Dumplings, noodles and 40 days in China! My plan was to try a variety of dishes, snacks and drinks. Shanghai was my first stop on the culinary map of this huge country and I was happy to spend time with my friend Shen Nan, a passionate foodie, who introduced me to some Shanghai food classics.
Fried dumplings
Shengjian mantou is a type of small, pan-fried dumpling, which is a specialty of Shanghai. They are slightly bigger than other Chinese dumplings that I tried before and except a filling include hot broth. Soft top and crispy base were tasty and a perfect combination. Just be careful as fried dumplings get very hot and kind of addictive.
Shengjianbao
Pancake Shanghai-style
Scallion pancake was my first street food snack I bought in China. Shen Nan picked well as our pancakes were flaky, not too greasy and judging by a line of people wanting to buy them, very popular among the locals. Great choice if you fancy a savory bite to eat.
Pancake snack Shanghai-style! #China #streetfood pic.twitter.com/XBc27SgOyv
— NOT AT HER DESK (@notatherdesk) November 1, 2015
Dishes with shepherd’s purse
Shanghainese shepherd’s purse and huang yu (yellow fish) soup was one of my favourite dishes I tried during my trip. So what is that shepherd’s purse you might want to know? Capsella bursa-pastoris as it is known by its official name, is a typical ingredient used in Shanghai and surrounding areas of the Jiangnan region. This wild medicinal plant can be stir-fried with rice cakes, used as a part of the fillings in spring rolls or wontons. I highly recommend sampling any dishes with sheperd’s purse. If you are still not sold on this idea I hope that at least this funny name will spark your foodie interest.
Yellow fish with capsella bursa-pastoris
Spring rolls with capsella bursa-pastoris filling
