''Shumai'' () is a type of traditional
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
dumpling
Dumpling is a broad class of dishes that consist of pieces of dough (made from a variety of starch sources), oftentimes wrapped around a filling. The dough can be based on bread, flour, buckwheat or potatoes, and may be filled with meat, fi ...
. In
Cantonese cuisine
Cantonese or Guangdong cuisine, also known as Yue cuisine ( or ) is the cuisine of Guangdong province of China, particularly the provincial capital Guangzhou, and the surrounding regions in the Pearl River Delta including Hong Kong and Maca ...
, it is usually served as a
dim sum
Dim sum () is a large range of small Chinese dishes that are traditionally enjoyed in restaurants for brunch. Most modern dim sum dishes are commonly associated with Cantonese cuisine, although dim sum dishes also exist in other Chinese cuis ...
snack.
[Hsiung, Deh-Ta. Simonds, Nina. Lowe, Jason. 005(2005). The food of China: a journey for food lovers. Bay Books. . p 38.] In addition to accompanying the
Chinese diaspora
Overseas Chinese () refers to people of Chinese birth or ethnicity who reside outside Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. As of 2011, there were over 40.3 million overseas Chinese.
Terminology
() or ''Hoan-kheh'' () in Hokkien, refe ...
, a variation of shumai also appears in Japan as (, ''shūmai'') and various southeast Asian countries.
Popular Chinese varieties
![烧麦](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/92/%E7%83%A7%E9%BA%A6.jpg)
Hohhot ''shaomai''
Hohhot
Hohhot,; abbreviated zh, c=呼市, p=Hūshì, labels=no formerly known as Kweisui, is the capital of Inner Mongolia in the north of the People's Republic of China, serving as the region's administrative, economic and cultural center.''The Ne ...
shaomai is a regional variety in Hohhot,
Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia, officially the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. Its border includes most of the length of China's border with the country of Mongolia. Inner Mongolia also accounts for a ...
.
The wrapping is a very thin, round sheet of unleavened dough, with a pleat border. There is only one kind of filling, which mainly consists of chopped or minced mutton, scallion and ginger. Hohhot shaomai features this extensive use of scallion and ginger, creating a dense combined scent, and a slightly spicy taste. The filling is put in the center of the wrapping and the border of the wrapping is loosely gathered above, forming a "neck" and a flower shaped top. It is then cooked by steaming or pan-frying. Hohhot shaomai is served in the unit of
"liang", which means either eight steamed ones served in a steamer tier, or eight fried ones served in a dish. "Liang" is equal to 50 grams, being traditionally used as an indication of the total weight of the wrapping. Hohhot shaomai is commonly served with vinegar and tea, due to its greasiness.
Cantonese ''siumaai''
This is the most well-known variety outside of Asia and is from the southern provinces of
Guangdong
Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...
and
Guangxi
Guangxi (; ; Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanized as Kwanghsi; ; za, Gvangjsih, italics=yes), officially the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (GZAR), is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the People's Republic ...
. As prepared in
Cantonese cuisine
Cantonese or Guangdong cuisine, also known as Yue cuisine ( or ) is the cuisine of Guangdong province of China, particularly the provincial capital Guangzhou, and the surrounding regions in the Pearl River Delta including Hong Kong and Maca ...
, ''siumaai'' is also referred to as "pork and mushroom dumpling". Its standard filling consists primarily of
ground pork
Ground meat, called mince or minced meat outside North America, is meat finely chopped by a meat grinder or a chopping knife. A common type of ground meat is ground beef, but many other types of meats are prepared in a similar fashion, includ ...
, small whole or chopped shrimp,
Chinese black mushroom
The shiitake (alternate form shitake) (; ''Lentinula edodes'') is an edible mushroom native to East Asia, which is now cultivated and consumed around the globe. It is considered a medicinal mushroom in some forms of traditional medicine.
Ta ...
,
green onion
Scallions (also known as spring onions or green onions) are vegetables derived from various species in the genus ''Allium''. Scallions generally have a milder taste than most onions and their close relatives include garlic, shallot, leek, chi ...
(also called scallion) and
ginger
Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice
A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices ...
with seasonings of Chinese
rice wine
Rice wine is an alcoholic beverage fermented and distilled from rice, traditionally consumed in East Asia, Southeast Asia and South Asia. Rice wine is made by the fermentation of rice starch that has been converted to sugars. Microbes are the so ...
(e.g.
Shaoxing
Shaoxing (; ) is a prefecture-level city on the southern shore of Hangzhou Bay in northeastern Zhejiang province, China. It was formerly known as Kuaiji and Shanyin and abbreviated in Chinese as (''Yuè'') from the area's former inhabitants. ...
rice wine),
soy sauce
Soy sauce (also called simply soy in American English and soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and '' Aspergillus oryzae'' or ''Asp ...
