![]() A traditional gua bao | |
Course | Snack, delicacy, main dish, side dish |
---|---|
Place of origin | China |
Region or state | Fujian |
Serving temperature | Hot |
Main ingredients | Lotus leaf bread, stewed meat, condiments |
Ingredients generally used | Red-cooked pork belly, pickled mustard, coriander, ground peanuts |
Variations | Fried chicken, fish, eggs, stewed beef, lettuce |
Koah-pau | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Chinese name | |||||||||||
Traditional Chinese | 割包 | ||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 刈包 | ||||||||||
Literal meaning | cut bun | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Alternative Chinese name | |||||||||||
Traditional Chinese | 肉夾包 | ||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 肉夹包 | ||||||||||
Literal meaning | meat between buns | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Japanese name | |||||||||||
Kanji | 角煮饅頭 | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Tagalog name | |||||||||||
Tagalog | kuwapaw |
Koah-pau or gua bao, [1] also known as a pork belly bun, [2] bao, [3] [4] or bao bun, [5] [6] is a type of lotus leaf bun originating from Fujianese cuisine in China. [7] It is also a popular snack in Taiwan,Singapore,Malaysia,Philippines,and Nagasaki Chinatown in Japan.
It consists of a slice of stewed meat and condiments sandwiched between flat steamed bread known as lotus leaf bread (荷葉餅;héyèbǐng). The lotus leaf bread is typically 6–8 centimetres (2.4–3.1 in) in size,semi-circular and flat in form,with a horizontal fold that,when opened,gives the appearance that it has been sliced. The traditional filling for gua bao is a slice of red-cooked pork belly,typically dressed with stir-fried suan cai (pickled mustard greens),coriander,and ground peanuts. [4] [8] [9]
Gua (Chinese:割/刈;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:koah) means to cut by drawing the knife around in Taiwanese Hokkien. [10] Bao means "bun",so the name bao bun is redundant,and bao in the Chinese language without any qualifiers is generally used to refer to baozi.
The gua bao originated from the coastal regions of Fujian province in China. It is said to have come from either the cities of Quanzhou or Fuzhou. [11] In Quanzhou,gua bao is known as rou jia bao (肉夹包;'meat between buns') or hu yao shi (虎咬狮;'tiger bites lion'). [12] The custom of Hui'an people in Quanzhou is to eat these pork belly buns to celebrate the marrying off of a daughter. [13] In Jinjiang,a county of Quanzhou,there is a related vegetarian dish known as hu yao cao (虎咬草;'tiger bites grass') that replaces the pork with a solidified peanut paste and the lotus leaf bread with a bread that is baked in a clay oven similar to a tandoor. [14] [15]
In Taiwan,gua bao are believed to have been introduced to the island by Fuzhounese immigrants. Fuzhou rice vinasse meat is wrapped in it,and ingredients are chopped and soaked in meat gravy to eat. [16] [17] The food is known colloquially in parts of Taiwan as hó͘-kā-ti (虎咬豬;'tiger bites pig') in Taiwanese Hokkien due to the mouth-like form of the bun and the contents of the filling. [8] Gua bao was a food that merchants consumed during ritual festivals when Taiwan was under Japanese rule. According to the research of Yu-Jen Chen,pork was expensive and not easy to acquire at that time,and flour was also scarce. As a result,the gua bao only became a popular street food among the public in Taiwan in the 1970s. Gua bao is now a popular Taiwanese street snack food and often offered with four-herbal soup (四神湯;sù-sîn-thng) at night markets. [18]
In Singapore and Malaysia,the dish is popular among the Hokkien community,where it is known as kong bak pau (扣肉包;khòng-bah-pau). [19] [20]
In the Philippines,it is served in Chinese Filipino restaurants throughout the country,where it is more popularly known as cuapao. [21] [22] [23] [24] [25] [26]
In Hong Kong,they are known as cha bao (叉包) which means "fork buns" as the sandwiches are usually pierced by a toothpick or bamboo skewer to keep the fillings in place.
In Japan they are called kakuni manju [27] [ deprecated source ] and are sold as a Chinese snack food. They are a specialty of Nagasaki Chinatown, [28] having been sold in Japan for centuries due to the large number of Fuzhounese immigrants and historic relations between Fuzhou and Nagasaki represented by the construction of Sofukuji Temple. [29] [30] Recognizing the Fuzhounese community and historical connection,Nagasaki and Fuzhou established ties as sister cities in 1980. [31]
Gua bao became popular in the early 2000s in the West through chef David Chang's Momofuku restaurants (c. 2004) although he says that he was unaware that the gua bao dish already existed. [32] His Momofuku recipe was born out of a desire to use leftover pork from his ramen,and he was inspired by his dining experiences in Beijing and Manhattan Chinatown's Oriental Garden where the Peking duck was served on lotus leaf bread rather than the traditional spring pancake. He called his creation pork belly buns. [33] The name "gua bao" was used and popularised by chef Eddie Huang when he opened his BaoHaus restaurant (c. 2009). [34] [35] Many other restaurants serving gua bao have opened up since then,but they often refer to the dish by the ambiguous name "bao" or the erroneous name "bao bun".
