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How To Eat Dim Sum
November 27, 2007 by Helen Yuet Ling Pang
Posted in Chinese, dim sum, dining out, dumplings, food | Tagged Chinese, dim sum, eating out, etiquette, food, practical tips | 7 Comments
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This is a very useful website, I am glad I found it
I am working for a company in Sydney that is doing a lot of work in Shanghai, and we’ll soon have our Chinese colleagues visiting Sydney so I am trying to learn more about the etiquette of Chinese dining, as we will be entertaining them a fair bit while they’re here
I have a question about deep fried dim sums if I may. They are quite big, too big to swallow at once! While I can pick them up with chop sticks easily, what is the best way to eat one? Do you just a bite at a time?
I keep using my fork and spoon to “slice” them into smaller bits, but would like to know the “correct” way to eat them with chop sticks! Thanks
Hi Jake
Lucky you, lots of Chinese food to look forward to then!
Re deep fried dim sum, I do agree that they are always too big to eat in one go. But one bite at a time with your chopsticks is better than using your fork and spoon. However, if you have a Chinese ceramic spoon (as opposed to a metal ‘Western’ spoon), then it’s perfectly OK to use that as ’support’ in your other hand. I find most dim sum are too big to be eaten in one bite, so I use a spoon sometimes – not to eat with, but to hold or rest the dim sum on, then eat using the chopsticks. Hope this makes sense.
There’s another post I wrote recently, called How To Eat With Chinese Stick, and there’s a response from me to a comment that you might find useful – about using place settings at a Chinese meal.
If you’re going to be entertaining Chinese guests, you’ll have to remember all the stuff I wrote in the other posts listed above about shared meals – using communal chopsticks and serving spoons, not personal chopsticks when transferring food from shared dishes to your bowl, not letting your guests top up their own drinks (whether tea or alcohol), offering them the best bits (lobster claw would be considered the best part of a lobster).
Feel free to ask more questions, I love talking about Chinese food etiquette. All the posts I’ve written are listed in the Useful Info page at the top.
Good luck!
Helen Yuet Ling
Hi Helen, thanks very much for your response. I’ll buy some dim sums next time I buy takeaway and try your eating recommendation at home where no one can see me make a fool of myself
I’m trying to go to more Chinese restaurants for lunch and dinner and do try watch other people as much as possible but so far I’ve seen no one eating deep fried dim sums!
And thanks for the mentioning the other articles, very helpful
Hi Jake
You’re welcome. Practising at home is a good idea! I think if you can pick up green peas with chopsticks (and those slippery straw mushrooms), then you’ll have no problems with fried dim sum.
Let me know how it goes with the entertaining…
Helen
Hi there
anyone any idea what tea is served with dim sum. Tried it at the weekend and loved it! want to buy some!
Janie
There are different types of tea served at dim sum. It really depends on the restaurant though. Diners are always asked what kind of tea they would like, long before food is ordered. Common ones are bo lei, heung pin (jasmine) and tit gwun yum (Iron Goddess). Hope this helps…
Helen Yuet Ling
Hi Helen
Thanks. That helps a lot, will try and track some down.