family (and a lot of other Chinese families) don't understand what vegetarianism entails. It's more like, there are different terms in different languages that define the different types of "meat." Whereas in English, meat encompasses poultry, red meat, seafoods, and whatever other living things, in Chinese, the word for "meat" is rou, which--even though it is translated into "meat" in English--is processed in Chinese people's minds as red meat. Or, maybe it isn't? This is something that confuses me as a 2nd-generation ABC. I sometimes understand Chinese terms in the context of English, which gives me a warped and sometimes incorrect idea of what certain words mean. I think everyone in my family who was actually born in China (Mom, Dad, grandparents, etc.) thinks of rou as "red meat," but in my and my sister's mind, rou is synonymous with all meat. There's also separate words for chicken (ji), fish (yu), and seafood (haixian). Whereas in English, all those subcategories fall under the larger category of "meat," in Chinese, they seem to me to be distinct categories, and not necessarily all falling within the umbrealla term "meat."

That's my explanation for it. It has to do with language, but a lot also has to do with miscommunication and misunderstanding.

Food is generally an uncomplicated pleasure, but in the context of being a 2nd-generation Asian American, one can't help but run into awkward or confusing situations with language and consequently, foods.

At least it still tastes the same in all languages. =)

Shanghai, baby!

So, during the summer of 2006, I went to Shanghai on a school grant to conduct thesis "research." I ended up spending much more time exploring the city and its culinary tradition than on academic fieldwork.

My culinary experience of Shanghai last summer was a combination of everything, and I fully recognize that this was only possible because I was a privileged American using American dollars in China. I experienced a diverse array of street food, food court meals, home cooked meals with fresh ingredients, and expensive multi-course meals in the most expensive of five-star restaurants. For the typical American visiting Shanghai, or any other Chinese city, your American dollars will buy you a five-star dining experience; but my advice would be to sample the street food and smaller joints for a more diverse sampling of the local cuisine. Here's a few pictures of foods I enjoyed while in Shanghai:















This pancake-like creation is called "chung bing" and is a thicker, more dough-y version of a standard Chinese green onion pancake. Some versions of this food are slightly sweet too.















The basement floor of most malls in Shanghai have giant food courts with many different types of Asian cuisine, ranging from Chinese dim sum and snack foods, to Korean BBQ and soondooboo, to Japanese sushi. Each stand's displays of food are enticing, and coupled with the fact that a typical hearty entree will run about $3 (25-30 yuan), you can try as much food as your stomach can handle. This particular food court was located in the downtown Xujiahui district in the Meiluocheng shopping center. I highly recommend the Korean bibimbap stand.















The Asian bakeries in America cannot compare to the gourmet bread stores in Asia. This chain, called BreadTalk, sells pastries and breads filled with a variety of savory and sweet fillings, ranging from red bean and mung bean to hot dog and green onion. Mmm, a delicious snack! This particular bakery, if I remember correctly, was located in the Xujiahui district, in the Meiluocheng shopping center, but there are chains all over the city.















This was just really interesting to look at. I think it was for a fruit smoothie stand at the mall.















Making tea is an art which I am not well-versed enough in to talk about extensively here. My commentary, though, is that tea is a soothing drink on a hot Asian summer day.















Oh, look at me! I'm such a cute little pretty bun! What could be inside??















Oh, not so pretty and perfect anymore! Oh, but it was worth it! I have never, in my life, eaten such a wonderful veggie bun. This particular bun consists of a light, thin dough skin, with just the right amount of chewiness. The inside consists of spinach and small bits of mushroom and tofu. There's a small stand, a hole in the wall, called Guangmingcun, on Huaihai Lu, which sells these delectable treats for only a few cents a bun. They're freshly made each morning, and you should make sure to go early because they only make a limited amount and they sell out fast! The day before my sister and I left Shanghai, we took the bus to this stand and bought several dozen of these things to bring home to the States! They were worth it! Comes in red bean variety too, but the vegetable bun is a must-eat!















If you go to the less "developed" areas of the city, you will see fruit stands everywhere. Just beautiful.


















Sometimes, you can get the most interesting and unique foods when you leave the actual city. This concoction consists of rice, various pine nuts, mochi balls, and this strange red fruit which I don't know what to call in English. We ate this in a little rivertown about half an hour outside of Shanghai called Qibao, literally translated as "Seven Treasures."















Another edible treasure from Qibao. Giant tangyuan, or glutinous rice balls filled with your choice of black sesame, peanut, or meats. Several of these will make a filling meal and won't hurt your wallet either--they're only a few cents each!















The flavors of Lay's potato chips in China are really...strange, to say the least. Strange, as in AMAZING. Flavors like Beijing duck, Korean kimchi, French chicken, Hokkaido grilled crab, or Mexican Tomato Chicken. Of course, in reality, each flavor really just tastes like different types of "salty," but it's cute that they try to give these chips a multicultural feel. :)















*Props to Betty Wang for this picture.

And, of course, I had to include a picture of a Shanghai specialty, xiaolongbao, literally translated as "little dragon bags." How cute! Each succulent pork dumplings is filled with a burst of flavorful pork broth and a juicy piece of pork. To ensure that you don't squirt yourself or lose the precious broth, dip your dumpling in vinegar first, place the dumpling in a soup spoon (so that it collects the broth in case it spills), and then take a small bite from the side of the dumpling, suck out the broth carefully, and then eat the whole dumpling. Eating xiaolongbao is an art! Unless you rather prefer stuffing each dumpling whole into your mouth and letting the hot juices explode in your mouth, scalding your insides. Your choice.

Happy eating! Hope you enjoyed the pictures!