,
sesame oil
Sesame oil is an edible vegetable oil derived from sesame seeds. The oil is one of the earliest-known crop-based oils. Worldwide mass modern production is limited due to the inefficient manual harvesting process required to extract the oil. O ...
and chicken stock.
Bamboo shoot
Bamboo shoots or bamboo sprouts are the edible shoots (new bamboo culms that come out of the ground) of many bamboo species including ''Bambusa vulgaris'' and ''Phyllostachys edulis''. They are used as vegetables in numerous Asian dishes and b ...
s,
water chestnuts Water chestnut may refer to either of two plants (both sometimes used in Chinese cuisine):
* The Chinese water chestnut ('' Eleocharis dulcis''), eaten for its crisp corm
* The water caltrop
The water caltrop is any of three extant species of th ...
and pepper can also be added. The outer covering is made of a thin sheet of
lye
A lye is a metal hydroxide traditionally obtained by leaching wood ashes, or a strong alkali which is highly soluble in water producing caustic basic solutions. "Lye" most commonly refers to sodium hydroxide (NaOH), but historically has been u ...
water dough, which is either yellow or white. The center is usually garnished with an orange dot, made of crab
roe
Roe ( ) or hard roe is the fully ripe internal egg masses in the ovaries, or the released external egg masses, of fish and certain marine animals such as shrimp, scallop, sea urchins and squid. As a seafood, roe is used both as a cooking, coo ...
or diced
carrot
The carrot ('' Daucus carota'' subsp. ''sativus'') is a root vegetable, typically orange in color, though purple, black, red, white, and yellow cultivars exist, all of which are domesticated forms of the wild carrot, ''Daucus carota'', nat ...
, although a green dot made with a pea may be used. The decorative presentations vary.
A fish paste variety of ''siumaai'' is sold as a popular street food in
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
, usually alongside curry fishballs. It is most often eaten with a sweet soy sauce and/or chili oil.
The ''Hong Kong Siumaipedia'' was written to document the Cantonese variety.
Hunan ''juhua shaomai''
Called the
chrysanthemum
Chrysanthemums (), sometimes called mums or chrysanths, are flowering plants of the genus ''Chrysanthemum'' in the family Asteraceae. They are native to East Asia and northeastern Europe. Most species originate from East Asia and the center ...
shaomai, this variety is made in
Changsha
Changsha (; ; ; Changshanese pronunciation: (), Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is the capital and the largest city of Hunan Province of China. Changsha is the 17th most populous city in China with a population of over 10 million, an ...
,
Hunan
Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to ...
province. This shaomai is named for its opening resembling the chrysanthemum flower petal shape. It is spicy with pepper and the wrapper is translucent. The filling largely consists of glutinous rice, pork
hash, shrimp,
shiitake mushrooms
The shiitake (alternate form shitake) (; ''Lentinula edodes'') is an edible mushroom native to East Asia, which is now cultivated and consumed around the globe. It is considered a medicinal mushroom in some forms of traditional medicine.
T ...
bamboo shoots and onion.
Jiangnan ''shaomai''
''Shaomai'' prepared in the
Jiangnan
Jiangnan or Jiang Nan (; formerly romanized Kiang-nan, literally "South of the River" meaning "South of the Yangtze") is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, incl ...
region (stretching from
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
to
Nanjing
Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...
) has a filling similar to ''
zongzi
''Zongzi'' (; ), ''rouzong'' () or simply ''zong'' (Cantonese Jyutping: ''zung2'') is a traditional Chinese rice dish made of glutinous rice stuffed with different fillings and wrapped in bamboo leaves (generally of the species ''Indocalamus t ...
'' from the region, containing marinated pork pieces in
glutinous rice
Glutinous rice (''Oryza sativa var. glutinosa''; also called sticky rice, sweet rice or waxy rice) is a type of rice grown mainly in Southeast and East Asia, and the northeastern regions of South Asia, which has opaque grains, very low amylose ...
,
soy sauce
Soy sauce (also called simply soy in American English and soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and '' Aspergillus oryzae'' or ''Asp ...
and
Shaoxing wine
Shaoxing wine (''Shaohsing'', ''Hsiaohsing'', ''Shaoshing''), also called "yellow wine", is a traditional Chinese wine made by fermenting glutinous rice, water and wheat-based yeast.
It must be produced in Shaoxing, in the Zhejiang province of ...
, steamed with pork fat. It is larger in size than the Cantonese version.
