The Art of Eating Xiao Long Bao
“Xiao Long Bao”- small morsels of heavenly dumplings filled with minced meat and delicious soup, wrapped with paper thin skin are my kind of comfort food on a rainy night. Last week, that rainy night happened, and I had to drag Saucer with me to the nearest XLB joint for dinner. The thought of biting into the piping hot soup dumpling, with skin looking like it’s ready to explode, and the soup bursting with flavour, was just too good to resist. That was the reason we ended up at Dragon-I, Sunway Pyramid that night.
Comfortable chairs
Table settings
I haven’t been to Dragon-I for ages, so visiting it again brought back much excitement and anticipation. It was also that night that I discovered the Set Dinner package available, consisting of 1 Appetizer/Dim Sum + 2 Main courses + 2 Rice/Plain La Mian and 2 Drinks for RM68++. I was even more delighted to know that Xiao Long Bao was included within the set (dim sum category), together with a few other items that I wanted to order.
Dragon-I wet napkin
Both of us had a choice of either Flower Tea, Chinese Tea or Vegetable juices for our set. Flower Tea for me, thank you!
Flower tea – Before
If you haven’t tried Flower Tea before, it’s actually quite an interesting drink to watch! It started with a small ball of tea leaves and flower bound together and soaked in boiling hot water. Wait for about 10-15 minutes and watch the ball unfurl, flowers bloom and leaves unfold to emulate a blooming flower. Not only that, the water is now nicely flavoured with the aroma of tea leaves, making this drink not only a treat to the palate but to the eyes! 
Flower tea – After
Before long, our first dish of Xiao Long Bao arrived on a bamboo basket, with semi-transparent skin and clouds of steam. This traditional delicacy from Shanghai was filled with meat and soup within, and fastened on top with 18 delicate folds of the paper-thin skin. Inside was a combination of minced chicken ham, lean pork and ginger, all seasoned and skilfully wrapped without weighing the dumpling down.
Xiao Long Bao / Soup dumplings
One must be careful in picking up this delicate morsel of goodness for fear of accidentally puncturing the thin skin before it reaches one’s mouth! The key here is to be gentle! Aim the chopsticks at the slightly thicker top part and gently lift it off the basket, while holding a spoon below (just in case).
How to pick up your Xiao Long Bao
Next, place the XLB on the spoon, then add some slivers of fresh ginger and some dabs of black vinegar on top. And then, slowly, puncture the skin, sip the soup and finish the rest with much splendour. Ah, don’t you feel the love?
Dab some vinegar and ginger slices on top
After we’re done with the XLB, we had a bowl of rice and plan La Mian (pulled noodles) to be shared, together with the main dishes.
Nice and fluffy white rice
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Comments (41)
XLB is my little brother’s favorite dim sum food! He can finish like 5 of those basket thingies! Oh man, this post makes me crave some good dim sum…
jill- Jack and Jill Travel The World recently posted..Why Climbing Mt Whitney Is A Once in A Lifetime Experience literally
5 baskets? That’s a REAL feat! I can only finish 2 baskets at most!
Time for dim sum revisit!
Me a big fan of XLB (especially DTF’s) but haven’t been back to Dragon-I in ages. Maybe it’s time for a return… ah, but if only their service was less sloppy during peak hours…
Life for Beginners recently posted..This Must Be The Day- Part 2- Babble
Bad service eh? I went on a weeknight so service was not really an issue. Hehe..
i love Xiao Long Bao.. yum yum! oh the flower tea is quite interesting huh… i haven’t tried it before..:D
Monica recently posted..The Oddball
Yes the flower tea is even more interesting to observe when it’s blossoming!!
LOVE XIAO LONG BAO!!! ahhh love this post!! xD
Caroline recently posted..Desserts at Tian Pin Ge Ge 甜品哥哥 @ SS2
I know you also love it because it’s in Sunway Pyramid right? *winks*
the freshly made la mian looks springy!! fuyoo!!
