Har gow ( zh, c=蝦餃, p=xiājiǎo, j=haa1 gaau2, l=shrimp
jiao), also anglicized as ha gow, hau kau, or ha kao, is a traditional
Cantonese
Cantonese is the traditional prestige variety of Yue Chinese, a Sinitic language belonging to the Sino-Tibetan language family. It originated in the city of Guangzhou (formerly known as Canton) and its surrounding Pearl River Delta. While th ...
dumpling
Dumplings are a broad class of dishes that consist of pieces of cooked dough (made from a variety of starchy sources), often wrapped around a filling. The dough can be based on bread, wheat or other flours, or potatoes, and it may be filled wi ...
served as
dim sum.
[Hsiung, Deh-Ta. Simonds, Nina. Lowe, Jason. 005(2005). The food of China: a journey for food lovers. Bay Books. . p41.] It is made of
shrimp
A shrimp (: shrimp (American English, US) or shrimps (British English, UK)) is a crustacean with an elongated body and a primarily Aquatic locomotion, swimming mode of locomotion – typically Decapods belonging to the Caridea or Dendrobranchi ...
meat, and steamed in a flour wrapper. After cooking, the wrapper becomes somewhat translucent, and therefore ''ha gow'' is sometimes called crystal shrimp dumplings (水晶蝦餃).
Name
The dumpling is sometimes called a shrimp bonnet for its pleated shape. This dish is often served together with ''
shumai''; when served in such a manner the two items are collectively referred to as ''ha gow''-''siu mai'' ( zh, t=蝦餃燒賣, p=xiājiǎo shāomài, cy=hā gáau sīu máai, first=cy, , j=haa1 gaau2 siu1 maai2).
''Ha gow'', ''
shumai'', ''
cha siu bao'', and
egg tarts are considered the classic dishes of Cantonese dim sum cuisine and referred to as ''The Four Heavenly Kings''. ( zh, c=四大天王, p=sì dà tiān wáng, cy=sei daaih tīn wòhng, links=no).
Description
These shrimp dumplings are transparent and smooth. Yi Zhen restaurant (怡珍茶楼) in Wufeng Village (五鳳村), Guangzhou was the first restaurant to serve Har Gow.
It was called Wufeng Har Gow (五鳳鮮蝦餃) at that time.
In a poem by Ho Shihuang (何世晃), a well-known Cantonese cook and author of "Classic Cantonese Pastry Techniques" (經典粵點技法), har gow is described as follows:
English translation:
The poem shows that nice and juicy filling inside a thin, soft and translucent wrapping are the essentials of an authentic har gow.
This dish is said to be the one that the skill of a dim sum chef is judged on. Traditionally, ''ha gow'' should have at least seven and preferably ten or more pleats imprinted on its wrapper. The skin must be thin and translucent, yet be sturdy enough not to break when picked up with chopsticks. It must not stick to the paper, container or the other ha gow in the basket. The shrimp must be cooked well, but not overcooked. The amount of meat should be generous, yet not so much that it cannot be eaten in one bite.
File:Xia jiao a un restaurant japonés de Xàbia.jpg
File:03 Har Gau Shrimp Dumplings - East Harbor Seafood Palace.jpg
File:3 pieces of har gow at Plum Blossom Room 20230125.jpg
File:Food 晶瑩鮮蝦餃, 添好運, Timhowan, 台北 (22266191364).jpg
File:Not be cook Shrimp Dumplings at Chinese Cottage Tea House.jpg, Before steaming
File:Har gow served at a Chinese restaurant in the Sunset District of SF.jpg, Har gow (bottom left) served at a Chinese restaurant in the Sunset District of San Francisco
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
See also
References
{{seafood
Cantonese dumplings
Cantonese words and phrases
Dim sum
Dumplings
Hong Kong cuisine
Shrimp dishes
Chinese seafood dishes