What's your favourite dim sum?

What's your favourite dim sum?

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KungFuPanda

Original Poster:

4,324 posts

169 months

Wednesday 22nd June 2016
quotequote all
I'm lucky enough to live in Manchester which has a decent Chinatown. Most restaurants have a comprehensive dim sum menu at lunch time. The better and larger places have dim sum carts being pushed around on the busy days where you can have a peak at what's in the baskets and decide whether to have the dishes or not.

Being oriental, whenever we go out for a Chinese, I'm left to order for the whole group. I'm lucky in that both my girlfriend and friends are all quite adventurous eaters and eat whatever I order. The basic dim sum staples which I order are:

Har Gau - king prawns in a steamed rice pastry
Siu Mai - steamed prawn and pork dumplings in a wonton pastry
Char Siu Bao - fluffy spongey dumplings with roast pork in
Chickens Feet - steamed in black bean sauce
Baby Squid - steamed in black bean sauce
Cheung Fun - Steamed cannelloni style rice rolls with meat or prawns inside with sweet soy sauce
Salt and pepper crispy squid

Usually coupled with a big plate of white rice topped with three types of roast meat (roast duck, crispy roast belly pork and char siu pork)

Price wise, you're looking at around £3 a dish for the dim sum and around £7/£8 for the rice dish.

So, what do you guys order or alternatively if you never have tried, what's stopping you?

Ultuous

2,247 posts

190 months

Wednesday 22nd June 2016
quotequote all
KungFuPanda said:
Siu Mai - steamed prawn and pork dumplings in a wonton pastry
Char Siu Bao - fluffy spongey dumplings with roast pork in
These two for me - it's making me very hungry!

Anywhere you'd particularly recommend in Manchester (both specialising in Dim Sum or wider Cantonese)?

It's about time I treated my (Dim Sum mad!) mum to a decent Chinese fix, and we normally head in the direction of Brum when I visit (she lives in Shropshire - Manchester suits me better as it's on the train line - which means I can drink!) biggrin

KungFuPanda

Original Poster:

4,324 posts

169 months

Wednesday 22nd June 2016
quotequote all
If you're going to Chinatown in the city centre, I'd recommend Pearl City. Up some stairs next to the casino. Ask for the Chinese menu too. It's a lot more comprehensive but written in English as well.

Other than that, Glamorous above Wing Yip is also good but that's on Oldham Road on the outskirts of town.


Ultuous

2,247 posts

190 months

Wednesday 22nd June 2016
quotequote all
Just the kind of tips I was after - thanks! smile

prand

5,910 posts

195 months

Wednesday 22nd June 2016
quotequote all
You are making me hungry too!

A place we used to go to a lot on Wardour St in London which sadly seems closed now, used to have the old steam trolleys being pushed about, used to love the variety of things you could end up with when you asked the waitresses to show you what they had.

Like your selection OP, we'd have various steamed dumplings of all shapes and sizes containing ingredients like pork, prawns, cabbage, water chestnuts, shark (I think there was one we used to have)?

I'm not too keen on the flat rice rolls, too floppy and sloppy for me!

I'd also have a plate of blanched broccoli with soy/oyster sauce, squid in chilli sauce, and little rib knuckles were tasty too. The char siu pork buns we'd always order too. All washed down with litres of green tea.

And we'd always finish off with a plate of lotus bean buns for "pudding".

All really good value eating too.

If we go to Ikea in Wembley, we often pop into the Asian wholesaler Hoo Hing and pick up a few trays of frozen dim sum and do it at home. I've got a few old bamboo steamers which cook them really well. Makes an interesting and pretty easy meal if you have people coming round. Although I'm sure it's not that difficult to make your own dumplings from scratch...

Murph7355

37,651 posts

255 months

Wednesday 22nd June 2016
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Gyoza. Crisped on the bottom. Could eat my own body weight in them.

WCZ

10,492 posts

193 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
quotequote all
KungFuPanda said:
I'm lucky enough to live in Manchester which has a decent Chinatown. Most restaurants have a comprehensive dim sum menu at lunch time. The better and larger places have dim sum carts being pushed around on the busy days where you can have a peak at what's in the baskets and decide whether to have the dishes or not.

Being oriental, whenever we go out for a Chinese, I'm left to order for the whole group. I'm lucky in that both my girlfriend and friends are all quite adventurous eaters and eat whatever I order. The basic dim sum staples which I order are:

Har Gau - king prawns in a steamed rice pastry
Siu Mai - steamed prawn and pork dumplings in a wonton pastry
Char Siu Bao - fluffy spongey dumplings with roast pork in
Chickens Feet - steamed in black bean sauce
Baby Squid - steamed in black bean sauce
Cheung Fun - Steamed cannelloni style rice rolls with meat or prawns inside with sweet soy sauce
Salt and pepper crispy squid

Usually coupled with a big plate of white rice topped with three types of roast meat (roast duck, crispy roast belly pork and char siu pork)

Price wise, you're looking at around £3 a dish for the dim sum and around £7/£8 for the rice dish.

So, what do you guys order or alternatively if you never have tried, what's stopping you?
these:

Har Gau - king prawns in a steamed rice pastry
Siu Mai - steamed prawn and pork dumplings in a wonton pastry
Char Siu Bao - fluffy spongey dumplings with roast pork in

are all what I love the most in life.

where do you like in Manchester?

I've been to almost every chinese restaurant in the city and i'm still not sure where is the best

Greshamst

2,028 posts

119 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
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Absolutely love dim sum, but I've struggled to find a really good one in London so far. I've got plenty on my list to try. Took me a while to get used to it being a breakfast food though, I always get dim sum cravings in the evening!

