Phoenix’s growing appetite for dumplings gets another worthy destination.
by Christina Barrueta | Photography by Adam Kindred
Collagen Dumpling Dynasty from Kun Mao, the chef-owner behind Tempe’s Dragon Flame Chinese Grill, hides in plain sight. If your GPS lands you at the Credit Union West building off Camelback Road, don’t second-guess it. Head inside, turn right, and you’ll find a small, casual restaurant dressed up with a glowing digital mural and walls of greenery.
In traditional Chinese cooking, collagen isn’t a wellness product. It’s the result of the centuries-old technique of simmering bones and other cuts for hours until their collagen melts into gelatin, giving broths a silky richness. Inventively coded to different Chinese dynastic eras, the illustrated menu spotlights signatures like bao buns, potstickers and crispy lemon-glazed pork, while the provided QR code unlocks an even broader selection of dumplings, soups and noodles.
Start with the soup dumplings, or xiaolongbao, their pleated wrappers glossy from steam and filled with chicken or pork. The skins are a touch thicker than I prefer without the droopy liquid-filled sag I look for, but each dumpling still delivers a generous reservoir of rich, slurpable filling and deserves a spot on your table.
“Snowflake” wontons reference the lacy skirt that forms when a starch slurry mingles with dumpling juices and crisps into a delicate web. Here the sheet is broken into brittle collars that add crunch to each chicken wonton, its hibiscus-tinted dough lending a rosy hue. Half moons, folded into crescents and pan-fried for a golden blistered crust, encase a juicy filling of chives, egg and finely chopped noodles enriched with collagen broth.
Beef wonton soup, meanwhile, showcases how collagen lends broth exceptional body and mouthfeel, its savory depth bolstered by bok choy, scallions and carrots. Chicken skewers flirt with overcooking, the boneless thighs perhaps spending a few seconds too long in the fryer. But the crackling skin and shower of earthy, chile-laced cumin and salt still make them one of my highlights. Round out the meal with cucumber salad strewn with chopped garlic, cilantro, peanuts and julienned carrot. It’s the perfect palate reset between bites of collagen-rich dishes.
Sometimes the best new discoveries are in the most unexpected places. You just have to know which bank building to walk into.
Collagen Dumpling Dynasty
Cuisine: Chinese
Contact: 5241 N. 16th St., Phoenix, 623-272-4134, collagendumpling.com
Hours: Daily 11 a.m.-9 p.m.
Highlights: Soup dumplings ($16); half moons ($13); chicken skewers ($13); cucumber salad ($10)
