Generations of dumplings
By 6 am, Cai's first batch of dumplings is ready for hungry customers. "Business peaks around the Spring Festival holiday," Cai says, adding that the specialty carries both culinary appeal and deep sentimental value for locals who grew up eating it. "We hit 14,000 pieces on our best days — and even have to turn customers away," Cai says, a note of pride mixed with exhaustion in his voice. Cai, 37, is a third-generation maker of baoci, a Shaowu specialty. He took up his parents' trade about a decade ago. "There's definitely a learning process. Many people from Shaowu can make them. But the difference between edible and excellent is in the details. How chewy is the skin? Is the filling balanced?" he explains. "My parents taught me bit by bit, and I kept practicing. After all, they'd been doing it for years," he says. To understand baoci, one has to understand the geography of Shaowu, where narrow mountain paths historically connected villages and local cuisine evolved from nearby ingredients, including rice from terraced paddies, bamboo shoots from mountain groves, and mushrooms from damp forest floors. Baoci is the edible expression of this landscape.
The wrapper starts with local rice, soaked overnight, then boiled until it reaches the exact tenderness. "A minute more or less in the pot changes everything," Cai explains. "The texture, the chewiness — it's all about timing." A local wild plant called shuiqucao is then added, which gives the dough its characteristic dark green flecks. The filling is a medley of mountain and field: mushrooms, bamboo shoots, firm tofu, smoked pork, dried cuttlefish, and shredded turnip. Each ingredient is stir-fried separately before being combined, allowing each flavor to maintain its identity. His parents started selling baoci in nearby Yanshan town in 2003, when city residents would take the bus to the town or ask drivers to bring back packages. By 2017, the family decided to move the shop to Shaowu proper. In the back of Cai's shop, a team of women has been working away to keep up with the demand. "They're all from Yanshan. The youngest is in her 30s, while the oldest is pushing 70," he says.
Each finished baoci bears the distinctive ridges that mark it as Yanshan-style, as opposed to the smoother version from neighboring Heping town.
"The pattern isn't just for looks. It seals the opening so they don't burst while they are steamed," he explains.
From late December through the festival, Cai's shop produces between 8,000 and 10,000 pieces daily.
Morning customers are locals grabbing breakfast or lunch. Midday brings people preparing for gatherings. The rest of the day is left to shipping orders.
"Eighty to 90 percent of our shipped orders go to Shaowu people living elsewhere," Cai says.
"They send them to Beijing, Hainan province, and as far as Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region," he adds.
"People clearly want the taste of home," Cai says.
Baoci is just one taste of Shaowu welcoming the Chinese New Year. Across the city, authorities have rolled out a full slate of events blending culture, tourism and commerce.
