Bot Xiao Long Bao and Shen Jian Bao are popular Shanghainese snacks which had made their debut in Singapore in the early 2000’s. But while Xiao Long Bao is now firmly established in our local culinary scene, its poor cousin, the Shen Jian Bao is still relatively unknown.
I have enjoyed Shen Jian Bao since I first had them at Shanghai Renjia. Other Shanghainese restaurants were also serving them at the time, but they were not done properly. The proper Shen Jian Bao is cooked entirely in a pan of shallow oil where the bottom is fried while the top is steamed. Some restaurants employ a shortcut where the already steamed bao is simply pan-fried to crisp the bottom.
When done properly, the Shen Jian Bao is a joy to eat
Crispy at the bottom, fluffy on top and bursting with flavourful meaty juices, it is one of my favorite bao. But, it isn’t something that you can easily find locally. This little dumpling is caught up in a Catch-22 situation.
Unlike Xiao Long Bao which is served in individual bamboo steamers, the Shen Jian Bao is cooked in large pans where maybe over a hundred baos are cooked at the same time. So unless you have a perpetual queue outside the stall and there is a quick turnover, the leftover Shen Jian Bao would lose its crispiness and juiciness.
But, If you arrive at a time when they have just sold out, you’ll need to wait for quite a while for them to wrap the buns and cook the bao! So, I think that is why Shen Jian Bao never got to be as popular as Xiao Long Bao here.
This is proper Shen Jian Bao
I was very excited to learn that this stall at Smith Street Food Centre sells proper Shen Jian Bao. The owners have called the stall “Shanghai Fried Xiao Long Bao” probably because not many people know about Shen Jian Bao. The Shen Jian Bao is very good. They are crisp at the bottom and bursting with juices when you get them freshly cooked.
The only problem is the waiting time can be very long if you reach the stall when they have just sold out. But otherwise, I’d be very happy to have half a dozen of these delectable dumplings! 4/5
Operated by a Dim Sum Chef and his wife
The stall is owned and operated by Chef Jiang and his wife. Chef Jiang had been working at various restaurants in Singapore as a dim sum chef before deciding to come out on his own. The stall sells other Shanghai dishes like la mian, Xiao Long Bao, and guo tie which I didn’t get to try.
They have spawned other stalls in the food courts like Food Republic but are still helming the original stall here at Chinatown Food Centre.
Conclusion
Great to see Shen Jian Bao being making its appearance in our hawker centres. These Shanghainese dumplings are really delicious and I am hoping the trend of them being sold at hawker centres and food courts will continue to grow! So, who else here is a fan of Shen Jian Bao?
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