STARTERS
On the menu
FROM CRESCENT-SHAPED POLISH PIEROGI IN CHICAGO TO CRISPY-BOTTOMED, FRIED GYOZA WITH CHILLI OIL IN TOKYO, HERE’S OUR PICK OF SOME OF THE WORLD’S MOST DELICIOUS DUMPLING DISHES
PORK XIAO LONG BAO Din Tai Fung, London The Taiwanese dumpling chain has more than 170 restaurants around the world. Its speciality is pork xiao long bao, a steamed soup dumpling whose dough is carefully pleated by hand to create 18 folds. Filled with minced pork, vegetables and hot broth, it’s a dish with global cult status. Try it at the London outpost, in Covent Garden — just be ready to queue. Ten for £13.50.
dintaifung-uk.com
HON YU GUOZI China Sichuan, Dublin One of Dublin’s longest-standing high-end Chinese restaurants, China Sichuan offers modern takes on Cantonese and Sichuan dishes, made with traditional Irish ingredients. Among the dumpling starters, the hon yu guozi (plump chicken and pork dumplings in a chilli broth) is the best bet. €8.75 (£7.46).
china-sichuan.ie
PIEROGI Podhalanka, Chicago Chicago has a large Polish population; in its ‘Polish Triangle’ you’ll find Podhalanka, a no-frills neighbourhood bar and restaurant dishing up homey, grandma-style Polish cooking. The highlight is the boiled pierogi — crescent-shaped dumplings filled with cheese and potato, cabbage or meat and served with caramelised onions and liberal amounts of sour cream. Pierogi, $7.75 (£5.60)
podhalankachicago.com
SEMMELKNÖDEL Hotel Oberkirchs Weinstube, Freiburg This restaurant at this 250-year-old hotel serves dishes that are traditional here in the southwest corner of Germany, with a strong focus on local, seasonal ingredients. As such, during chanterelle season, the funnel-shaped mushrooms make a gloriously indulgent accompaniment to a pair of large homemade bread dumplings seasoned with fresh parsley, all served with a cream sauce. €21.50 (£18.34)
hotel-oberkirch.de/en
Pork xiao long bao at London’s Din Tai Fung.
Below: Wholeweat manti at Mikla, Instanbul
WHOLEWHEAT MANTI Mikla, Istanbul Turkish manti are small, boiled dumplings commonly made with spiced, ground meat and a thin dough and served with garlic yoghurt and hot pepper oil. At Mikla restaurant, Turkish- Scandinavian chef Mehmet Gürs offers creative interpretations of such traditional Turkish dishes. The menu changes regularly, but look out for the vegetarian wholewheat manti with smoked buffalo yoghurt, tomato and roasted garlic. As part of the two-course à la carte menu TL370. (£31.10)
miklarestaurant.com
GYOZA Harajuku Gyoza Lou, Tokyo At the best-known gyoza restaurant in Tokyo’s Harajuku district, the choices are simple: do you want your ground-pork dumplings with or without garlic and chives, and would you prefer them fried or steamed? The fried gyoza have a delightfully crispy bottom that’s delicious dipped into vinegar, soy sauce or chilli oil. Sit at the counter, and order crunchy bean sprouts or pickles on the side. Six dumplings, ¥ 319 (£2.09).
harajukugyozaro.com
PELMENI Café Pushkin, Moscow Set over three sumptuously decorated, themed floors of an 18th- century baroque mansion, this is a true destination restaurant. It offers a selection of historic French and Russian dishes that have been adapted to modern times. Of the small pelmeni (dumplings wrapped in thin, unleavened dough) selection, those filled with ceps and mushrooms and served with a mushroom sauce come highly recommended. RUB 710 (£6.92)
cafe-pushkin.ru/en
KNEIDLACH B&K Salt Beef Bar, London Founder Bambos Georgiou began work in the salt beef trade in the 1950s; today, his sons and grandsons continue his legacy at two unpretentious London locations. But it’s not just salt beef — seat yourself at one of the diner-style banquettes and enjoy a restorative bowl of chicken broth with kneidlach, the Ashkenazi Jewish soup dumplings also known as matzah or matzo balls. Kneidlach, £5.50
bksaltbeefbar.com
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NATIONALGEOGRAPHIC.CO.UK/FOOD-TRAVEL
IMAGE: THOMAS ALEXANDER
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