Street Dim Sums in Shanghai-Jiuniang Yuanzi

Sweet, sour, soft, glutinous and savory, this is Jiuniang Yuanzi which can be translated to English as Boiled Glutinous Rice Balls in Fermented Glutinous Rice soup.

The most important thing in making Jiuniang Yuanzi is “Jiuniang” which is the fermented glutinous rice. To make Jiuniang, the maker should have a thing called Jiuqu. Jiuqu is a traditional thing that Chinese use to make alcohol. According to the web:

Add some conidiophores of koji mold to the rice that is being strongly steamed and then keep the temperature. Mycelia will appear bushily on the rice. This is called Jiuqu. Therefore, people have used Jiuqu to make alcohol form of old.

Yuanzi, the rice ball, is much easier to make. Makers just add water to glutinous rice flour and then shape it to little balls.

To make Jiuniang Yuanzi, you just need boil them all and add a little starch. When the Jiuniang Yuanzi is finished, you can smell the bouquet from the soup and the Yuanzi is so soft.

Some years ago, Jiuniang Yuanzi stalls are everywhere in the street, but now there are fewer and fewer. Only in some old Linong can you see some grannies are selling the soup. In contrast, almost all the restaurants sell Jiuniang Yuanzi as a kind of snacks now. We can guess that Jiuniang Yuanzi is on its way of changing from street dim sum to a kind of official Chinese cuisine.

I like Jiuniang Yuanzi so much that I often can been seen sitting in the street, eating this soup. Have a bowl of Jiuniang Yuanzi make you warm all around your body in winter and its taste is just so joyful.

Street Dim Sums in Shanghai-Fried Smelly Bean Curd

The smelly bean curd is one of the most debatable foods in China. However, it doesn’t influence it to be one of the most popular street dim sums in Shanghai. The only thing is：Some people will be wild with joy when they see a smelly bean curd stall while others will hide as far as they can as the terrible smell.

There is a proverb in China, describing the smelly bean curd, “Smells terrible, eats wonderful”, but only those who like the smelly bean curd can understand the proverb. Others may not believe how can such smelly thing tastes good! We even cannot bear the smell! It’s similar to durian-people always debate for it. Some people like it; some people hate it.

The process of making smelly bean curd is very weird. People let the bean curd go mold first and then put it in the brine for about half a month. When get the bean curd out of the brine after fifteen days, the smelly bean curd is ready cook. Usually people fry the smelly bean curd and eat it with chili sauce.

I can’t bear the smell of this food. It stinks! Besides, I don’t think such mucedinous can be eaten. The fried smelly bean curd is the only one street dim sum in Shanghai that I don’t like. However, both my parents and my friends like it so much. When they eat it, I always hide far away. The smelly bean curd makes people different.

Street Dim Sums in Shanghai-Shuangdang Soup

I like soup so much. I can’t have a meal without soup; I will feel extremely satisfied if I have a soup as a snack on the street. Delicious soup not only satisfies one’s appetite, but also warms a person, both physically and mentally.

In my mind, Shuangdang Soup is only sold in Shanghai. This kind of soup is very easily made, but popular with all the people, from the kids to the aged. The word “Shuangdang” actually means two things: one is fried tofu and the other is bean curd leaf rolls with minced pork. They are both typical Chinese food. There are many different kinds of tofu in China, like the rough tofu, fine grinded Tofu, egg tofu, manual tofu and torfu. Usually, tofu in American is the rough tofu. People fry the manual tofu to make fried tofu which is the main material of Shuangdang Soup. Fried tofu in the soup is just like a sponge. It absorbs the soup and when you bite it, the soup comes out from the fried tofu to your mouth suddenly. It is fantastic. The bean curd leaf roll is another main material of the soup. People cut tofu to very thin and flat pieces, put flavored pork emulsion on them and then roll them to make the bean curd leaf roll with mince meat. The third main material of the soup is the bean vermicelli. Without the bean vermicelli, it’s just a soup for drink, but once bean vermicelli is added, it becomes a kind of snack. You can have it in your leisure time, wherever on the street, for hunger, for fun or for anything.

