Siu Mai (Pork and Shrimp Dumplings)
Siu mai are the open-topped pork-and-shrimp dumplings you point at from every dim sum cart — a thin yellow wrapper cupping a juicy, bouncy filling, the top left open and often dotted with orange roe. Along with har gow, they're the dumpling you order first. → photo 1 They also traveled a lot farther than most people think: siu mai are not originally Cantonese at all.
Siu mai are the open-topped pork-and-shrimp dumplings you point at from every dim sum cart — a thin yellow wrapper cupping a juicy, bouncy filling, the top left open and often dotted with orange roe. Along with har gow, they’re the dumpling you order first. → photo 1
They also traveled a lot farther than most people think: siu mai are not originally Cantonese at all.
Ingredients
- Filling
- 3/4 lb ground pork (some fat), 1/4 lb shrimp, roughly chopped
- 4 dried shiitake, soaked and diced
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 1 Tbsp oyster sauce, 1 tsp sesame oil, 1 tsp sugar, white pepper,
- 1 tsp cornstarch, grated ginger
- Wrappers / top
round yellow siu mai (wonton) wrappers
- crab roe, tobiko, or finely diced carrot to dot the tops
Directions
Key ingredients
- Make a bouncy filling:
- Mix the pork, shrimp and shiitake with the seasonings and cornstarch, then stir vigorously in one direction (or throw it against the bowl) until it turns sticky and springy — that develops the bounce that defines a good siu mai.
- Shape the open cup:
- Put a wrapper in the circle of your thumb and forefinger, press a heaping spoon of filling down into it so the wrapper pleats up around the sides, and leave the TOP open. Flatten the bottom so it stands. Dot the open top with a little roe or diced carrot.
- Steam:
- Steam over high heat about 8-10 minutes, until the pork is cooked and the filling is firm and juicy. Serve hot with chili oil or soy.
Notes
Where this came from Standard Cantonese dim-sum siu mai method.
Not a Cantonese invention The Cantonese pork-and-shrimp siu mai everyone knows is an adaptation. The dumpling is traced back to Hohhot, in Inner Mongolia, where it was originally a MUTTON dumpling that spread along trade routes; Cantonese teahouses reworked it into the pork-shrimp dim sum standard. The characters 燒賣 are a phonetic re-spelling — the leading etymology is 捎賣, roughly ‘sold on the side’ — not literally ‘roast and sell.’
The topping The traditional dot on top is crab roe or a bit of carrot; the bright orange tobiko (flying-fish roe) you often see now is a modern flourish. And the little green pea pressed into Japanese-style shumai is a 1960s frozen-food-era invention.
Sourcing Use the thin yellow round wrappers labeled for siu mai or wonton. A mix of pork with real fat and chopped (not pureed) shrimp gives the best juicy-bouncy texture.