I love xiaolongbao, which is a steamed meat dumpling that has a little cube of glutinous soup put in it, so that when it steams, the stock melts and you get a big burst of flavour as you eat in (have to do it in one bite).
Can also be a mouth burning hazard though!

mandos_01

628 posts

100 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
quotequote all
Greshamst said:
Absolutely love dim sum, but I've struggled to find a really good one in London so far. I've got plenty on my list to try. Took me a while to get used to it being a breakfast food though, I always get dim sum cravings in the evening!

I love xiaolongbao, which is a steamed meat dumpling that has a little cube of glutinous soup put in it, so that when it steams, the stock melts and you get a big burst of flavour as you eat in (have to do it in one bite).
Can also be a mouth burning hazard though!
I was just going to say, does anyone have recommendations in London?

I went to a place called Plum Valley in Chinatown which I thought was ok, but a bit pricey

Any other recommendations would be much appreciated!

HotJambalaya

2,023 posts

179 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
quotequote all
mandos_01 said:
I was just going to say, does anyone have recommendations in London?

I went to a place called Plum Valley in Chinatown which I thought was ok, but a bit pricey

Any other recommendations would be much appreciated!
Well, these are all (quite a bit) more expensive then the chinatown places, but:

Princess Garden (mayfair but not too bad price wise)

Royal China -baker street

Royal China Club -Even more pricey but really good, baker street

Bright Court Yard Club -also baker street!

Phoenix Palace (not far from baker street)

Pearl Liang (paddington, probably the most reasonable of the bunch)



These are all a la carte, I tend not to like trolley places, I find the steamed stuff gets a bit soggy.

Usually start off with a bbq pork puff since it always comes quick.


dapprman

2,309 posts

266 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
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I'm another one for xiaolongbao (also seen as shaoadon dumpling), though in many places I find the stock has leaked out or is too low. I also rather like stuffed bean curd rolls (not sure the real name), which are are pork wrapped up in bean curd skins, with a little oyster sauce poured over.

In central London you can also try the Joy King Lau in Leicester St (round the corner from Waldour St) - been going there for years, nothing great but nothing bad either, and most the diners are Chinese (I also found out that the local BBC used to meet there - not sure if they still do). It's a menu restaurant, but then the only trolley one I'm aware of is the New World Chinese - which was ok when I was there a few months back, but not that good either.

Normally, partly as I come from outside London, I go to the Wing Tai, which is the restaurant part of the Staples Corner Wing Yip super market.

Now if you want some where semi-decent further north - the Taipan in Milton Keynes is worth a trip.

R E S T E C P

660 posts

104 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
quotequote all
Call me old-fashioned but the classic '1+1=2' is still my favourite, despite being over-used.

You'd have to be exceedingly dim not to get it.

Greshamst

2,028 posts

119 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
quotequote all
Forgot to mention Yuatcha in Soho, Michelin starred dim sum place. Pricey, but the venison puffs are amazing, and the bar is one long fish tank which is cool.

On my to-do list is...

Dumpling Legend, Chinatown
Shanghai Dimsum, Kingsland road, EC1
My Neighbours the Dumplings, Hackney (not traditional dimsum, but supposed to be good)

prand

5,910 posts

195 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
quotequote all
dapprman said:
In central London you can also try the Joy King Lau in Leicester St (round the corner from Waldour St)
Thanks for the recommendation, will check that place out.

Just found the name of the place I used to visit on Wardour Street: Cheun Cheng, Just opposite Waxy's little Sister. Sadly gone after 40 years (rent increases by the sound of it), replaced by an English Restaurant Morden & Lea which has now also closed after less than a year.




daqinggegg

1,394 posts

128 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
quotequote all
OP, you utter swine, just browsing PH as usual, see your list, can almost taste them. However, living in the far north east of China, no chance, I will now have to fly to Hong Kong, for a fix, invoice will be sent, flights, accommodation and of course cuisine.

Favourites Har gao
Chickens feet in a black been sauce
Char sui cheung fan
Spring rolls predictable (but taste great in H.K.
Steamed tripe
Pai gu (steamed pork ribs with garlic)

I know this is not Dim Sum, but three kinds of meat, cold steamed chicken, char sui (BBQ pork), roast duck, all washed down with lashings of Tsing Tao, that is box I've ticked tonight, which may account for my poor typing.

OP you have a lot to answer for!

fido

16,752 posts

254 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
quotequote all
Taro root dumplings - forgot the Cantonese name/pronounciation (wu gok?).

Always nice to have one or two in the middle of the other favourites.

motco

15,919 posts

245 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
quotequote all
Murph7355 said:
Gyoza. Crisped on the bottom. Could eat my own body weight in them.
I seem to remember gyoza in Japan. The name even sounds Japanese.

prand

5,910 posts

195 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
quotequote all
I agree, but I always thought Gyoza is a pretty generic term for Japanese steamed/fried dumplings and are similar to the Chinese variety. Jiaozi is similar name for dumpling too.

Wikipedia says:

Jiaozi (Chinese: 饺子) are a kind of Chinese dumpling, commonly eaten in East Asia.

The Japanese word gyōza (ギョーザ, ギョウザ) was derived from the reading of 餃子 in the Shandong Chinese dialect (giaozi)

Hmm delicious however it's spelt!

Cybertronian

1,516 posts

162 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
quotequote all
I could eat siu mai all day long!

Potstickers is another name the gyoza style dumplings go by, though seems to be more widely used in the states than over here.

shakotan

10,679 posts

195 months

Thursday 23rd June 2016
quotequote all
Cybertronian said:
I could eat siu mai all day long!

Potstickers is another name the gyoza style dumplings go by, though seems to be more widely used in the states than over here.
That's just a lazy Americanism because they can't be arsed to pronouce foreign food names properly.