Street dim sums are usually simple, easy and fast to eat. However, the Shuangdang Soup was the beginning of slowly-eaten dim sums. It is suitable that you have a bowl of Shuangdang Soup the same time as you are talking to your friends somewhere in the street. Have a long discussion, have a nice soup.

Street Dim Sums in Shanghai-Shengjianbao

When I was a little child, I didn’t like Shengjianbao at all because I thought it was too dry and the skin was too thick. In my mind, I used to think only things with meat fluid and thin skins like Xiaolongbao are delicious. (Actually Shanghai kids always like to compare Shengjianbao with Xiaolongbao. Is that because they are both small? ) However, now I love it so much. It is different from Xiaolongbao and it has its own style.

In old Shanghai, Shengjianbao stalls are everywhere, far more than today’s Starbucks on the street. Actually Shengjianbao is a kind of small stuffed bun with thick surface but different from traditional steamed stuffed bun, it is pan-fried. People use meat emulsion, scallion and ginger to make the stuffing and then put the stuffing in the half-fermented flour dough. Then the uncooked Shengjianbao is finished. When needed, makers put the Shengjianbao separately on an iron pan and then fry them. In the process of frying, they add water to them several times without turning over them. When the makers finish cooking the Shenjianbao, they will put some sesame on them.

One characteristic of Shengjianbao is its bottom. The bottom of Shengjianbao is hard, golden and toasty. To eat a Shenjianbao, I always like to begin with the bottom. The other part of its surface is very soft and has an aroma of sesame and scallion. The stuffing is delicious. I often like to have Shengjiaobao with a cup of soymilk, which is the best mate for a breakfast.

Street Dim Sums in Shanghai-Xiaolongbao

Xiaolongbao is the most famous Shanghai food. Some people even come to Shanghai just to taste Xiaolongbao which is a kind of small streamed bun.

There is a pithy formula to eat Xiaolong properly: “Pick up it gently, move it slowly, bite a small hole on it and then taste the meat fluid in it.” That describes the feature of Xiaolongbao exactly. The skin of Xiaolong is extremely thin. The thinner is the better. Thick skin makes Xiaolongbao taste bad. Often, the skin of Xiaolongbao is translucent and you can see the meat and meat fluid inside through the skin. Another factor that effects the taste of Xiaolongbao is the meat fluid. Good Xiaolongbao should be full of the meat fluid. A dry Xiaolongbao is a bad one. The stuffing in a Xiaolongbao is made of pork in most times. However, in some upper-scale snack bar, people use the crab meat to make Xiaolongbao, which costs a lot.

Xiaolongbao can be seen everywhere in Shanghai, but two places are specially famous of Xiaolongbao. One is the Yu Garden. There are hundreds of Shanghai Dim Sums sold in the Yu Garden and the Xiaolongbao is one of the most popular foods. If you want to buy a box of Xiaolongbao in the Yu Garden on weekends, it may take you an hour in the queue. Both normal Xiaolongbao and crab-meat-made Xiaolongbao are sold in the Yu Garden. They are both expensive but not taste so good. If you haven’t taste Xiaolongbao before, you may think those in the Yu Garden taste wonderful, but once you try the Xiaolongbao in Nanxiang Guqi Yuan, you will think they are junk, compared to those in the Nanxiang Guqi Yuan. I strongly command every tourist in Shanghai to have the Xiaolongbao in Nanxiang Guqi Yuan because it’s so amazingly delicious!

Street Dim Sums in Shanghai-Youdunzi

Do you know what is it? It's called Youdunzi, an old food in Shanghai. Actually it's a kind of oil-grilled turnip cake.

