Xiâolóngbāo (小籠包)

The concept of home cooking, where the antecedents of Xiao long man tou, came about with the evolution of the dining table, chairs and utensils during the Tang dynasty (618 AD – 907 AD). It is after this that the importance of harmony of the family during meal times came about. The woman became both the primary cook in households and the facilitator of mealtime harmony. However, modern day China delegates the task of home cooking to whomever is employed outside of the home least. Unfortunately, Chinese cooking traditions surrounding gender have little bearing on the genders of the makers of Xiao long man tou because they are primarily made in restaurants. There does not seem to be any literature on genders of cooks in Shanghai, but in doing my research – watching videos, looking at pictures etc – never once did I see a female making Xiao long man tou. Therefore, I will make the conjecture that males are the primary makers of Xiao long man tou.