饅頭

點心蒸素

Pronunciation

English Name

mantou

Cantonese (Traditional)

饅頭

Simplified Chinese

馒头

Mandarin (Pinyin)

mán tou

Yale Romanization

màahn tàuh

Character Breakdown

The second character 頭 is the word for head, and according to one story, the name of this dish, man tou, came from the word for barbarian head (long story).

About This Dish

Mantou are plain steamed buns with no filling, originating from Northern China and made with wheat flour. Bao 包 is mantou with various fillings, and originally mantou referred to both variations.