Homemade Soup Dumplings: My First Attempt at Xiaolongbao

For the final monthly recipe challenge celebrating 10 years since I started this account, I attempted a recipe I’ve always been intrigued by: The Woks of Life’s Soup Dumplings (Xiaolongbao). For this version, pork skin and meaty neck bones are simmered with ginger and scallions to create a collagen-rich stock that should firm into aspic when chilled overnight. Mine, of course, did not, so I called in backup and added powdered gelatin. Once it sets, the aspic is diced and folded into puréed pork that’s seasoned with Shaoxing wine, soy sauce and sesame oil. As the dumplings steam, the aspic melts back into broth, creating their signature soupy center. The dough came together easily, and rolling out the individual wrappers wasn’t nearly as tedious as I thought it would be. Where I really struggled was the pleating. Let’s just call mine…rustic. A couple of the dumplings stuck to the cheesecloth in the steamer basket, ripped and spilled out all that precious broth. But the ones that…