Unwrapped Microwave "Screw-It Xiaolongbao"

Ryuji was a bit tired on this day and said, "On days like this, I don't want to use a knife on a cutting board." The leek is slit lengthwise on top of its package and then snipped finely with scissors. Ryuji acknowledged that some people would say "a knife is easier," but said that's a matter of personal preference, and knife fans can just use a knife. Still, Ryuji admitted that cutting the leek is the most tedious step and suggested it's fine to buy pre-chopped green onion instead. At first there was only 30g, so more was added to make 40g.

Instead of using a bowl, the seasonings are added directly to the 200g package of ground pork. Mixing in a bag is another option, but Ryuji's reasoning is that throwing away a bag each time is not exactly eco-friendly.

The chicken bouillon powder is 1½ teaspoons. That's quite a lot, but Ryuji explained that the soup that bursts out when you bite into a xiaolongbao tastes great with chicken stock in it. Next come 1 teaspoon of oyster sauce, 1 teaspoon of soy sauce, and ⅔ teaspoon of sugar. Because the sugar stuck to the container when added later, Ryuji added, "It's better to put the sugar in first." The idea is that a little sweetness makes it taste better.

During filming, there was also a moment when Ryuji found potato starch sitting on the counter without remembering having used it, suspected a prank by the staff, and got indignant.

Salt is just a pinch. Then lard is added (salad oil is fine if you don't have it; the amount in the description is 3cm from a tube). Then 1 teaspoon of sesame oil and 4 shakes of pepper. When a staff member asked, "You put in quite a lot of oil, huh?", Ryuji answered, "If you look at the xiaolongbao at a xiaolongbao shop, oil comes gushing out. It tastes better with oil in it."

According to Ryuji, ideally you'd want to put gelatin in xiaolongbao filling. But using gelatin raises the bar, and then it would no longer be a "screw-it" recipe. So just half a teaspoon of potato starch is added to thicken the soup. Ryuji stressed that this thickness tastes great, so viewers should definitely do it.

The most important ingredient is water, and a full 140cc goes in. When a staff member was surprised, saying, "That's a lot going in—it's sopping wet," Ryuji replied, "Xiaolongbao are supposed to be sopping wet in the first place." However, mixing by hand made it hard for the water to blend into the meat. Partly because the lard had made their fingers sticky, Ryuji switched to a spatula partway through. Laughing at themselves for not realizing it sooner, Ryuji explained that there's no need to knead here; you "just mix."

A thin layer of sesame oil is spread on the bottom of a heatproof container. The day before, the wrappers were laid down without doing this, and they stuck, causing the failure. The gyoza wrappers are wetted with water before being laid down. Wetting them makes them plumper, giving them a more xiaolongbao-like texture. Shumai wrappers are fine too, but since they aren't always sold, gyoza wrappers were used this time. If you love the wrapper, you can stack about 5 layers.

A square container works well. The bigger it is, the more wrappers you need, so the size shown on screen is apparently just right.

The meat filling is poured onto the laid wrappers, and then more wetted gyoza wrappers are placed on top. Ryuji calls this "the wrapping," and presses down along the edges of the wrappers to seal them. This is said to release soup and make it tastier. Finally, as a "clincher," one more wrapper is placed on top, the container is covered with plastic wrap, and it's heated at 600W for 5 minutes 30 seconds. You can eat it as a snack with drinks or as a side dish with rice.

While waiting for it to heat, the ginger is cut into needle-thin strips. It's optional, but it tastes better with it. Ryuji is aware of ending up using a knife after all, saying, "But it's better if it tastes good, right?" Ginger that has dried out a bit can be cut after trimming off the outside. Ryuji asked that "people with about 10% motivation to put in the effort" prepare about 10g.

At 5 and a half minutes, the meat is cooked through just right. When it was taken out, the aroma of sesame oil rose up, drawing exclamations from the staff. Peel back a bit of the wrapper at the side, top with chopped green onion and needle-cut ginger, and the "Screw-It Xiaolongbao," which can be served right in its container, is complete.

What Ryuji wanted to show most was the soup that overflows when a knife goes in. When it's cut, meat juices gush out from inside, surprising the staff too. When a staff member said, "Earlier I thought it might be too much liquid, but this is what it's for," Ryuji responded, "Xiaolongbao are supposed to have this much soup." The wrapper that has sunk to the bottom is eaten along with the soup.

Ryuji first tasted it plain and judged it "loaded with soup and rich." Adding ponzu gives it a refreshing tang, and adding chili oil to the ponzu is also tasty. A little black vinegar and soy sauce is also recommended, but thinking that many people don't have black vinegar, Ryuji didn't use it this time. When serving, cutting the wrapper a bit with scissors or similar makes it easier to portion.

The staff were surprised, saying "What is this?" and "You can make it this easily?", and commented that "the soup is seriously xiaolongbao" and it was "fluffy and silky." On hearing that this silky texture came from a small amount of potato starch, they seemed surprised: "So that little is enough."

Ryuji declared that it's completely different from shumai—this is xiaolongbao. And Ryuji said that what makes xiaolongbao xiaolongbao is, after all, the soup. There were apparently all kinds of recipes on social media, including some that mix in bean sprouts or onions. But Ryuji decided to use the filling that goes into regular xiaolongbao as is. Normally you'd chop up chicken stock jelly set with gelatin and add it, but that's a hassle. Ryuji explained the thinking: a small amount of potato starch might give a natural thickness, and when that was tried, it worked.

As for the amount, one person can eat it alone, but as a side dish it serves about two. Few people eat rice with regular xiaolongbao, but Ryuji's view is that this one has a lot of meat, so it works as a side dish with rice. One staff member said, "No wonder it went viral." Ryuji said the seasoning is their own original, so viewers should make it with this ratio, and was happy to have answered viewers' requests.

At the end, the conversation turned to the mushroom-print T-shirt a staff member was wearing. They could identify bunapi (white beech mushrooms), king oyster mushrooms, and maitake, but argued over what the green mushroom was. Guesses came up—"Isn't it donko (dried shiitake)?" "Maybe they made it green so it wouldn't overlap in color with the others?"—but no conclusion was reached. Ryuji told viewers, "Look it up later," and wrapped up the video.