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If the soup ends up anywhere other than your mouth, that's a fail. Likewise, popping a fresh-from-the-steamer XLB directly into your gob is a no-no unless seared flesh is your thing. Bearing in mind that there is no one correct way to eat an XLB (see YouTube), Jasper Shen offers his preferred method.
Related: The XLB Soup Dumpling Craze Is Finally Coming To Portland
1. Using the sides (not the points) of your chopsticks, carefully remove an XLB from the steamer basket to a waiting Chinese soup spoon.
2. While still holding the XLB with your chopsticks, bite a small hole in the side of the XLB and pour all the soup into the spoon.
3. Drink the soup from the spoon.
4. Place the dumpling back on the spoon and pour a little dipping sauce over it and add a few threads of ginger.
5. "Shoot" the dumpling, scraping lightly with your teeth if it doesn't slide off the spoon on its own.
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