Daily Archives: August 13, 2011

Shark fin dumplings – Clement Restaurant

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Shark fin dumplings Clement Restaurant
Lye water dough (shiu mai wrapper) filled with a mixture of chopped shrimp, pork fillet, shark fin, spring onion and Chinese parsley. The dumplings are then steamed.
Clement Restaurant, San Francisco

So California Assembly Bill 376 would ban the possession, sale, and trade of shark fins in the state of California.  It’s suppose to be heard before the Senate Committee on Appropriations on Monday, August 15th in Sacramento.  We’ll see what happens!  I have to admit that I’ve never wondered if I’m eating real shark fin in dim sum.  For some reason, I always assumed it was imitation shark fin.  I know that’s ignorant of me, so I’m curious to see what happens with AB 376.  I definitely don’t agree with the practice of shark finning, but would this bill also ban shark fins that were harvested without finning?  My assumption would be YES, but I’ll have to read more about the debate. 

Regardless, I don’t know if I can even distinguish the shark fin flavor or texture in these dumplings from any other similar dumplings.  In that regard, I probably wouldn’t be affected by the shark fin ban but opponents of the bill cite cultural reasons.  Sounds fishy to me (pardon the pun)!

Pork shiu mai – Clement Restaurant

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Pork shiu mai Clement Restaurant
Steamed dumplings with seasoned ground pork, chopped shrimp and Chinese black mushroom wrapped with a thin sheet of lye water dough.
Clement Restaurant, San Francisco

These suckers were large compared to other shumai I’ve had! I’m not sure why I always order siu mai though. They don’t have much flavor compared to other dim sum and the filling tends to be really fatty.  But they do soak up soy and chili XO sauce really well and I enjoy the combination of the filling and dough textures. Since dim sum tends to be really cheap on Clement Street in San Francisco I think I’ll keep ordering them, lol!

Cha siu bao – Clement Restaurant

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Steamed bbq pork bun Clement Restaurant
Bbq pork bun. Cantonese steamed bun filled with slow roasted pork tenderloin in a salty sweet, bbq sauce mixture.
Clement Restaurant, San Francisco

I love dim sum, and I love bbq pork buns whether steamed or baked!  I didn’t know they use different doughs depending on whether they are steamed or fried, but it makes sense.  The filling is always SO good! The bbq bun from Clement Restaurant had the thickest bun I’ve ever tried, and I admit that I wasn’t a fan.  For me, the bun is there to hold the delicious filling together and there was just too much of it here.

* Also spelled “char siu bao” among others.

Assorted cream puffs – Pacific Puffs

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Assorted cream puffs Pacific Puffs
These freshly baked choux pastry puffs are filled with Madagascar bourbon vanilla cream, light chocolate cream, whipped cream and freshly cut strawberries, and other special flavors.  They are either topped with powdered sugar or a thick chocolate glaze.
Pacific Puffs, San Francisco

Who doesn’t enjoy light, sweet cream puffs? I certainly enjoyed these but let’s compare them to Beard Papa puffs. I like Beard Papa’s choux pastry better because it has a firmer texture that doesn’t get as soggy from the cream filling.  I like Pacific Puffs’ chocolate cream better because it’s smoother, Beard Papa’s chocolate cream is always a little grainy. Pacific Puffs also has more flvaors.  But overall, I’m gonna say that Beard Papa takes it overall for texture and flavor.  BUT, the boys working Pacific Puffs make it worth it to go there too, lol!A co-worker informed me of Liliha Bakery cream puffs in Honolulu which are supposed to be AMAZING!  Will have to try them next time I’m in Hawaii!

Pacific Puffs logo