Xiushui Shaozi Dumplings 修水哨子
Xiushui Shaozi Dumplings is featured among the local specialties of Jiangxi.
Image notes
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Xiushui Shaozi Dumplings (修水哨子) are filled taro-and-sweet-potato-starch parcels from Xiushui (修水), Jiujiang (九江). Rounded underneath and pointed on top, they are a New Year food whose shape symbolises reunion and rising success.
How it is made
The Jiangxi Provincial Local Chronicles Research Institute describes peeling and boiling taro, cooling it and mashing it into a paste. Fresh sweet-potato starch and a little sesame oil are mixed in and kneaded into dough. Small portions are wrapped around the filling and closed with a pointed top, leaving the surface free of cracks.
Ingredients
A traditional savoury filling combines dried shrimp, cured meat, fried tofu and dried bamboo shoots. Sweet versions use sugar, ground sesame, preserved citrus and osmanthus, bound with melted lard or sesame oil.
How it is eaten
The dumplings can be steamed, cooked in soup or stir-fried. The institute describes steaming for about 15–20 minutes, or simmering them with radish and other vegetables. For a stir-fried version, the dumplings are boiled first, then cooked with meat, garlic leaves, spring onion, garlic and fermented beans.
China News Service describes shaozi as the first hot dish at Xiushui family reunion meals.
Sources & reading
Written from the linked sources and fact-checked against them on 2026-09-27. Recipes and servings vary between kitchens.