The Shanghai variation also contains shiitake mushrooms and onion. The mince, mushrooms and onion are
stir-fried
Stir frying () is a cooking technique in which ingredients are fried in a small amount of very hot oil while being stirred or tossed in a wok. The technique originated in China and in recent centuries has spread into other parts of Asia and t ...
before being prepared as the filling.
Uyghur ''shaomai''
In northwest China, the
Uyghur people
The Uyghurs; ; ; ; zh, s=, t=, p=Wéiwú'ěr, IPA: ( ), alternatively spelled Uighurs, Uygurs or Uigurs, are a Turkic ethnic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the general region of Central Asia, Central and East As ...
of
Xinjiang
Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...
adapted shaomai into two regional varieties. The southern Xinjiang recipes differ slightly from the northern version in terms of ingredients and method. The filling of the northern version consists of mutton or beef, along with
green onion
Scallions (also known as spring onions or green onions) are vegetables derived from various species in the genus ''Allium''. Scallions generally have a milder taste than most onions and their close relatives include garlic, shallot, leek, chi ...
and radish, whereas the southern filling primarily uses
glutinous rice
Glutinous rice (''Oryza sativa var. glutinosa''; also called sticky rice, sweet rice or waxy rice) is a type of rice grown mainly in Southeast and East Asia, and the northeastern regions of South Asia, which has opaque grains, very low amylose ...
with smaller amounts of mutton or beef. Minced meat from sheep ribs containing some fat is ideal.
Jiangxi ''Yifeng shaomai''
Called the
Yifeng shaomai in the southeastern
Jiangxi
Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...
province, this version's distinct flavour comes from a blend of pork mince, bread flour, sesame seed powder, ground pepper and sugar. It is particularly popular in the area of Yifeng Tanshan Tianbao where it is one of the foods eaten during the
Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year is the festival that celebrates the beginning of a New Year, new year on the traditional lunisolar calendar, lunisolar and solar Chinese calendar. In Sinophone, Chinese and other East Asian cultures, the festival is commonly r ...
celebration.
Variants from other countries
Japanese ''shūmai''
''Shūmai'' in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
usually use pork and minced onion as the main ingredients and are usually topped with a green pea. Compared to Chinese shaomai in which the meat filling is usually minced, the meat in Japanese shumai is ground to a paste.
Indonesian ''siomay''
![Siomay](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Siomay.jpeg)
''Siomay'' or ''siomai'' (sometimes called somay) in
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
is pronounced the same way as its sisters and is usually a wonton wrapper, stuffed with filling and steamed. It is served also with steamed potatoes, tofu, hard-boiled eggs, steamed
bitter gourd
''Momordica charantia'' (commonly called bitter melon; Goya; bitter apple; bitter gourd; bitter squash; balsam-pear; with many more names listed below) is a tropical and subtropical vine of the family Cucurbitaceae, widely grown in Asia, Afri ...
and cabbages, all sliced and topped with
peanut sauce
Peanut sauce, satay sauce (saté sauce), ''bumbu kacang'', ''sambal kacang'', or ''pecel '' is an Indonesian sauce made from ground roasted or fried peanuts, widely used in Indonesian cuisine and many other dishes throughout the world.
Peanut s ...
and ''kecap manis'' (
sweet soy sauce). Because the population of Indonesia is largely
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
, pork siomay is rare and is usually made from various fish, most commonly
wahoo
Wahoo (''Acanthocybium solandri'') is a scombrid fish found worldwide in tropical and subtropical seas. It is best known to sports fishermen, as its speed and high-quality flesh makes it a prized and valued game fish. In Hawaii, the wahoo is kno ...
or
mackerel tuna
''Euthynnus affinis'', the mackerel tuna, little tuna, wavyback skipjack tuna, kawakawa, or tongkol is a species of ray-finned bony fish in the family Scombridae, or mackerel family. It belongs to the tribe Thunnini, better known as the tunas. ...
. This variant is less common in Western countries.
Philippine ''siomai''
![Siomai](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/Siomai.jpg)
''Siomai'' ( fil, siyomay) in the Philippines is often ground pork, beef, shrimp, and the like. It is combined with extenders like garlic, green peas, carrots and among others which is then wrapped in wonton wrappers. It is commonly steamed, with a popular variant being fried and resulting in a crisp exterior. It is normally dipped in soy sauce with the juice of
calamansi
Calamansi (''Citrus'' × ''microcarpa''), also known as calamondin, Philippine lime, or Philippine lemon, is an economically important citrus hybrid predominantly cultivated in the Philippines. It is native to the Philippines, Borneo, Sumatra, ...
, a Philippine lime, and a chili-garlic oil is sometimes added to the sauce.