:D
Mango sago cream dessert! eee so nice!! oh at Sunway Pyramid?? hahaha near Eric’s place!! :p
Caroline recently posted..Desserts at Tian Pin Ge Ge 甜品哥哥 @ SS2
ish!!! gonna ban caroline from reading ur blog dee!! keep on bising me go!! =P
the food look nice…i think that portion n price…quite ok ler… i like how the chicken n mango sago looks…yumss
ericleeh recently posted..5 Things That I Don’t Get It
Wei.. cannot ban la!
Anyway you should try this! Portion is huge 
I love XLB but have never tried Dragon-I’s one b4. Which one better, this or DTF?
Baby Sumo recently posted..Blueberry Cheese Tart @ Bakers Cottage- Jusco Mahkota Cheras
To be honest, I like DTF’s better, but Dragon-I’s is not bad too!
Not too keen on the XLB, sometimes the reputation of this delicacy precedes the art of making it and the taste, like an over priced watery wan-tan.
But a really nicely written posting witchy girl.
Thank you so much for the nice compliment!
I love all the food u ‘ve order!!! Especially the diced chicken & XLB!!!
mimid3vils recently posted..金记面家 – Kam Kei Noddles House
Wow…the flower tea is so magical. Suddenly it “opened” up.
tekkaus recently posted..Stay Focused To Be Purposeful
Your xiao long bao looks good alright.
I wanna have one right now.
tekkaus recently posted..Stay Focused To Be Purposeful
How come the rice grains so fluffy? Is it a special breed of rice?
I’m not sure too! But they’re really so nice and fluffy!! Hehe
i’m an xlb fan too, but half the time, i botch the operation, and the soup spills out prematurely!
Sean recently posted..La Bomba
Ahh.. Did you aim for the head? Hehe
Not a fan as I don’t like ginger…and so I don’t like the ginger soup inside…
suituapui recently posted..I won’t last a day without you…
But the soup has no ginger, if I’m not mistaken. You can just eat it without the ginger slices and it’ll still be as good!
Dragon-I XLBs are good & real soupy!
Pureglutton recently posted..Banana Cake – life’s simple pleasure!
Been there before but never really acquired the taste for their XLB
smallkucing recently posted..Old Town White Coffee at SS2 Mall
Wait for it to cool down a little and pop the whole thing into the mouth….then the juice will all squirt out! LOL!
peteformation recently posted..GUINNESS® St Patrick’s Day Celebration- Exclusive Media Launch Party
LOL! That sounds like an explosive experience!!
have tried their xiao long bao few times, but cannot remember how they taste.. instead, i still can remember how the “steam rice with minced pork in mini wooden barrel” taste, nice~~
[SK] recently posted..28022011 銀紙靚靚
Ah.. I think they have a thing with rice. It’s always so fluffy!
have never tried the diced chicken before, looks yum!
xin recently posted..Enjoy a Lamburgerni at The Daily Grind Gourmet Burgers @ Bangsar Village I
It’s similar to Sichuan style of cooking, but milder
The most I can eat is 3.. and i m chai… hahaha….
claire recently posted..My Sweet Indulgence!
That sounds great to me! Next time should go eat XLB with you so that I can finish whatever that you can’t!
oh my.. delicious food! always pass by dragon-i.. but never dare enter
ken recently posted..Terrace Arms Steak & Grill House- Kota Damansara
Hehe .. I also go there only once in a long while
I love Dragon-i’s Xiao Long Bao! : )
foongpc recently posted..My Very First Jollibee Burger!
waiseh… got Art of eating lagi… if ppl like me.. just pop in the mouth.. telan! lol
Merryn recently posted..Terrace Arms March Guinness Food Festival
Most of the time i want to have the mango sago, but at the end i got so full with other dishes jor. Probably one day, just go there for the dessert..LOL!!
mommy ling recently posted..Passport Holder
He He He ….its looks too good with the good support.