Leisha dumpling 擂沙圓

Leisha dumplings

Leisha dumpling is one of the signature snacks of Shanghai’s Qiaojiashan Restaurant with a history of over 70 years. It was said that in the late Qing Dynasty, an old lady surnamed Lei sold sweet dumplings with soup for a living. In order to sell more dumplings, she tried to find ways to keep the dumplings fresh longer and make them easier to carry. She tried to coat the dumplings with dry glutinous rice flour, and she discovered that red bean flour was the best choice. Therefore, the dumplings are called Leisha dumpling after her.

The round-shaped dumpling, filled with sweetened bean paste, pork or sesame, is boiled, then drained of water, and finally rolled in dry red bean flour. The dumplings have a color of purplish red and have the refreshing flavor of red beans.