Shengjian mantou, also called shengjian bao, is a filled bun commonly eaten as a snack or breakfast in Shanghai and the Jiangnan region. It is pan-fried, usually until the base is golden; common ingredients include pork, sesame and scallions. [1][2]
History
The Shanghai Culture and Tourism Promotion Network lists shengjian mantou making skills as a municipal intangible cultural heritage item, classified as a traditional craft in Huangpu District in 2019. It describes shengjian as having a history of about a century in Shanghai. Teahouses and hot-water shops first sold it alongside other snacks; specialist shengjian shops appeared after the 1930s. Its precise origin is unknown. [2]
The same source records that the Dongtaixiang shop began around the 1920s near Hengbang Bridge in Hongkou. Its semi-fermented dough and soy-seasoned, broth-rich style were passed on through teacher–apprentice training. This is one shop's transmission history, not the sole origin of shengjian as a whole. [2]
Preparation and styles
A common method wraps pork filling in dough, places each bun seam-side down in a pan, fries it with water added in stages, then finishes it with sesame and scallions. Shanghai shengjian is often grouped into “mixed-water” and “clear-water” styles. The former usually contains pork-skin aspic in the filling and has more broth; the latter omits the aspic and has less broth. Shops also differ in dough fermentation, seasoning and frying. [1][2]