Bao bei directly translated means “my darling”. As long as I can remember I’ve loved these buns. The version I had as a child was smaller, round with a smooth top and only available when we visited my mother’s family who lived at least ten hours away, in another country. They were a treat and I could never have enough of them. Your teeth sink into the soft dough like it was a giant marshmallow. Then you hit the treasure inside, delicious pieces of roast pork kissed with sweetness like honey. I was about ten years old I think, when my cousin Eric got married. I wasn’t interested in the tent where the gamblers gathered to play mahjong or the other tent where people were feasting on the 12 course wedding meal. No, I was in the kitchen watching the steamer with the char sui bao, waiting for those little buns to cook. It wasn’t until I came to Canada a few years later that I realized these buns could have different fillings like eggs. There is also a baked version but the steamed buns are still my favourite. Always will be.
Way to go, now I’m hungry!
Sorry Monte! We just had a tasting when we were there so I know how you feel.
I think this approach works, too. My initial reaction is that I slightly prefer the rhythm of alternating text and photos, rather than having all the text in one block.
And ditto on the hungry. I could totally get behind having some for lunch!
Thanks for your thoughts Franz. I often wonder if the text hurts the images or supports them and it’s great to get a second opinion.
Yum – am hungry now!
Me too…I need to head down there on the weekend and pick up some of those buns!
“delicious pieces of roast pork kissed with sweetness like honey” Sabrina, I didn’t know you could write-write!
It’s amazing what a weekend writing workshop on memoir will unlock deep in the recess of one’s mind
Some foods bring back such powerful childhood memories, don’t they? These do look delicious, but the story lets me see they were photographed with love. I’m envious of the access here. How did you manage it?
I think the foods we love in childhood stay with us longer than other memories! On the question of access, I plan on doing a short post on it. Trust you to ask such a great question
MMmmmm. Sticky buns! The ones I had in Vietnam had very small eggs. I don’t know what kind of egg but it was like a surprise when buying from different venders. You don’t really know what is inside till you bite in.
Are you an adventurous eater, Chris? I wouldn’t have guessed that but now that I think about it, I’m not sure why. Sometimes it is good not to know and to just enjoy the food.
sounds yummy – I can almost taste them from your description! Ok, now I’m hungry!!
I should have put a disclaimer at the top of the post, Beate! In fact I had better stop reading it once I finish the replies because I’m getting hungry too
Sigh…I love all manner of Chinese buns too Sabrina….and it’s even harder now that I am off wheat……
Oh Ellie, sorry to tempt you
Unfortunately these don’t come in the non-wheat version but really they ought to!
I like the approaches you’ve taken in both food-related posts, Sabrina. I appreciate the text. This is outside of my culture, so it’s really helpful to be able to ‘read into’ the photographs. In this post, your personal story is a wonderful addition.
Have to say though, as a vegetarian (and part-time vegan) I’m not sure I’m brave enough to head into any food-related store in Chinatown without an interpreter! lol.
Erin, the next time you are in town we are going to this bakery. For tasting samples, we were given a huge vegetarian bao and it was so delicious I was tempted to buy half a dozen. Alas we were in a bit of hurry to get to the next place so I definitely have to make a return trip. Are you game?
Totally! I think some kind of photographic adventure will have to be planned for the next time I’m in town too. No idea when that will be… but I’ll be sure to let you know.
It’s a date, Erin!
It is not particularly about this post, but I feel like you recently lean towards street photography. I wonder if it is just what you post here, or something you discovered you want to shoot more? I really enjoyed watching colorful scenes from Chinatown this week.
Hi Iza! That’s an interesting observation and one that I had not made. It isn’t necessarily that I would like to do street photography and in this case, it seems like it but it wasn’t really. (I’ll explain in a post later this week what I was doing.)
I am still trying to find what interests me and I have decided on a long-term project. I was working on the website this weekend but it won’t be ready for unveiling until there is some content there. Stay tuned!
I so don’t need to be looking at food photos at 8.30 am, with an empty fridge. Gah.
Narrative wise this works for me too. It’s a different kind of narrative from the previous post though. The former is more informative, a discussion of artefacts/activities and their cultural significance. Text wise, this is a vignette, an incisive look into one facet of culture (there is another word I’m looking for but this will have to do) via a memory.
The single chunk of text works for me with this form. The “captioning” format was suitable for the previous post too.
(damn i could use some char siu bao right around now. Such a bad idea looking at food photos first thing in the morning, with empty stomach and fridge!)
An empty fridge? What could be worse? There must be some dumplings in the freezer at least, no?
Thanks for your feedback about the narrative and the captioning. I think you are right–it depends on the situation. I am going to continue to experiment and hope you will pop in again with your take.
Chinese food is FUN!! In my ‘living in China’ blog, my last post was about street food – my favourite way of eating here. lotuslake.wordpress.com
OK people have to read your post Deborah!
http://lotuslake.wordpress.com/2012/01/19/street-food-real-food/
Egg kebabs–I never heard of those before. Now I have something to look forward to if my family allows me to wander the streets when I am there in the fall. As for the persimmons dessert, my brother-in-law would be all over that!
In Mainland China we call your baobei ‘baozi’ and about 100m from my front gate is a great baozi restaurant. Loads of different fillings. My favourite is lotus root and green veges. Students will pick up 1/2 dozen of the mini-baozi for breakfast and bring them to class, with a tiny plastic bag of soy sauce or dark vinegar.
In between narrative flows better for me. Each image then has its own story.
Thanks for the feedback on the narrative…and for sharing the baozi traditions. I think Erin might enjoy the lotus root and green vege version.
A great series, and looks yummy, too!!!