Har gow is a Cantonese dumpling characterized by a delicate, translucent wrapper enveloped around a shrimp filling. The dish was created out of necessity when the owner of a small, family-style teahouse from Guangzhou came up with an idea to buy the shrimp from local fishermen and use it to make dumplings that the locals would love.

The idea was a great success, and since the beginning of the 19th century, shrimp dumplings were a staple in many teahouses. Today, har gow dumplings are a part of dim sum where they are commonly paired with sieu mai, a Cantonese dumpling with pork and mushrooms. Due to the particular way in which the wrapper is folded, the main visual feature of har gow is its pleated shape, ideally having even up to 9-13 pleats.

The wrappers are made with a combination of wheat starch, corn starch, and lard, filled with a mixture of either minced or whole shrimp and bamboo shoots. Once steamed, the dough should be chewy and almost see-through, but firm enough to be handled with chopsticks, whereas the filling should remain crisp.