Oh, My Siomai!

CEBU, Philippines — Chinese food has always been a favorite of Cebuanos. It’s an old culinary import that has not been completely overtaken by newer “foreign” food fads. It continues to hold itself alongside French fries and hamburgers and spaghetti and... all others.

The Chinese restaurants in the city – some of them very old ones – still do very good business. And it’s not only the established Chinese restaurants that benefit from the popularity of Chinese food among Cebuanos. Here and there and everywhere in Cebu, it’s common to see roadside displays of a Chinese dish being sold.

There are ngohiong and siomai stands around. These are in the malls and in the neighborhoods. It is proof that these two Chinese food items sell very well.

Siomai, in particular, is the craze these days. Even small sari-sari stores have it displayed in see-through steamers. Siomai carts can also be seen going around.

Many people, however, are hesitant to buy food from small, ambulant vendors. The usual concern is sanitation. Since homemade foods sold do not get checked by health personnel, the cleanliness and safety of the products is suspect.

Chinese food has always been a favorite of Cebuanos. It’s an old culinary import that has not been completely overtaken by newer “foreign” food fads. It continues to hold itself alongside French fries and hamburgers and spaghetti and... all others.

The Chinese restaurants in the city – some of them very old ones – still do very good business. And it’s not only the established Chinese restaurants that benefit from the popularity of Chinese food among Cebuanos. Here and there and everywhere in Cebu, it’s common to see roadside displays of a Chinese dish being sold.

There are ngohiong and siomai stands around. These are in the malls and in the neighborhoods. It is proof that these two Chinese food items sell very well.

Siomai, in particular, is the craze these days. Even small sari-sari stores have it displayed in see-through steamers. Siomai carts can also be seen going around.

Many people, however, are hesitant to buy food from small, ambulant vendors. The usual concern is sanitation. Since homemade foods sold do not get checked by health personnel, the cleanliness and safety of the products is suspect.

Yet those who crave for siomai may actually make their own at home. And they can choose which siomai to make – pork, beef or chicken. Here’s a good chicken siomai recipe from Vanjo Merano at https://panlasangpinoy.com:

Chicken Siomai

Ingredients:

2 lbs ground chicken

¾ cup minced shrimp

¼ cup sesame oil

2 tbsp olive oil

1 cup minced white mushroom

2 tsp chicken powder

1 pc large yellow onion, minced

1 cup minced carrots

½ tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp salt

1 pc egg

A pack of wonton wrappers

4 to 6 cups water

Procedure:

• In a mixing bowl, combine the ground chicken, shrimp, mushroom, carrots, onion, chicken powder, ground black pepper, garlic powder, salt, sesame oil, and egg. Mix well using a spatula.

• Lay a piece of wonton wrapper in a plate. Scoop about a tablespoon of mixture and place it in the center of the wrapper. Wrap the mixture by folding the sides until the meat mixture is enclosed. Do this step until all the mixture is wrapped.

• Pour the water in a steamer. Bring it to a boil.

• Meanwhile, arrange the chicken siomai in the steamer. Make sure to grease the steamer using a cooking spray or by rubbing with cooking oil, in order to prevent the wrapper from sticking.

• Steam the chicken siomai for 15 to 25 minutes. (Time will depend on the size of the siomai.)

• Transfer to a serving plate. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce and chili.

The approximate preparation time is 15 minutes. Cooking takes about 25 minutes. This recipe serves 8 persons.