Jiaozi

Jiaozi are boiled dumplings filled with minced pork and cabbage, folded by hand and dipped in vinegar and soy. They are the dumpling that built a thousand family gatherings, traditionally folded together by hand around a table rather than bought ready-made.

What it really is

A simple dough of flour and water is rolled into small rounds, each one filled with a mix of minced pork, finely chopped cabbage, ginger and garlic, then folded and pinched shut along a pleated edge that varies by region and family. Dropped into boiling water, the dumplings float to the surface once cooked through, the wrapper turning tender and slightly translucent while the filling inside stays juicy.

The fold is a signature, not decoration. Every household and region pleats jiaozi a little differently, and a pan-fried version of the same dumpling — known as guotie, or potstickers — is common too, crisped on one side after a first boil or steam.

How it is served

• In a bowl or on a plate, a dozen or more per portion.
• With a dipping sauce of black vinegar, soy sauce and chilli oil mixed at the table.
• As a full meal in northern China, not just a starter.

How to write it on the menu

• Flag the wheat in the wrapper and the soy in the filling and dip.
• Say if a pan-fried potsticker version is also offered, since the two textures are genuinely different.
• Note the number of dumplings per portion, since jiaozi are sold and eaten by the piece.