Yang's Dumplings, Shanghai

Our first full day in Shanghai had to include dumplings. Through very extensive internet research, I found that this is the place. Off course, there are plenty of other establishments selling dumplings, but this is where we started.

It was the right move. Yang's is a chain of restaurants established by Mrs. Yang in 1994. It grew to well over 20 locations throughout Shanghai.

We could look at the photos hanging above the cashier or read the printed English menu. Once the order was placed and paid for, we took the receipt to a small window and were given a number to be placed on the table. The waiter would bring the order to the table within minutes.

The dumplings arrived on a plastic dish with the vinegar sauce on the side. We got the dumpling plate to sample all the flavors. The buns were pan fried and had a nicely seared crunchy bottom.

I have read that the proper way to eat them is to dip them into the vinegar sauce prior to tasting. I bit into the first dumpling and hot broth gushed into my mouth. These are very hot and I would recommend waiting a minute before eating. With the second bite I was able to taste the array of flavors, it was delightful. The shrimp and pork dumpling was one of the most memorable dumplings I have ever tasted. It was so packed with flavor, had a bit of a nice spice to it, it was bathed in delightful broth and tasted like heaven. This was one dumpling I will never forget. The other dumplings were fantastic as well but the shrimp was exceptional.

My husband got the curry beef soup, it came with these really cool looking clear noodles. They are called cellophane or glass noodles and are made with starch (mung bean, yam or potato) and water. He said that the soup was excellent and spicy and the noodles had a nice texture.

I enjoyed the pork wonton soup which was delicious.

These tiny shrimp were floating in the soup. I noticed them after a few spoonfuls, they really didn't taste like anything. The wonton dough was super thin and the filling very small but delicious.

This was a really delicious lunch, I will remember the dumplings for a very long time and crave them as I am writing this. If I were to return to Yang's, I would just get lots of dumplings and forget the soup. All around us, the other diners were getting dumplings and soup but the soup was quite large and I would have preferred to have more stomach room for the dumplings. They were exceptional.

Yang's - many locations throughout Shanghai

Joanna

Comments

Bordier Butter - The Best Butter in France

France is in the midst of a butter shortage! Due to a decrease in milk production and a substantial demand for French pastries all over the world (mainly China and the Middle East), the price of butter has increased by 60% in one year. The French are stocking up and thus creating shortages. French newspapers are publishing articles titled "A guide to cooking without butter". So, with hopes that the shortages are temporary, here is my ode to the best butter in the world. I'm not kidding. The. Best. Butter. In. The. World. Mr. Bordier, a grandson and a son of cheese mongers, became a butter artisan in 1985. He acquired a creamery originally founded in 1927. The supreme taste of the Bordier butter was first recognized by a chef from the Plaza Athenee while vacationing in Brittany, a beautiful region in northwestern France. Bordier is the lone butter master to still use the old method of kneading the butter according to the 19th century t...

Indian Accent, NYC

Often when a question arises as to what to eat for dinner, I think of Indian food. I am a very happy gal with chicken makhani, basmati rice, an onion kulcha or a nan laid out in front of me. I have heard some very good things about Indian Accent, a relatively new restaurant in midtown Manhattan, adjacent to the Parker Hotel. The décor here is unlike most Indian restaurants I have visited; no boldly colored fabrics, beautiful tapestries, intricately carved wood, or lanterns. Indian Accent restaurant looks like something that Daniel Boulud would envision. There are about fifteen wooden tables and a few small booths, fabric covered modern chairs, a lit bar with glass shelves and golden accents throughout, and large glass vases filled with flowering branches. The menu is complicated, however, our terrific waiter took his time and explained each dish and even made some wonderful suggestions. Actually, everyone at the restaurant was really professiona...

A. Lacroix Patisserie, Paris

My visits to Paris are usually carefully planned out; practically every meal is decided far in advance, and same goes for pastries, ice cream and macaron. While I have not visited every pastry shop in Paris, that would be almost impossible given their numbers, I am aware of most of them. Imagine my happiness when I came across a brand new patisserie, one that is barely a year old! A. Lacroix is a lovely tea room/patisserie opened by an American woman and a Parisian pastry chef. Jackie, the founder, is originally from Ohio but has been living in Paris for nine years. She left her job in the telecom industry in order to pursue a dream of opening a tea salon. I'm so glad she did! This is a charming patisserie/tea salon with beautiful stone walls, wooden beams, plenty of seating space, and location that just can't be beat. One side of the place looks at the Notre-Dame Cathedral! A. Lacroix is not just a pastry sho...

A Fork And A Suitcase

Search This Blog