A Dumpling by Any Other Name

GUEST POST: My sister BJ describes her three favorite types of dumplings from her adopted hometown of Shanghai.

When I saw that “dumplings” was on the list of National Dishes of China that the Traveleaters invited readers to write about, I thought to myself, “Bu hui, a!” (No way!). Because lumping this polymorphous staple of Chinese cuisine into one generic term is much like saying your favorite hue is “color” — there are literally endless variations and it would be impossible for one single description to embody all the different types that exist in the multiple regions of the Middle Kingdom.

So I will focus instead on three types of dumplings that I have grown to love in my adopted hometown, Shanghai.

First up is the xiaolongbao or Shanghai Soupy Dumpling, which is probably the kind that most people associate with Shanghai. It is steamed dumpling made with paper-thin doughy skin wrapped around a filling of pork (often combined with crab meat) and…