A few times in the last month I’ve heard baus referred to as ‘a kind of dumpling’ but I was able to shake it off. Today, though, I was served the above item in a Taiwanese restaurant. It was described on the menu as a ‘bun’ and, indeed, its presentation was identical (steamer, waxed paper, bowl of vinegar with ginger) to that of many other buns I’ve encountered in other taiwanese restaurants. Except this ‘bun’ was completely unleavened… in any other context I would’ve called it a ‘dumpling’.
This has resulted in a small-sized epiphany for me. I’m no longer trapped in a dualist mindset where I must distinguish between pastas and breads — now there is an unbroken line from couscous to baguette, with the bau-as-dumpling and the dumpling-as-bun playing the roles of Piltdown.
The question that remains: Is filling necessary to midwife the transition between leavened and unleavened? My guess is ‘no’ but I’m too sleepy to start drawing charts.