What is Siu Mai?

If you go for Chinese dim sum, you will probably hear of siu mai. But, what is siu mai? Basically, Siu Mai is any dumpling of the as shown in the picture below. There are different fillings of Siu Mai such as Pork Siu Mai or Pork dumplings, Shrimp Siu Mai (Shrimp Dumplings), Crab Siu Mai (Crab Dumplings), Shark Fin Siu Mai (Shark Fin Dumplings) and vegetable Siu Mai as well as other creative fillings of Siu Mai each Chinese dim sum restaurant wants to make.

Siu Mai picture

What is Siu Mai?

Siu Mai are Chinese dumplings usually with yellow flour outside and whatever fillings inside such as pork, shrimp, crab, prawn, and others. The very top of each Siu Mai usually has a red dot as shown. Siu Mai is probably the most common type of Dim Sum in Asia. In the US, egg rolls and potstickers may even be more popular than Siu Mai because Siu Mai are considered more authentic type of Dim Sum and are not found in all Chinese Fast Food restaurants. It takes time to make Siu Mai because of the steaming process.

Where can I eat Siu Mai?

There are many variations of Siu Mai recipes which you can easily make yourself. If you want to buy Siu Mai, you can buy frozen Siu Mai at Oriental grocery stores and supermarkets quite easily. You will have to reheat the frozen Siu Mai or re steam them. Alternatively, you can always find Siu Mai and other Dim sum delicacies at any Chinese Dim sum restaurants in big cities. Many Chinese restaurants serves push cart dim sum on weekends and normal made to order dim sum each morning to noon. However, making Siu Mai and dim sum is a bigger deal than most Chinese restaurants in the United States want to go through so you may not be able to find real Siu Mai at your local Chinese restaurants.