- This 7-pound xiao long bao is the size of 100 regular xiao long bao
- Raina Huang is a competitive eater who claims to be able to eat the whole thing
- We went to go see how the giant xiao long bao is made and watch Raina try to eat it
Following is a transcript of the video.
Sydney: The broth is truly delicious. So are you gonna try to eat the whole thing?
Raina: Yeah.Lets do this.
Sydney: Great.
Southern California is known for its wide array of delicious Chinese food, but nothing is quite as beloved as the soup dumpling. This is my friend Raina. She has a YouTube channel called Raina Is Crazy, and she can eat what some might say is an ill-advised amount of food. All right, Raina, where are we?
Raina: We are at XLB dumpling Bar in Walnut, California.
Sydney: And what are they making for us today?
Raina: They're making us a massive 7-pound xiao long bao dumpling, which is a soup dumpling.
Ricky: So xiao long bao, "xiao long" means "basket" in Chinese, and then bao is a type of dumpling. So "xiao long bao" means "dumpling in a basket," essentially. Both our families' background is in the restaurant business, and so we're like, "Yeah, let's do my favorite food, xiao long bao." And after learning it from the various chefs in China, I decided let's open one and do it traditional with a twist, and that's why we have a lot of different sauces here, and we have our fusion bao, like a cheeseburger bao.
The xiao long bao that we're making is 100 xiao long baos scaled into one big one. It actually weighs around 7 pounds, like the same size as my baby when he was first born.
Sydney: Raina has over 100,000 YouTube subscribers, and they all love to watch her eat. She's the one who inspired Ricky and Annie to make the giant bao. Are you nervous about being able to finish it? Raina: Yeah, a little bit. I've never seen something this big. It's my first time seeing a big dumpling. Sydney: So what's your strategy? What do you think you're gonna do? Raina:Well, the contents will be very hot, so they're gonna put a bowl on the side for us to kind of cool it down. So maybe I'll use that, yeah. Sydney:So we're gonna take the soup out of the dumpling, like put it in the bowl next to it. Raina:I think it'll drip out. We poke a hole in the bao, and then it'll drip out into the bowl, and then we can start eating the meat, and then if we need some kind of liquid, we can start drinking the soup.
Sydney: The giant soup dumpling starts with homemade dough. Fatty, delicious broth is cooled so it solidifies enough to be mixed with more meat. Look at that jiggle. Folding the dumpling is a skill that takes years to master, especially when you're dealing with this monster-sized version. Sydney: Look at how, boop, boop. Raina: Oh, it's jiggly. Sydney:I know, it's like a waterbed of dumpling. Oh look, These are hilarious. we got some big spoons. Oh, my God. Literally everybody in the restaurant is standing here. Server: I'm sorry, but I need to see this. Sydney/Raina:Good luck. I mean I think - Let's try there is... - to dig through this. - Oh, my God. - Oh, my God. Sydney:Yeah, so it's not like one meatball. I think it's like a lot of ground meat in there. Ooh, yep.
Sydney: She's going for it. She's a professional. Don't listen to me. I don't know what I'm doing. I am truly in awe of what is happening right next to me. Raina:Dig into this meat. Sydney:I'm gonna go ahead and save mine for later. So Raina, I thought you said you were gonna take your time with this challenge and just enjoy it. Raina:I am, this is me, this is really good. I'm chewing it. - Are you full? How do you feel? Raina:I feel good. Sydney:Where's your head at? Sydney:I just wanna dump the rest in there. Why am I even here? Do you wanna help me with mine when you're done with yours? OK. Done. They're like before and after. I knew I didn't stand a chance. Raina:At least you tried. Sydney: I tried, trying and I sat next to you is the most important thing. and embarrassed myself fully. Raina:It's really good, even in this big portion. Usually, when they make quantity over quality, it doesn't taste good, but this tastes really good. Sydney:Yes. - This sauce is so good. Sydney: Man, I need a Zantac. We all knew you were the reigning champion, so congratulations. Raina: Thank you. Thank you for coming on. Sydney: Did it again.
