I sometimes laugh at myself for not being able to change my binge eating lifestyle.
As I always feel, even in the past, now or in the future, once I fall in love with a certain food, I don’t think the gluttony of eating that food every day for more than a month or two will easily change.
It may sound strange, but with the excuse of doing indoor rock climbing, yoga, or jumping rope, handstand etc, I often make fun of myself for exercising to enjoy an unhealthy snack even more.
Though they are completely unhealthy for such a large consumption in a short period of time, it is clear that it is ultimately my mindset to resist the temptation of the unhealthy munchies. But sadly, it is not that easy for me as I know myself in that sense.???? ????
This time, the insanely delicious snack I’ve been obsessed with for months is one of dim sums signature dishes, a Chinese oven-baked “cha siu bao“.
The amazing thing about this bao is that you can taste salty flavour and sweet flavour at the same time. So, believe it or not, lately I have been eating these baos almost every day.
To prove how much I like it, I go to a restaurant myself only to buy a week enough of baos, or have them delivered to my house by a local delivery app like FoodPanda or Grab Food in Malaysia. ????????
Char Siu Bao(???), also known as Cantonese BBQ Pork Dumplings(Baozi), is a type of dumpling that is stuffed with BBQ-flavored char siu pork meat diced mixed with lots of chopped onions, garlic seasoned with oyster sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil and sugar.
In fact, Cha Siu Bao can be broadly divided into two types: a steamed version and a baked version.
Steamed bao are usually found in dim sum restaurants, but they are usually about the size of an adult’s palm, so eating just two can make you feel pretty full.
The pork filling wrapped in white flour batter of steamed bao is somewhat delicious.
Especially, this steamed siu bao is perfect for those who like the soft, pilowy and fluffy texture of a white wrapper.
However, I am not a big fan of this steamed bao as it is quite dry on the outside and thick flour makes my throat kinda stuffy.
Also, another reason I am not too keen on this steamed bao is that if I am at a dim sum restaurant, I am most likely busy eating other delicious steamed dim sum items filled with proper seafood or pork meat in it, such as har gao, shu mai, xiao long bao, etc.
So it’s no surprise that my cravings for these white chunky carb-filled steamed baos are easily quenched when I’m already full of delicious dim sum.
Either way, I have to leave some room for my stomach to properly complete the end of the dim sum feast. This is because I never forget to eat sweet and savory egg tarts or sticky and chewy rice cakes filled with red bean paste as dim sum desserts.
Not surprisingly, I almost went to talk about other food like dim sum today, but to continue today’s char siu bao story, I think the long introduction to dim sum should end here. ????
So today, let’s blog about not steamed cha siu bao, but oven-baked cha siu bao, which I’ve been obsessed with lately. One interesting thing is that the finished product is completely different in shape, color, texture and taste, except for the cha siu bao of the same name. This is mainly because of the different cooking methods.
But either way, the sweet and salty pork filling used for the steamed bao and baked bao is pretty much the same. So, I guess that it is possible to reduce the time to prepare the fillings for the baos and the hassle caused by unnecessary procurement of many ingredients.
Even so, the taste of cha siu filling may still differ depending on the Chinese restaurant or the person making it, but if the same chef makes the pork filling in the same Chinese restaurant, the filling used in the two versions will not be much different.
Anyway, today I’m blogging about a local restaurant that makes the most delicious char siu bao I’ve ever eaten.
What’s more, these delicious baos from this neat and stylish restaurant are surprisingly very affordable, just as cheap as street food.
As a result, my binge-eating life certainly cannot end. ????
Good and bad aside, this restaurant is a franchise with about 10 or more branches in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor area.
This means, on the good side, wherever you live in Kuala Lumpur, you are more likely to find one nearby.
In my case, there is one in a neighborhood called Kota Damansara in Petaling Jaya where I live.
The closest restaurant to me is in a very large new shopping mall called Tropicana Gardens Mall, 10 minutes walk from the condo I live in.
In fact, inside this shopping mall, there are many restaurants, cafes, bakeries, etc. where you can eat various types of food to your taste.
Whenever I pass by a variety of different restaurants, one of the places that caught my eye is this Chinese restaurant called “Esquire Kitchen”. I honestly remember this Chinese restaurant in another place easily thanks to the name with the English word “Esquire”.
I first saw this restaurant about 10 years ago in a shopping mall called “Sungai Wang” located in “Bukit Bintang”, the busiest city center in Kuala Lumpur.
The reason this restaurant caught my eye is because the delicious char siu bao is displayed in front of the restaurant’s entrance and the smell makes me so hungry. As soon as they open in the morning, the staff cooks them directly in the oven, so anyone can tell the taste is very good, and it tastes best when it’s hot at lunch.
So, if possible, I go there at that time and enjoy the most buttery, flaky, and savory taste of freshly baked char siu bao, which makes my day more lively and smiling.
And, frankly, standing right in front of this restaurant, looking at about nine fist-sized, golden-brown Chinese pies, stacked in different shapes and flavors inside a clear glass partition, is a delight in itself.
It is because it makes me happy to imagine how delicious it will be as I scan them up and down one by one.
I tasted more than half of the 9 items there. In terms of taste, char siu bao with pork filling is the most popular, so it is prepared in the largest number and piled high, almost like a pyramid. It is not surprise as always, I find char siu bao to stack up the most every time I go.
The rest of the pies are also delicious, including chicken stuffed pies, curry puffs stuffed with curry flavored mashed potatoes, salty egg yolk pies, winter melon pies called Lo por bing (??? also called wife’s biscuits, sweetheart cake), and Chinese almond cookies.
I also like the wide, half-moon shaped curry puffs. The triangular cylinder-shaped pie with chicken is also delicious.
