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What types of dumplings can you find in Beijing (with photo guide)? 

What we think

Fellow Beijing foodie Charlene Wang let us in on this popular neighborhood dumpling shop and we are hooked.  Gourmet filling choices here include intriguing flavor and texture combinations such as Chinese olive and green bean (woodsy flavor with fresh crunch), cabbage and chopped peanut (great surprising texture), or shredded carrot, cilantro and tofu (a delicious departure from the usual vegetarian leek or tomato with egg). 

For dumpling eaters who favor a greater skin to filling ratio, however, be warned—these are three bite dumplings.  Delicate wrappers, rolled thinly, are a tender vehicle for a fist full of filling.  True to its name, at Xian’r Lao Man (roughly, Filling Always Full) you get 5 dumplings per liang (50 grams), compared to 6 to a liang for traditional potstickers and as many as 8 bite size dumplings to a single liang at some dumpling shops.

Although Xian’r Lao Man has a loyal following as a dumpling shop, its menu branches widely to include traditional Beijing and other northern snacks and salads.  Try the 素油麻豆腐—su you ma dou fu, a tofu paste flavored with spicy sesame oil and scallions—give yourself a few bites to get past the sticky texture and enjoy the subtle interplay of warm flavors.  The salads we have tried were consistently bursting with fresh, vibrant flavor, color and texture, the perfect accompaniments to a hearty dumpling meal.

While we worry that the menu, which also includes numerous jia chang, Sichuan, hotpot and other specialties that we have not yet tasted, is overextended and may fail to deliver, so far everything we have tried at Xian’r Lao Man has demonstrated practiced precision and care for what they dish up. Even the décor is executed well, with traditional tables and sepia toned photos of old Beijing and traditional pickling urns simply decorating the space.

Recommended dumplings and other dishes

Fillings (dumplings are ordered boiled - 饺子/jiao zi or pan fried - 煎饺/jian jiao):
胡罗布香菜冻豆腐 – hu luo buo xiang cai dong dou fu:  carrot, cilantro and frozen tofu, 4RMB/两
橄榄菜豆角 – gan lan cai dou jia:  Chinese olive green and long bean, 4RMB/两
白菜花生米 – bai cai hua shen mi:  Napa cabbage and chopped peanuts, 4RMB/两
 猪肉茴香 – zhu rou hui xiang:  pork and fennel greens, 4.5RMB/两
猪肉韭菜 – zhu rou jiu cai:  pork and Chinese chive, 4.5RMB/两

Salads and snacks:
素油麻豆腐 – su yiu ma dou fu:  vegetarian spicy sesame oil tofu paste, 8RMB
馅老满大拌菜 – xianr lao man da ban cai:  vinegary house special mixed shredded salad, 8RMB
新拌老虎菜 – xin ban lao hu cai: ‘Tiger Salad’, spicy green chili mixed crisp vegetable salad, 7RMB
拌海带丝 – ban hai dai si:  shredded seaweed salad, 7RMB
 

宝源饺子屋- Bao Yuan Jiaozi Wu

朝阳区麦子店街6号楼侧
Chaoyang qu Maizi Dian Jie 6 hao lou
ChaoYang District, east of Lufthansa Center/Kempinski Hotel
Tel:  010-6586-4967
$: Cheap. 4-8rmb per liang (50g) with a minimum 100g per order.

Directions:  This is a smaller street but not hard to find.  From Third Ring Road, exit at Yansha/Lufthansa Exit. At the second light (Somerset is on the SE corner, turning left heads you up Lady Street/Nu Ren Jie), turn right onto Maizi Dian.  The restaurant is after you pass over the canal, on your right side.

What we think 

Note: As of May, 2009, Bao Yuan Dumpling Restaurant has reopened its doors, looking much the same but with new tiling on the walls and some delicious and colorful new dumpling options. Word also has it that Bao Yuan had started to enforce its no smoking policy!

  Dumpling heaven. Bao Yuan offers traditional boiled dumplings (水饺 - shui jiao) with dozens of stuffings (馅儿- xian'r) sorted by type of meat, vegetable and creative specialty fillings (including pumpkin, wild mushrooms, fennel and more…).  For a few extra kuai you can order wrappers colored brightly in purple, green orange and red (or multi-colored!) using natural vegetable juice.  Ask to see the menu from their sister Sichuan place right next door to supplement your dumpling meal.

There is no English menu but a few typical but varied dumpling fillings (饺子馅儿) you might try are:

Most dumpling menus are divided into categories by types of filling, or 馅儿 (xianr), with the main categories being some or all of the following, and within these categories, the main ingredient is paired with many different types of vegetables or herbs.

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You might ask, why go to a Taiwanese chain serving Shanghai style soup dumplings (小龙包 or 小龙汤包) in Beijing?  Or perhaps squeal at paying 45rmb for a steamer of pork dumplings you could get for 5rmb on the street. Do it. These dumplings will reward for your efforts. Their skin is paper thin and delicate (they will test your chopstick skills). The dumplings are wrapped perfectly evenly all around so there are no clumpy doughy bits. Din Tai Fung has a special technique for ensuring a healthy dose of delicious juice within each little package, which explodes in your mouth in a great savory taste sensation.

Vegetarians have a great option too (蔬菜蒸饺 - su cai zhen jiao), with tender steamed dumplings with greens, mushrooms, and vermicelli. 

