Siomai, also known as siomai, xiaomi and shoumai, is a traditional Chinese pasta with hot noodles as the skin, wrapped with meat stuffing and steamed in a basket. It has been recorded in the Yuan Dynasty.

Name

Siomai, Shaomai, Shaomai, Xiaomi, etc.

Production raw materials

Materials: Glutinous rice, meat, mushrooms, fresh bamboo shoots, and siu mai dough.

Seasonings: salt, monosodium glutamate, ginger, soy sauce.

Production process

1. Soak the glutinous rice overnight, then steam it.

2. Dice the meat, mushrooms, and fresh bamboo shoots respectively, and mince the ginger. Marinate the diced meat with salt, MSG, and soy sauce for 3 minutes.

3. Light the fire, pour oil, stir-fry the minced ginger first, then add the diced meat, stir-fry until it changes color, add the diced fresh bamboo shoots and stir-fry for 3 minutes, then add the diced mushrooms, salt, MSG, The soy sauce needs to be slightly salty, otherwise the siomai filling will be very bland.

4. After the three diced rice is fried, add the steamed glutinous rice into the pot and stir evenly. Of course you have to turn off the fire. According to the taste of my hometown, a lot of black pepper is given.

5. Make the dough of the siomai, and then start wrapping the siomai.

6. Steam for 5 minutes after wrapping.

Food Guide

Siomai is served as breakfast and snacks. It is delicious when eaten with sauce, vinegar, shredded ginger or fresh soup.

Nutritional value

Shaomai dough is rich in protein, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals such as calcium, iron, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, etc., which nourishes the heart, kidneys, and strengthens the spleen. It has the effect of removing heat and quenching thirst. The pork in Siomai is rich in protein, which is beneficial to the growth and development of the human body.

The origin of siomai

The earliest historical record of siomai is the Chinese textbook "Pu Shi Tong" published by the Goryeo Kingdom in the Yuan Dynasty. It records that "Susuan" was sold in Dadu of the Yuan Dynasty (today's Beijing). The stuffing is slightly wheaty.” The book's note on "Shaomai" says that thin slices of wheat flour are used to wrap meat, steam it, and eat it with soup. The dialect calls it Shaomai. Wheat is also sold. It also says: "The skin is thin and the meat is chopped into pieces, and the top is as thin as a thread, so it is called Shaomai." "Using the dough as the skin and the meat as the stuffing and the top to make the stamens, the dialect calls it Shaomai." If you put it here Comparing the preparation method of "Shaomai" with today's Siomai, we can see that the two are the same thing.

In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, although the word "Shaomai" was still used, the names "Shaomai" and "Shaomai" also appeared, and "Shaomai" appeared more frequently. For example, there is a description of "Peach Blossom Siomai" in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua". The word siomai appears in books such as "Yangzhou Painted Boat Record" and "Tongqiao Chair and Column Record". The cookbook "Tiao Ding Ji" compiled by an unknown person in the Qing Dynasty includes "Shaomai with meat stuffing", "Shaomai with bean paste", "Shaomai with oil and sugar", etc. Among them, "Lao stuffing siomai" is made with chicken, ham and seasonal vegetables as stuffing. "Youtang Siomai" is made with diced suet, walnut kernels and white sugar as fillings. There is also a kind of "braised stuffing" Yafei Shaomai in southern China. Today, the varieties of siomai in various places are more abundant and the preparations are more exquisite. For example, Henan has stuffed siomai; Anhui has duck fat siomai; Hangzhou has beef siomai; Jiangxi has egg meat siomai; Shandong Linqing has mutton siomai; Suzhou has three delicacies siomai; Guangzhou has crab meat siomai; Nanjing has egg siomai, etc. Each has its own local characteristics.

If you want to make Siomai yourself, it is not complicated to make. Its raw materials include flour, dry powder and fillings. When making it, scald the flour with boiling water, let it cool, knead it into a dough, roll it into long strips, then cut it into small sections, roll it into a round cake shape, then sprinkle some dry powder, and press the outer edge of the round cake into a wheat seed shape. , wrap the stuffing in it, pinch it with your hands, and a pomegranate flower-like pattern will appear on the top. Put the siomai into the steamer and steam it for about 10 minutes before eating.