However, the salty egg yolk and lotus paste was not as good as I thought. The pie with winter melon isn’t bad either.
After all, after trying almost all of the Chinese pastries or pies, to be honest, char siu bao tastes the best, whether anyone agrees or not. So once I know what my favourites are, I go to buy about five char siu baos at a time.
Or, recently, I often order hot Chinese food such as noodle or rice for lunch at home. At that time, I also order about five char siu baos with the meal through the home delivery app.
One thing that frankly surprises me is that if you roughly calculate the amount of char siu bao pastries I’ve eaten recently, it’s quite a lot considering the short period of time. Since I ate them almost every day for over a month, I guess I consumed about 50 or more.???? ????
One good thing, I have noticed that if I order more than five pies at a time, they come packaged in a very pretty pink paper box.
The name “Esquire Kitchen” is beautifully written. So I feel like I’ve received a pretty gift from myself. And when I open that box weighing around 400 to 500 grams of five pies, the delicious golden pies inside are sure to please my eyes.
If I taste this pie while it’s still hot, the already salty and sweet char siu pork filling has a rich flavor and deep aroma. Also, because it is a Chinese-style baked confectionery, it is very flaky on the outside.
As I eat, the pastry layer falls in all directions. The texture is quite buttery, so it must have been loaded with lard or vegetable oils used for baking.
This is because I eat these delicious pies with my hands, and I can actually see my hands get greasy after taking just one bite.???? Since it contains a lot of oil or lard, it is clear that it is a super high-calorie snack that cannot be good for health.
So, if I eat two or more a day for several consecutive months, I am sure I will definitely be shocked by the massive weight gain. ???? Basically, these oily snacks are not only bad for health, but also empty calorie foods in terms of nutrition. I know that, but what to do! It tastes insanely good! ????
To be honest, I know these pies are bad for the body as an Asian version of fast food, but the funny thing is, I can’t resist the temptation and eat them almost every day. Hum~~~ I’m not even sure I’ll ever get tired of this pies!
And what’s so amazing is that they only cost around 0.6 USD (RM 2.7) each. It actually cost RM 2.5 until last year, but in 2022 the price has only risen slightly for every pie.
If I buy directly from the Esquire Kitchen restaurant, it’s nice to meet a lively and friendly Chinese aunt who is a branch manager, and other restaurant staff there.
Esquire Kitchen @ Tropicana Gardens Mall
Address: Lot CC-11, Tropicana Gardens Mall, No. 2A, Persiaran Surian, Tropicana Indah, 47810 Petaling Jaya, Selangor
Address: One Utama Shopping Complex, LG 326 Lower Ground Floor, Bandar Utama, 47800 Petaling Jaya, Selangor
After I say hello to them, I take these five pies and, as always, go for a local “Teh tarik” which means milk tea in Malay, from a pop-up store called “Jom Laksa” in the same mall.
This “Jom Laksa” also sells other local delicacies, but I always go for the promo milk tea for RM 1.9 (US $0.4).
Two staff from Bangladesh there make this milk tea very well. Milk tea made in less than 3 minutes is really different from other cheap teas, and the combination of bitter tea flavor and milk is just right to my liking.
And surprisingly, these two favorites, the sweet and savory char siu bao and the drink, cost just $1 USD. Who could believe this! So I wonder if there’s anything else that can be this satisfying for just $1. I doubt it.
That’s why this moment of enjoying these two combos is even more special. Even now as I am blogging, I am not letting go of two delicious delights on the table where I sit.
Simply put, the fact that I can eat this delicious and cheap junk food for $1 without making a big hole in my pocket makes it almost impossible for me to give up, no matter how unhealthy it may be. ????
Teh Tarik(milk tea RM 1.9) at Jom Laksa Tropicana Gardens Mall
Address: K8 & K9, Village Grocer, CC-01, Concourse Floor Tropicana Gardens Mall, No, 2A, Persiaran Surian, Tropicana Indah, 47810 Petaling Jaya, Selangor
One more thing, when you travel to Malaysia, be sure to try Esquire Kitchen’s various pies(Asian sweet and savory pastries). Especially if you plan to eat one or two, be sure to try the char siu bao. Best of all, if you go to most Cantonese Chinese restaurants or dim sum restaurants, it will be a good experience to try a variety of freshly made baos that day.
Plus, while Malaysia is also a shopping mall paradise, this newly opened “Tropicana Gardens” mall has franchises of every name.
Below are examples of some restaurants, cafes, bakeries, clothing stores, etc.
Tropicana Gardens Mall
Address: 29 No, Unit CC, 2A, Persiaran Surian, Tropicana Indah, 47810 Petaling Jaya, Selangor
????? ?? ?? ????? ?? ?? All you can eat Korean bbq Kuala Lumpur Arabic food arabic food restaurant Malaysia Char siu cheap and delicious indonesian food cheap and delicious local food in Malaysia cheap and delicious local indian food in Malaysia Cheap indian food Cheap Korean bbq buffet cheap street food malaysia chia seed recipe chickpea recipe chickpeas chinese street food dosa and chutney gluten free recipe healthy chia seed biscuit recipe indian food malaysia Indian mamak food indonesian food korean bbq buffet malaysia Korean desserts korean food malaysia Malaysia's must try local food Malaysian Chinese food malaysian local food mamak indian food mamak restaurant in Kuala Lumpur Muslim halal food must try malaysian food no butter recipe red bean recipe red beans red bean spaghetti restaurant review Sichuan food street food in Malaysia Street Food Malaysia Tteok recipe Yemeni cuisine Yemeni food yemeni malawah bread Yemeni restaurant Malaysia
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