In America, there seems to be two types of Chinese food: American “Chinese” food or authentic Chinese food. By American “Chinese” food I mean Panda Express or the like, which serve dishes that aren’t even traditionally Chinese. I mean, orange chicken wasn’t even invented in China! (I’m not going to lie, though- I still love American “Chinese” food, in all its false glory.) Anyway, on this occasion I’m going to review Shanghai Dumpling, which serves actual Chinese dishes- and they’re good at it, too!
We decided to go there for lunch on a Saturday, so the tiny restaurant was packed. We had to wait about half an hour before we were seated! But as I’ve said before, don’t judge a restaurant because a place is small and doesn’t look super polished- as evidenced by the long line we had to wait in, the food it served was up to standard!
We started off with a dish of Shanghai drunken chicken (牛肉夹葱油饼 niúròu jiā cōng yóubǐng), shredded daikon radish pastries (上海萝卜丝饼, shànghǎi luóbo sī bǐng), and of course, a steamer of pork soup dumplings (上海小笼包, shànghǎi xiǎo lóng bāo). Shanghai drunken chicken consists of a cold plate of chicken cutlets, usually with the skin and bones still intact. The meat is soaked in a marinade containing rice wine, which gives the meat a distinctive flavor of alcohol. It’s a deliciously light course; it lacks the grease and heaviness of many hot meat dishes, so it’s a popular Chinese appetizer!
The shredded daikon radish pastries consisted of shredded portions of seasoned daikon radish encased in layers of light, flaky pastry crust. The refreshingly juicy strips of radish complemented the crispy exterior very well.
Next, were the pork soup dumplings. Soup dumplings are named for the broth that each dumpling contains along with whatever meat or vegetable filling it contains. After breaking the doughy wrapper of each dumpling, pour the soup within into the provided soup spoon. This allows you to drink the savory broth while you enjoy the dumpling! The rich, savory pork was perfectly balanced by the lighter and more delicate taste and texture of its dough wrapper! Soup dumplings are one of my favorite Chinese dishes; I’ll definitely be adding more posts that feature this yummy food sometime in the future!)
We also ordered a bowl of pork and vegetable wonton soup (上海荠菜大馄饨, shànghǎi jìcài dà húntún), which featured wontons (a sort of small dumpling) containing a pork and vegetable filling swimming in a clear broth. The soup itself was very light, and the wontons were filling and flavorful!
A beef scallion pancake wrap (牛肉夹葱油饼, niúròu jiā cōng yóubǐng) was the last dish that we ordered. (In this case “pancake” refers to the savory scallion pancake that encases the beef filling, not the sweet, golden stacks of fluffy cakes dripping with syrup that are a traditional American breakfast). It’s made by first layering beef slices, hoisin sauce, and cucumber sticks onto a scallion pancake and topping that with scallions and cilantro. Then, the filling is rolled up within the pancake and the entire wrap is pan fried until it becomes crispy. It’s a mouthwatering dish that’s crunchy on the outside, and holds a blend of savory beef, sweet sauce, and refreshingly light cucumbers within.
Shanghai Dumpling (like so many other restaurants I’ve come across) has proven itself to be very capable of serving up skillfully assembled dishes that delight in taste and texture! And once again, it’s been proven to me that you should never judge a restaurant by its appearance!
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