Dumplings: Jojo Taipei

 

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Chinese dumplings, also known as jiaozi, are arguably the most celebrated dish in Chinese cuisine. Dumplings to the Chinese is like turkey to Americans.

Word-of-mouth brought me to Jojo Taipei Restaurant. The Taiwanese style dumplings (guotie) are good but not great. The first flaw in this dish is that the wrappers are overly thick. Second, the shape of guotie (fried Chinese dumpling) is supposed to be open-ended so that steam can flow through the center of each dumpling while steam-fried. The ones I had were all sealed at the corners.

How then, can we tell whether a restaurant is serving authentic jiaozi?

Store-bought

Homemade

Wrapper

The thickness of the wrapper is determined by the water-to-flour ratio. Most northern jiaozi have thicker wrappers because we add less water to the mix, resulting in a chewy, fulfilling texture. Southern jiaozi is just the opposite. As far as the cooking method of jiaozi, northerners prefer jiaozi boiled and serve them as the only course in a meal. Southerners, on the other hand, favor smaller portions of steamed jiaozi as a side dish.

Boiled

Steamed

Guotie(steam-fried dumplings)

What does this tell us? Well, the main reason Chinese people fry jiaozi is because it is a convenient way to reheat leftovers. However, since northerners boil jiaozi, it is much easier to “reboil” them. Therefore, fried jiaozi is mainly a southern tradition. If you are chewing fried jiaozi and have a mouth-full of cooked dough, you know to Yelp for a different restaurant next time.

Filling

The ingredients in the filling can range from celery and pork to pickled cabbage and noodles. Great chefs are those that are able to make jiaozi with thin wrappers and rich fillings. Pay close attention to how much filling there is in a jiaozi at a dim-sum place. It is the easiest way to tell if a chef knows his/her trade of including enough filling to deliver a burst of flavor without overstuffing.

Wanna give it a try? frieddumplingsrecipe

 

Mapo Tofu: PF Chang’s

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Tofu, an alien food that most Americans skip because of its slimy texture, plays a versatile role in Chinese cuisine. Although the burning spicy taste is the trademark of the Szechuan category, Mapo Tofu has earned its place in the hall of fame throughout mainland China.

To my delight, I found this dish on PF Chang’s menu at the Prudential Center. The dish is prepared with silken tofu, which is loyal to the original recipe. Sadly, ground beef, the very ingredient that made this dish popular, is missing.

So what differentiates Americanized Mapo Tofu from the real deal?

Momen Tofu

Silken Tofu

Type of Tofu

Yes, tofu is not simply categorized according to its firmness. Water percentage and coagulant are the two factors that give various tofu types their names. While most families use momen tofu (80% water, brine), perfectionist chefs always opt for silken tofu (90% water, Glucono-delta-lactone and plaster) even though they are more likely to fall apart in the wok.

Ground Beef

Ground Pork

Broccoli

Ground Beef? Ground Pork? Vegetable Preserves?

The answers are yes, maybe, and never. The history of Mapo Tofu traces back to the Qing Dynasty. Grandma Chen, proud owner of a tofu store, was the first person to add ground beef to a tofu dish. Her envious neighbor and business competitor started calling Grandma Chen “Mapo,” which means zit-faced old lady. Grandma Chen didn’t care at all. In fact, she put up a sign that said “Mapo’s Tofu Store.” And now we have Mapo Tofu. So the loyal cooks still stick with ground beef as the meat ingredient.

Some Chinese folks also use ground pork belly because the fat gives the dish a more juicy flavor. But having vegetables of any kind is usually a “no-no,” especially broccoli. Broccoli is never a native Chinese veggie. It probably speaks better Italian than Chinese. Ironically, Chinese households shop at Walmart for “western cauliflower” (literal translation of broccoli in Chinese) in order to “eat like an American,” while people in the U. S. toss the same veggie into Chinese dishes.

Find recipe: mapotofurecipe