Steamed Buns @ Momotaro, MOTOSHIKKUIMACHI, Nagasaki

 

If you are into your steam buns, and oh boy do I have a treat for you. Directly in front of one of the main food alleyways in Nagasaki city is probably an institution worthy of your time and appetite. 

As mentioned in the past, Chinese food culture has been a core component of Japan's own. And you do not have to look far from the local convenience store, where 7-11 and Family Mart sell tons of the stuff every day. There was even a point in time when a nikuman (which means meat buns) was a daily breakfast. But I digress. For today, we shall look into the Nagasaki version of it, butaman (長崎ぶたまん). 

Pick your poison

Butaman directly translates to pork buns, although it should be noted that pork is the most common filling there is. And in Nagasaki, Momotaro is a popular local chain that sells them on the go. They are also sold frozen as these buns seem to be a popular edible souvenir. As there was one nearby where I was at the time, I decided to give it a go. 

If I ate by the cashier, at least there is this porky companion. 

But as I approach the shop, I already found a problem. Unfortunately, they only sell packs of 10s and not just one piece at one time. This was really inconvenient as I really do not want to stuff myself with 10 of these. But as this was the smallest portion they have, seems like I have little choice. But at least it was 800 yen, which lead to an 80 yen price tag for each bun. 

Ready for the unboxing

Then another inconvenience popped up. This shop is a take-out only, and it seems to be the premise for the entire chain. Luckily, my hotel was really close. So, I took my hot and piping steam buns to my room for a proper chow down. 

Unboxed! 

With all that out of the way, I placed it on a counter and picked my first one. The bread part of the buns was incredibly smooth. The outer layer was supple but yet the dough inside has a more pliable texture. The bread casing was sweet and delectable indeed. It was delicate but was still able to contain the meat core inside. 

Tiny gems. 

Unfortunately, I reached another speed bump. The meat itself was good, but nothing too special. Well seasoned and juicy it was, but that was about it. There was nothing truly special about it and the meat interior was just at the minimum standard of any good nikuman. Heck, it tasted like how any Chinese style mince should taste, whether it was in a bun, skewer, or a dumpling. This was a real shame as the outer bread casing was great. Well, I guess you win some you lose some. 

The interior

After truly stuffing myself with 10 buns I felt really uncomfortable, but that was to be expected. Lucky they were tiny morsels smaller than my hand. Still, I have to say the buns do check out all the boxes. However, if you have to consider the trouble to get to Nagasaki just for these buns, I think better get it elsewhere. But if you are already here, I think its worthwhile to try it once, just to see what the fuss is about. So fancy to know what the fuss is about? Then the address to the branch I visited is as follows:

2-1 Motoshikkuimachi, Nagasaki, 850-0901

Front of the house, or hole rather...