In the United States,New York City has a significant population of Fuzhounese Americans and gua bao is a popular dish sold at restaurants along with other iconic Fuzhounese dishes such as Fuzhou fish balls and lychee pork. [36]
In the United Kingdom,Erchen Chang,Wai Ting and Shing Tat Chung opened BAO in London,further popularizing the snack in the West. [13] Gua bao are often called hirata buns in the United Kingdom,named after Masashi Hirata,the executive chef of Ippudo in New York as many ramen restaurants began to adopt the practise of selling gua bao alongside their ramen dishes due to the influence of Momofuku and to meet high demand from customers who mistakenly believed that the gua bao was a Japanese food item. [37]
There have been many new trendy "gua bao" which incorporate pan-Asian fusion or non-Chinese fillings between the lotus leaf buns,such as kimchi or karaage. [38] Although these are technically not gua bao at all as they do not include pork belly,and in China would only be considered different lotus leaf bun sandwiches (he ye bao).
Shanghai cuisine,also known as Hu cuisine,is a popular style of Chinese food. In a narrow sense,Shanghai cuisine refers only to what is traditionally called Benbang cuisine which originated in Shanghai. In a broader sense,it refers to complex styles of cooking developed under the influence of neighboring Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces.
Oden is a type of nabemono consisting of several ingredients such as boiled eggs,daikon or konjac,and processed fishcakes stewed in a light,soy-flavored dashi broth.
Small sausage in large sausage is a snack sausage sandwich invented in Taiwan in the late 20th century. A segment of Taiwanese pork sausage is wrapped in a sticky rice sausage to make this delicacy,usually served chargrilled. Deluxe versions are available in night markets in Taiwan,with condiments such as pickled bokchoy,pickled cucumber,garlic,hot peppers,wasabi,and thick soy sauce paste to complement the taste.
Mantou,often referred to as a Chinese steamed bun,is a white and soft type of steamed bread or bun popular in northern China. Folk etymology connects the name mantou to a tale about Zhuge Liang.
Hújiāo bǐng or pepper bun is a type of baked bun that originated in city of Fuzhou,the capital of China's Fujian province. It is a street food that has become popular in Taiwan and can be found in night markets or mini food stalls throughout Taiwan. The common ingredients are flour,water,and a leavening agent for the outer dough shell,and a meat protein marinated with sugar,soy sauce,white pepper or black pepper,and scallion for the inside filling.
Northeastern Chinese cuisine is a style of Chinese cuisine in Northeast China. While many dishes originated from Shandong cuisine and Manchu cuisine,it is also influenced by the cuisines of Russia,Beijing,Mongolia,and North Korea. It partially relies on preserved foods and large portions due to the region's harsh winters and relatively short growing seasons.
Baozi,or simply bao,is a type of yeast-leavened filled bun in various Chinese cuisines. There are many variations in fillings and preparations,though the buns are most often steamed. They are a variation of mantou from Northern China.
A pineapple bun is a kind of sweet bun predominantly popular in Hong Kong and also common in Chinatowns worldwide. Despite the name,it does not traditionally contain pineapple;rather,the name refers to the look of the characteristic topping.
Cha siu bao is a Cantonese baozi (bun) filled with barbecue-flavored cha siu pork. They are served as a type of dim sum during yum cha and are sometimes sold in Chinese bakeries.
Siopao,is a Philippine steamed bun with various fillings. It is the indigenized version of the Fujianese baozi,introduced to the Philippines by Hokkien immigrants during the Spanish colonial period. It is a popular snack in the Philippines and is commonly sold by bakeries and restaurants.
Bing is a wheat flour-based Chinese bread with a flattened or disk-like shape. These foods may resemble the flatbreads,pancakes,pies and unleavened dough foods of non-Chinese cuisines. Many of them are similar to the Indian roti,French crêpes,Salvadoran pupusa,or Mexican tortilla,while others are more similar to cakes and cookies.
Roujiamo or rougamo is a street food originating from the cuisine of Shaanxi Province and widely consumed all over China. In the United States,it is sometimes called a Chinese hamburger.
Tàⁿ-á-mī,also known as Ta-a noodles or danzai noodles,is a type of snack found in Tainan,Taiwan. Also known as "Slack Season Ta-a Noodles",they originated in Tainan,about 130 years ago. While the general recipe is well known,some of the spices and the proportions of the various ingredients are well guarded secrets by the different restaurants/stands that serve it. The normal serving size is usually small,being considered more of a snack than an entree. It is also on the pricier side (relatively) at around NT$50 (US$1.60) for a small bowl.
A barbecue sandwich is a sandwich that is typically prepared with barbecued meats. Several types of meats are used to prepare barbecue sandwiches. Some varieties use cooked meats that are not barbecued,but include barbecue sauce. Many variations,including regional variations,exist,along with diverse types of cooking styles,preparations and ingredients.
Bao Sandwich Bar is a bao restaurant in Waterloo and Mississauga,Ontario,Canada. The restaurant serves Vietnamese bánh mìsandwiches and Taiwanese gua bao. The menu items take inspiration from a variety of Asian cuisines.
Lotus leaf bread is a Chinese steamed bread. Semi-circular and flat,the loaves have a horizontal fold that,when opened,gives the appearance that it has been sliced. Lines or patterns may be added to increase the resemblance to a lotus leaf.