A recent variant on ''siomai'' is wrapped in sheets of
laver after the
wonton
A wonton () is a type of Chinese dumpling commonly found across regional styles of Chinese cuisine. It is also spelled wantan or wuntun in transliteration from Cantonese () and wenden from Shanghainese (). There are many different styles of ...
wrappers, which are marketed as "Japanese".
Vietnamese ''xíu mại''
''Xíu mại'' in
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
has minced pork, onion, scallion and shredded bread as the main ingredients and is cooked in tomato sauce. It is usually served in a roll of ''
bánh mì
In Vietnamese cuisine, or banh mi (, ; , "bread") is a short baguette with thin, crisp crust and soft, airy texture. It is often split lengthwise and filled with savory ingredients like a submarine sandwich and served as a meal, called ''bánh ...
'' for breakfast. Because the recipe omits dough wrappings, it is more akin to a
meatball
A meatball is ground meat rolled into a ball, sometimes along with other ingredients, such as bread crumbs, minced onion, egg (food), eggs, butter, and seasoning. Meatballs are cooked by frying, baking, steaming, or braising in sauce. There are ...
rather than ''shumai''.
History
As described by historical materials, ''shaomai'' was served in tea houses as a secondary product.
The name "", means the product was "sold as a sideline", with tea. It is considered to have been brought to Beijing and Tianjin by merchants from
Shanxi
Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...
, causing its later wide spread. The name was later transformed into modern forms like "; ", "" and "; ", changing the characters while keeping the original pronunciation. The product was initially in the form of meat and vegetables wrapped in thin sheets, and was sold weighing only the wrapper, a tradition which is still kept in Huhhot.
Serving
![Steamed lamb shaomai served in Huhhot](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Steamed_lamb_shaomai_served_in_Huhhot.jpg)
In Huhhot, ''shaomai'' is commonly served as a staple food, especially for breakfast. It is considered a local specialty in regions around Huhhot. Steamed ''shaomai'' are served in steam tiers, and fried ''shaomai'' are served in dishes.
Within the
dim sum
Dim sum () is a large range of small Chinese dishes that are traditionally enjoyed in restaurants for brunch. Most modern dim sum dishes are commonly associated with Cantonese cuisine, although dim sum dishes also exist in other Chinese cuis ...
tradition of southern China, ''shaomai'' is one of the most standard dishes.
It is generally served alongside ''
har gow
Har gow (sometimes anglicized as "ha gow", "haukau", "hakao"; ) is a traditional Cantonese dumpling served as dim sum.Hsiung, Deh-Ta. Simonds, Nina. Lowe, Jason. 005(2005). The food of China: a journey for food lovers. Bay Books. . p41.
Name
T ...
'', another variety of steamed dumpling containing shrimp, cooked pork fat, bamboo shoots and scallions; collectively these are known as ''har gow-siu mai'' ().
In
Guangzhou
Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...
, ''siu mai'' (燒賣) and ''har gow'' (蝦餃), along with
''char siu bao'' (叉燒包), and
egg tarts (蛋撻), are considered the classic dishes of Cantonese dim sum cuisine. They are collectively referred to as the "Four Heavenly Kings" of the cuisine. ().
In food stalls in Indonesia, ''siomai'' (or "siomay" in local dialect) are eaten together with steamed vegetables and
tofu
Tofu (), also known as bean curd in English, is a food prepared by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness; it can be ''silken'', ''soft'', ''firm'', ''extra firm'' or ''super firm ...
, and served with spicy
peanut sauce
Peanut sauce, satay sauce (saté sauce), ''bumbu kacang'', ''sambal kacang'', or ''pecel '' is an Indonesian sauce made from ground roasted or fried peanuts, widely used in Indonesian cuisine and many other dishes throughout the world.
Peanut s ...
.
In
Philippine
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
food stalls and fast food restaurants, ''siomai'' is eaten with dip, toothpicks to facilitate handling, or with rice (using a spoon and fork).
See also
*
Har gow
Har gow (sometimes anglicized as "ha gow", "haukau", "hakao"; ) is a traditional Cantonese dumpling served as dim sum.Hsiung, Deh-Ta. Simonds, Nina. Lowe, Jason. 005(2005). The food of China: a journey for food lovers. Bay Books. . p41.
Name
T ...
*
Siomay
Siomay (also Somai), is an Indonesian steamed fish dumpling with vegetables served in peanut sauce. It is derived from the Chinese Shumai. It is considered a light meal, similar to the Chinese Dim Sum. It is traditionally made from pork but is f ...
References
{{Dumplings
Cantonese cuisine
Chinese words and phrases
Dim sum
Dumplings
Hong Kong cuisine
Shanghai cuisine