Food and Culture

Chinese Cuisine – What You Should Know About Chinese Dim Sum

Chinese Cuisine – What You Should Know About Chinese Dim Sum

Dim sum is an assortment of very small Chinese meals which are usually enjoyed during lunch and dinner. The term “dim sum” literally means “dip sea food”. The typical dim sum contains a variety of seafood, meats, fruits, vegetables, and spices. Dim sum dishes are usually served together with salty snacks like shaved squid and oysters.

Dim sum has gained worldwide popularity especially in the United States since the mid-1990s. It is typically prepared by Chinese people on special occasions such as holidays, birthday parties, reunions, and anniversaries. The word “guangdong” is derived from the Chinese meaning “Chinese broad bean soup”. Dim sum can be prepared in many ways, including with rice, meat, noodles, vegetables, seafood, starches, sauces, flowers, and several types of cheeses. Typical Chinese ingredients used in the preparation of dim sum are: beans, tofu, wheat flour, corn, soybean oil, eggs, corn meal, buckwheat, raisins, and dried fruits. Most American dim sum is prepared with white rice.

There are many dim sum restaurants in every major city throughout the world. These restaurants offer dishes such as wheat crusty dumplings, beef loin, Szechwan pork dumplings, seafood dumplings, and beef balls. Some of these restaurants also offer dessert dumplings and other pastries such as cakes. In addition to these traditional products, many modern dim sum restaurants also offer a wide array of specialty products such as stir-fried green tomatoes, Chinese mushrooms, and crab meat.