I remember when I was 5 years old, my grandma bought a Youdunzi for me from a street stall for the first time and after I ate that Youdunzi, I begged for a long time for another. It left a deep impression on me. Nowadays, Youdunzi are sold less and less in the city and it has been extinct from the downtown, important business areas and new residence communities. It can only be seen in some old residence areas. I missed this food for years and finally found it in a street stall near my high school.

Youdunzi is not for any meals, just for snack. I often bought a Youdunzi on my way from school to home in winter and ate it on the street with my friends. We just sat on the ground on the side of the road, keeping a hot Youdunzi in our hands and talked till dust.
Youdunzi is only sold in street stalls. Makers made panada in advance. When somebody ask for a Youdunzi, they put the panada, turnip and meat emulsion together in a die and then put the whole thing in to boiled oil. When they turn to the color of gold, pick them out and the Youdunzi is finished. Youdunzi is very appetizing and delicious. Besides, it will make one think of the Old Shanghai, that age of our grandparents and to me, it makes me miss my high school time so much.

Street Dim Sums in Shanghai-Guotie

This is a picture of Guotie that is also known as the pan-fried dumplings. This is also one of the most popular foods in Shanghai. People often have them for a good breakfast.

Many people know Chinese dumplings but few of them know Guotie. Someone just think that if you fry the dumplings, they become Guotie. Actually, they are wrong. Guotie , a characteristic food of Shanghai, is different from dumplings from the north part of China. People can use hundreds of materials to make the stuffing of dumplings, no matter meats, fishes and vegetables and they care about the flavor of the stuffing and whether the materials are fresh. However, Guotie is always made of meat, sometimes, with a few of vegetable. People not only care about the flavor of the stuffing but also the process of cuisine very much. They should make sure that the bottom of Guotie should be a little burnt but not too much, the meat inside should be cooked and the other side of the Guotie is neither too hard nor too soft. The most important criterion to decide whether a Guotie is good is that there should be meat fluid in it. When you bite a Guotie, the first thing you can taste should be the extremely delicious hot meat fluid. You drink all of it and then begin to eat the whole Guotie. Therefore, if you have a Guotie that is very dry in some places, that must not be an orthodox Guotie.

Streert Dim Sums in Shanghai-The Baojiaobu

This is Baojiaobu which is also called egg roll, one of the most popular street Dim Sums in Shanghai.If I have the Baojiaobu for breakfast, I would feel extremely happy because I like it so much. It smells good, looks good and tastes good. Whenever I see there is Baojiaobu being sold on the street, I will buy one under any circumstances.


People use iron panel to make Baojiaobu and when you buy one, the Baojiaobu will be made in front of you. You can see the whole process and tell the maker what materials you want to put in the egg roll, what you don’t want and what flavor you like. See the picture of a street stall of Baojiaobu.






The surface of Baojiaobu is a round flat cake made from eggs and flour. If you like, you can ask to put some scallion on it. The core of Baojiaobu are made of Chinese twisted cruller, preserved Szechuan pickle and tangy source. These Three things are all typical Chinese food. Among them, the twisted cruller is a traditional Shanghai food. People mixed and stir flour, alum, alkali and salt together and cut them to strips afterwards. Then, twist the strips and fry them until they turn to the color of gold. The Chinese twisted cruller is appetizing and crisp. Usually, makers will make all the Chinese twisted crullers at home or somewhere else before they open the stalls so that they can be available to make Baojiaobu. After make the round surface of Baojiaobu, makers will put those core materials on it and add ask if you want to add some spicy source. In the end, makers will roll up the Baojiaobu for you and till now, your Baojiaobu is finished. You can keep it in hand and eat it wherever you like.

Believe me , a hot Baojiaobu really brings you happiness.

Foods in Shanghai

Previously, I wrote about the architectures in Shanghai, including the most famous ones and the old and new resident buildings. Now I would like to transfer our focus to food.

