One of the most well-known Chinese foods are dumplings, but what are the best ones? There is a big variety of dumplings and every region has its own specialty. Unless you are planning to live in every region for a long period of time, it is impossible to try all of them. Therefore we will sum up the most famous ones, which also happen to be my personal favorites.
1. Dumplings, 饺子 (Jiaozi)
These are the most common and most famous kinds of dumplings. This type of dumpling is from Northern China and is a must-try when you visit Beijing. The outside is just like all dumplings a thin skin of dough, and they can have a variety of fillings inside. Most of them have beef or pork inside but you can also find jiaozi with vegetables or even shrimp.
2. Soup dumplings, 小笼包 (Xiaolongbao)
Xiaolongbao is almost everyone’s favorite type of dumpling. They are steamed dumplings with pork inside, most of the time. But you have to be careful with this one because every beginner makes the same mistake and forgets about the soup inside. They are from Nanxiang (a suburb of Shanghai) and will find them everywhere on the streets and in restaurants throughout the entire city.
3. Fried dumplings, 生煎 (Shengjian)
Shengjian is just like xiaolongbao, a Shanghai specialty. It is a very popular breakfast for almost everyone in the city. Just like Xiaolongbao, it has soup and pork inside. The difference is that these are not steamed but fried, and have sesame seeds on top of them.
4. Wontons, 馄饨 (Huntun)
Hunton is a type of dumpling that you will see everywhere in China but is most famous in the southern provinces of Guangdong (Canton) and Fujian. This is a fresh soup with small or big size dumplings and often has shrimp inside. In Canton, they are served with egg noodles in the soup and a variety of vegetables.
So wherever you are in China, you now know some of the best and most well-known dumplings you can get. But don’t forget, this is just a small taste of all the dumplings there are and you should try to eat as many different types of dumplings and snacks as possible. If you want to know more about food in China, make sure you check our other articles about food in Beijing.
