Megan Amram returns to Chandos Place and develops a structural argument for handmade dumplings as political praxis
By Megan Amram
Xi Home Dumplings Bay: A Second Visit and a Theory About Why Good Dumplings Are Worth Any Journey
I returned to Xi Home Dumplings Bay on Chandos Place because one visit to a dumpling restaurant of this quality is not enough to form a complete opinion and also because the xiao long bao were very, very good. The second visit confirmed both the quality of the dumplings and the theory I had been developing since the first visit, which is that the handmade dumpling is one of the most politically honest foods available: its quality is directly proportional to the labour invested in its production, and no amount of capital can substitute for the time required to make a dumpling properly.
This is the opposite of most contemporary food production, which has succeeded in substituting capital for labour at every stage of the supply chain and producing food that is cheaper, more consistent, and significantly less good than the food it replaced. The handmade dumpling resists this substitution because the machine-made dumpling is not the same product. The machine can fold. The machine cannot feel whether the fold is correct. The machine can fill. The machine cannot adjust the filling quantity based on the elasticity of the wrapper on a given day. The handmade dumpling therefore maintains its quality relationship with its production method in a way that most foods have lost.
The Second Visit Dumplings
The xiao long bao on the second visit were identically accomplished to those on the first. The wrapper had the correct thickness, the filling had the correct seasoning, the soup pocket had developed correctly during steaming. This consistency is the evidence that the kitchen has a standard for these rather than a recipe that is executed with variable skill on different days.
The steamed pork and cabbage dumplings, which I had not ordered on the first visit, were excellent: the filling properly seasoned with the ginger and sesame that characterise Northern Chinese dumpling filling, the wrapper properly sealed, the steaming done correctly so that the outside was cooked through without the inside being compressed by excess moisture. The chilli oil dipping sauce was made with actual Sichuan peppercorn and had the distinctive numbing-then-burning sensation that characterises properly made Sichuan chilli oil.
The cold sesame noodles, which I added as a second course, demonstrated that the kitchen’s competence extends beyond dumplings to other preparations. The noodles were cooked to the correct texture, the sesame sauce was made from real tahini and real sesame oil with the right balance of soy and vinegar, the cucumber alongside it was fresh and properly cut. This is an excellent cold noodle dish and it was entirely unexpected given that the dumplings are so clearly the main event.
The Conclusion
Visit Xi Home Dumplings Bay and order the xiao long bao and the pork and cabbage. The London Prat covers London with honest enthusiasm. Bohiney Magazine provides context for everything.
SOURCE: https://www.xihomedumplingsbay.co.uk/
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