Bao.

It has been many years since I had char siu bao, all the way back to my decades in Hawaii.  “Bao” is basically a chinese dumpling with meat or vegetables inside.  Char siu bao is a steamed bao with pork inside.  “Broke da mout” as they say in Hawaii.

Much further back in time I remember a going to a dim sum restaurant in Hong Kong, where they had these giant carts filled with baskets of steamed bao of all kinds.  I think I referred to this place as Dim Yum after that, much to the dismay of my chinese friends.  I also remember the place being very loud, the combination of animated talking and the clatter of dishes building to a cacophony of sound and sustenance. 

Pixar produced an award-winning animated short film called Bao, where a steamed bun comes to life, briefly.  Very cool.

Food can be a time machine, reminding us that the past is not so distant as we imagined.  I was in Raleigh the other day having char siu bao, bringing back memories of long ago, far away.