Har gow facts for kids
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| Alternative names | Xia jiao, also spelled ha gau, ha gaau, ha gao, ha gow, or other variants, Vietnamese "há cảo" |
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| Course | Dim sum |
| Place of origin | Guangdong, China |
| Region or state | Cantonese-speaking region |
| Main ingredients | Wheat starch, tapioca starch, shrimp, cooked pork fat, bamboo shoots, scallions, cornstarch, sesame oil, soy sauce, sugar, and other seasonings |
| Har gow | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 蝦餃 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 虾饺 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jyutping | haa¹ gaau² | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cantonese Yale | hā gáau | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Hanyu Pinyin | xiājiǎo | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | shrimp dumpling | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Vietnamese name | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vietnamese | há cảo | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Thai name | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Thai | ฮะเก๋า [háʔ.kǎw] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| RTGS | hakao | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Har gow is a delicious, clear dumpling from Cantonese cooking. It is a very popular dish served as part of a meal called dim sum. People sometimes call it "ha gow" or "hakao".
Contents
What's in a Name?
This special dumpling is sometimes called a shrimp bonnet. This is because of its pretty pleated shape.
Har gow is often served with another dumpling called siumaai. When they are served together, people call them gar gow-siu mai (Chinese: 蝦餃燒賣; pinyin: xiājiǎo shāomài; Cantonese Yale: hā gáau sīum áai).
The Four Heavenly Kings
Har gow is one of the most famous Cantonese dishes. It is considered one of "The Four Heavenly Kings" (Chinese: 四大天王; pinyin: sì dà tiān wáng; Cantonese Yale: sei daaih tīn wòhng). The other three "kings" are siu mai, cha siu bao (steamed pork buns), and egg tarts. These are all classic dishes that many people love.
In Cantonese, the name "Har gow" can also mean "wedding gown." This is because the dumpling's shape looks like a traditional dress a bride wears on her wedding day.
What Does Har Gow Look Like?
Har gow dumplings are known for being transparent and smooth. You can often see the pink shrimp inside! They first appeared in Guangzhou, a city in China, near a market called Deli.
How to Make a Perfect Har Gow
Making a perfect har gow is a sign of a great dim sum chef. There are some important rules for how they should look and taste.
A traditional har gow should have at least seven pleats. It's even better if it has ten or more! The wrapper, or skin, must be very thin. It also needs to be clear, so you can see through it.
Even though the wrapper is thin, it must be strong. It should not break when you pick it up with chopsticks. Also, it should not stick to the paper or the basket it's served in. The shrimp inside must be cooked just right, not too much. Finally, there should be enough shrimp to make it tasty, but not so much that you can't eat it in one bite.
Images for kids
See also
In Spanish: Har gow para niños
