Bamboo-Brush Dumpling (Shuabatou)

Shuabatou is a traditional pastry unique to Xingyi: a thin ruffled dough is wrapped around a filling of lard, dried mushroom and lean pork, pleated into a bundle that flares open at the top and steamed, its shape recalling the bamboo brush once used for scouring pots—thin-skinned and fragrant.

Created during the Tongzhi reign of the Qing dynasty (mid-to-late 19th century), reportedly by a Xingyi pastry master and named for its bamboo-brush silhouette, it has been a beloved breakfast and teatime pastry in Xingyi for over a century.

Eaten hot from the steamer, often dipped in soy, vinegar and chilli oil, or enjoyed alongside a bowl of lever-pressed noodles or chicken tangyuan, an indispensable part of a Xingyi breakfast table.

Its bundle shape—open at the top, gathered below, like a bamboo brush—together with the ruffled thin skin and mushroom-and-meat filling sets it apart from cousins such as the shao mai.