China has a diversity of delicious foods. Food in different parts of China are totally different. Among them, the most famous styles of cooking are Guangdong food and Sichuan food. Actually, Shanghai doesn’t have an exact style of food because there is a mixture of all kinds of food from all over China, even all over the world. Shanghai’s feature is diversity. So is the food.

However, Shanghai is famous of its Dim Sums. Though most of the Dim Sums in the city aren’t from Shanghai, all of them are known as “Shanghai Dim Sum”.

Travelers like to taste Shanghai Dim Sums in the Yu Garden and most of them like the foods there. Yet Shanghainese never eat in Yu Garden because it’s too expensive and the foods don’t taste good, neither. Therefore, those who said that the Shanghai Dim Sums in the Yu Garden are excellent should know that real common Shanghai Dim Sums even taste far better.

People in Shanghai have different styles of food every day. For example, my family may have spicy Sichuan food for Monday, Sweet-tasting food of Zhejiang (a district of China, next to Shanghai) for Tuesday, Sushi for Wednesday, Spaghetti for Thursday, and Hot pot for Friday. We enjoy the life that we have different kinds of food everyday and we always expect a new flavor.

If you ask me what I miss in Shanghai the most, I will answer you: food. There are so many distinguished Dim Sums in Shanghai and I will introduce them in detail later.

The new generation of resident buildings in Shanghai

The new generation of resident buildings in Shanghai

As I discussed, the resident buildings in Shanghai used to be in the form of Linong, but now just few Linong survived in the city and now people live in recently built apartments. Apartments in Shanghai exist in the form of Community.

Actually, community is the new generation of Linong.

Now a company buys a large area to build resident buildings and the designers in the company plan the area well- they design the style of the whole area, the appearance of the buildings, the patterns of the buildings locations, the locations of green belts and the parking lots, the park-like facilities in the green belts and where to build other facilities such as the community restaurant and gym in the area and the appearance of the community facilities. They plan the area as a whole- as a community- and give the community a beautiful name. The names of communities are usually beautiful and creative. When a community is built, the owner company will employ another managing company to manage the community. Managing the community means they set guards in the main door of the community, set officers dealing with the problems and activities such as water leakage in apartments, community activities for residents and so on.

Therefore, residential areas in Shanghai are composed of many communities. Each community has different style and all of them are different from the others.

When people buy real estate in Shanghai, they consider the location and transportation first. Then, the second important thing is the community. Is the community, including its building and green area good-looking? Can I have a good view of the scene of the community from my window? Is the service of managing company good? Can they provide a good security to us? ……

In one word, Shanghainese live in communities. A good community means a good living environment and a good living quality.

We used to live in a big family

I talked about my old life in Yonglefang and the changes that happened there. Now I want to say something about what the old crowded way of life brought us that is lost now.

Of course Linong life was hard and every little space had to be shared with others but it also brought us an extremely precious thing- it made people closer to each other than anytime in the history or the future.

I remembered when I just moved out Yonglefang to an apartment. I was so lonely. My parents went out to work and left me alone at home. I went out to find if there was somebody who can accompany me and play with me, but after searching through the entire building, I found there was even not one person in the building. Adults went out for working and kids were locked indoor. Each family had their own world in their apartment, without any connections to the world beyond their door. People didn’t know anything about their neighbors. In fact, they didn’t care who lived next to them at all. During that time, I always spent my summer vocation alone at home, watching TV and playing video games. As a primary school student, spending summer vocation alone at home made me really bored and disappointed. However, living in Linong was totally different. I knew every kid in Yonglefang well and my parents knew everyone there, too. I had so many friends at that time. When I got bored, I just knocked on some friends’ doors and asked them to play with me. Everytime at least 10 kids came out. We played many games in the Linong- hide and seek in anyone’s home, chased each other in the Linong, played soccer and many other game. I could spend a whole day with my friends happily. I really felt that Linong was a big family for us all. The whole Linong was my home and I could be extremely free and happy there. I loved that life style so much that when I lived in apartments, I constantly missed Yonglefang.