Siomai vs. Kuchay Dumplings
I love dumplings. I can never say no to a plump piece of kuchay dumpling. I’m not sure how the Chinese really call it, but, for conversations’ sake, let’s call one group siomai and the other we will refer to as the kuchay dumplings. Siopao or filled buns are a different variety so let’s not talk about that just yet.
Friends, there is a distinct difference between the siomai and the kuchay dumpling. Though in general, both are steamed using bamboo steamers and serve as great appetizers. In the Philippines, the siomai is the most common dimsum treat, aside from the siopao. The siomai, or shao mai as it is really called, is a small ball of meat and vegetables contained inside a wanton wrapper but is open at one end. No need for a picture here I hope. The siomai is usually served steaming hot in three or four pieces per order in most Chinese restaurants. They contain shark’s fin, ground pork, shrimp and vegetables depending on the kind of siomai you order. Though inherently Chinese, the siomai has been adapted well into the local cuisine.
The kuchay is green stem vegetable. That’s all I really know about it aside from tasting so good inside a dumpling. No, I don’t know where and how they grow it. Do not confuse this with the wanton that we see in soups. The kuchay dumpling is a cousin of the hakaw (shrimp dumpling.) While the hakaw uses a thin, translucent wheat-starch wrapper, the kuchay dumpling is wrapped in a rice-flour wrapper, giving it a chewy consistency, kinda like pot stickers. Again, similar with the hakaw and the wanton, the kuchay dumpling is totally enclosed with the excess wrapper pinched at one end to seal the flavor.
Had my car not needed repairs, I wouldn’t have braved Banawe St and looked for Tasty Dumplings. Thanks to my busted starter, I was reunited with an old favorite who’s taste I was beginning to forget. The booboos:
Had my car not needed repairs, I wouldn’t have braved Banawe St and looked for Tasty Dumplings. Thanks to my busted starter, I was reunited with an old favorite who’s taste I was beginning to forget. The booboos:
- The staff needs more training to improve their customer service skills. I went on a lunch hour and everyone was in a frenzy to serve and be served. Perhaps it’s easier when the lunch crowd is gone.
- Parking is once again a problem for those who bring their cars. If you come on a lunch hour, be patient or come early.
- Bathroom is on the second floor and is quite a climb for geriatric customers and impossible for those on a wheel chair.
The yahoos:
- The portions are large enough for anyone with a mammoth appetite. They just add a dash of what looks like soy sauce to the buckwheat noodles and all is right with the world.
- They did get my order wrong the first time. So when Noreen complained, they acted on the complaint right away and set things right without any fuss. This is a yahoo as far as I’m concerned. Great save.
- The price. Only P100.00 (US$2.85) for the tossed noodles with 8 pieces kuchay dumplings. How can it get any better than that?