Technically a Shanghai style restaurant, there is also a fair share of pricy hairy crab offerings—try a basket (or half a basket--all dumplings can come as a half order) of the hairy crab dumplings to see you enjoy this acquired taste. I stick with the classic pork.

Din Tai Feng also has a truly non-smoking section, its own comfortable separate floor of the restaurant; it is still bustling and hard to get into, so make a reservation!

Recommended dishes (besides dumplings)

豆苗  dou miao: great tender sautéed pea shoots
烤付  kao fu: an interesting smoky cold dish or tofu by product and mushroom

Taiwanese style dessert: mango and coconut ice (芒果冰 - mang guo bing), and soft almond gelatin with sweetened condensed milk 杏仁豆腐冰 (xing ren dou fu bing) are both delicious; the tower of shaved ice topped with sweet stewed beans (also drizzled generously with sweetened condensed milk) is a beloved treat but definitely an acquired taste.

For a hot sweet treat, order a steamer basket of dou sha xiao bao (豆沙小包), or little bean paste dumplings.

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东方饺子王- Dong Fang Jiao Zi Wang
Orient King of Dumplings (English name not on the sign)

朝阳门内南小街14号楼,静雅大酒店对面
Bldg 14, Chaoyangmennei Nanxiaojie, just north of Jinbao Jie
Hours: 10am-10pm
Tel:  010-6527-2042
$: Cheap. You pay by weight, minimum order is two liang, or 100g, usually about a dozen dumplings.

Directions:  Just north of Jinbao Jie intersection, on the east side of the street.

What we think 

Another good dumpling option, though the dining room is much more cafeteria like and can get very smokey during peak hours. This is a well known chain from the north east (Dongbei), which is the cradle of Chinese dumplings.  Orient King of Dumplings offers over 30 kinds of dumpling fillings. There are options for both boiled (水饺 - shui jiao) and fried dumplings (煎饺 - jian jiao), as well as numerous cold appetizers and other accompanying dishes.

Recommended dishes (to accompany the dumplings)

香脆三丝 xiang cui san si: crispy fried vegetable thread
香辣菠菜 xiang la bo cai: spicy spinach and bean salad
炝土豆丝 qiang tu dou ci: blanched and spiced potato thread.

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三源友和饺子坊 – San Yuan You He Jiao Zi Fang

aka, the Lido Dumpling House

***July 2009: Sadly, the Lido Dumpling Place is no longer, so no more snowflake dumplings. We are trying to find out if they have moved to a new location. Stay tuned...***

朝阳区将台路海润国际公寓底商

Chaoyang qu Jiang tai lu, Hairun Guoji Gongyu

Ground floor business, Hairun International Condominium complex

Chaoyang District

Tel: 010-5135-7212

Hours: 11am-3pm; 5pm-11pm

$: Inexpensive. A meal for two of the snowflake fried dumplings, two liang of boiled dumplings plus two side dishes, RMB55.

Directions:  Located very close to the Lido Holiday Inn Hotel. If driving on Jiangtai Road from the Jing Shun Road direction (passing under the Airport Expressway), you will pass the Lido Holiday Inn and then the Yanxiang Hotel on your right. The dumpling restaurant is on your right side, the first business along the strip of shop fronts of the Hairun International Condominium complex (including Coups Bakery, Ganges Restaurant and Jenny Lou's). If you hit the light at Fangyuan Xilu, you've just passed the complex.

What we think

There are no dumpling gimmicks here—no exhaustive list of inventive fillings or colorful skins to entice or confuse you—just very good standard shui jiao (水饺 - boiled dumplings) with a sufficient range of filling choices, and fabulous jian jiao (煎饺- fried dumplings) presented in a signature snowflake design. The Lido Dumpling House is a great choice for a simple dumpling meal accompanied by some vegetables or side dishes. The crisp snap peas with tender, starchy lily buds are a great textual accompaniment, as are the various salads of mixed sprouts or bamboo shoots.

The picture menu includes English translations and the dumpling fillings (馅儿-xian’r) list also includes English. The bulk of the fillings are pork combinations, with a short list of beef and lamb choices, some vegetarian options and a short list of more expensive “special” filings which include seafood, mushroom options and a few other house specialties.

While the second floor dining room seems more spacious and relaxed, you’ll get better service on the first floor which has also been more recently renovated.

Recommended dishes

冰花煎饺 - bing hua jian jiao: English translation for this is not on menu, but is literally ‘snowflake fried dumplings’, because the dumplings are fried into a beautiful circular pattern; these are delicious compact bite sized dumplings with slightly chewy skins and crisp bottoms, RMB 18/order
水饺 - shui jiao: boiled dumplings, mostly RMB 3-4.5/liang (specialty shui jiao, RMB 5.5-13.5/liang)
密豆炒白合 - mi dou chao bai he: stir fried beans (snap peas) and lily (RMB 20)
铁板凤味茄子 – tie ban feng wei qie zi: fried eggplant (RMB 18)
炝拌竹笋 – qiang ban zhu sun: bamboo shoot salad (RMB 10)

香椿苗拌豆腐丝 – xiang cun miao ban dou fu si: baby toon sprouts with tofu strips (on the menu as Chinese parsley and tofu) (RMB 10)