Dim sum (traditional Chinese: 點心; simplified Chinese: 点心; pinyin: diǎn xīn; Jyutping: dim2 sam1) is a large range of small Chinese dishes that are traditionally enjoyed in restaurants for brunch.[1][2][page needed] Most modern dim sum dishes are commonly associated with Cantonese cuisine, although dim sum dishes also exist in other Chinese cuisines. In the tenth century, when the city of Canton (Guangzhou) began to experience an increase in commercial travel,[3] many frequented teahouses for small-portion meals with tea called "yum cha" (brunch).[4][page needed][3][page needed][5][page needed] "Yum cha" includes two related concepts.[6] The first is "jat zung loeng gin" (Chinese: 一盅兩件), which translates literally as "one cup, two pieces". This refers to the custom of serving teahouse customers two delicately made food items, savory or sweet, to complement their tea. The second is dim sum, which translates literally to "touch the heart", the term used to designate the small food items that accompanied the tea.
Teahouse owners gradually added various snacks called dim sum to their offerings. The practice of having tea with dim sum eventually evolved into the modern "yum cha".[3] Cantonese dim sum culture developed rapidly during the latter half of the nineteenth century in Guangzhou.[7] Cantonese dim sum was originally based on local foods.[7] As dim sum continued to develop, chefs introduced influences and traditions from other regions of China.[7] Cantonese dim sum has a very broad range of flavors, textures, cooking styles, and ingredients[7] and can be classified into regular items, seasonal offerings, weekly specials, banquet dishes, holiday dishes, house signature dishes, and travel-friendly items, as well as breakfast or lunch foods and late-night snacks.[7]
Some estimates claim that there are at least two thousand types of dim sum in total across China, but only about forty to fifty types are commonly sold outside of China.[8][9] There are over one thousand dim sum dishes originating from Guangdong alone, a total that no other area in China comes even close to matching. In fact, the cookbooks of most Chinese food cultures tend to combine their own variations on dim sum dishes with other local snacks. But that is not the case with Cantonese dim sum, which has developed into a separate branch of cuisine.[10][7]
Dim sum restaurants typically have a wide variety of dishes, usually totaling several dozen.[11][12] The tea is very important, just as important as the food.[13][14] Many Cantonese restaurants serve dim sum as early as five in the morning,[15][16] while more traditional restaurants typically serve dim sum until mid-afternoon.[15][17][18] Some restaurants in Hong Kong and Guangdong province even offers dim sum all day till late night.[19][20][21][22] Dim sum restaurants have a unique serving method where servers offer dishes to customers from steam-heated carts.[10][23][24] It is now commonplace for restaurants to serve dim sum at dinner and sell various dim sum items à la carte for takeout.[25] In addition to traditional dim sum, some chefs also create and prepare new fusion-based dim sum dishes.[26][27][28][29] There are also variations designed for visual appeal on social media, such as dumplings and buns made to resemble animals.[30][31]
Etymology
The original meaning of the term "dim sum" remains unclear and contested.[32] Some references state that the term originated in the Eastern Jin dynasty (317 AD–420 AD).[33][34] According to one legend, to show soldiers gratitude after battles, a general had civilians make buns and cakes to send to the front lines. "Gratitude" or 點點心意 (pinyin: diǎn diǎn xīn yì; Jyutping: dim2 dim2 sam1 ji3), later shortened to 點心, of which dim sum is the Cantonese pronunciation, came to represent dishes made in a similar fashion.
Some versions date the legend to the Southern Song dynasty (960–1279) after the term's earliest attestation in the Book of Tang (Chinese: 唐書; pinyin: Táng shū; Jyutping: Tong4 Syu1).[34] Written in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (907–979), the book uses dim sum as a verb instead: 「治妝未畢, 我未及餐, 爾且可點心」(pinyin: "Zhì zhuāng wèi bì, wǒ wèi jí cān, ěr qiě kě diǎn xīn"; Jyutping: "Zi6 zong1 mei6 bat1, ngo5 mei6 kap6 caan1, ji5 ce2 ho2 dim2 sam1"), which translates to "I have not finished preparing myself and am not ready for a proper meal; therefore, you can treat yourself to some small snacks."[34] In this context, "dim sum" means "to barely fill your stomach".[34] Dim sum dishes are usually associated with "yum cha" (Chinese: 飲茶; pinyin: yǐn chá; Cantonese Yale: yám chàh), which is known as the Cantonesebrunch tradition.[35][36] Chinese food historian Yan-kit So has described dim sum as:[37][2]
Literally translated as "so close to the heart", they are, in reality, a large range of hors d'oeuvres Cantonese people traditionally enjoy in restaurants (previously teahouses) for breakfast and lunch but never for dinner, washed down with tea. "Let's go yum cha" (to drink tea) is understood among the Cantonese to mean going to a restaurant for dim sum; such is the twin linkage between the food and the beverage.
Cuisine
There are at least two thousand types of dim sum in total across China,[8][9] and over one thousand available in Guangdong alone.[7][10][38] Dim sum are usually eaten as breakfast or brunch.[17][18] Cantonese dim sum has a very broad range of flavors, textures, cooking styles, and ingredients,[7] and can be classified into regular items, seasonal offerings, weekly specials, banquet dishes, holiday dishes, house signature dishes, travel-friendly, as well as breakfast or lunch foods and late night snacks.[7]
The subtropical climate of the southeast quadrant of Guangdong partly influences dim sum's portion size.[7] It can cause a decrease in appetite,[39] so that people prefer eating scaled-down meals throughout the day rather than the customary three large meals.[7] Teahouses in Guangzhou served "three teas and two meals," which included lunch and dinner, and breakfast, afternoon and evening teas with dim sum.[7]
Many dim sum dishes are made of seafood, chopped meats, or vegetables wrapped in dough or thin wrappings and steamed, deep-fried, or pan-fried.[40][10][41] A traditional dim sum brunch includes various types of steamed buns, such as cha siu bao (a steamed bun filled with barbecue pork), rice or wheatdumplings, and rice noodle rolls that contain a range of ingredients, including beef, chicken, pork, prawns, and vegetarian options.[42][43] Many dim sum restaurants also offer plates of steamed green vegetables, stuffed eggplant, stuffed green peppers, roasted meats, congee and other soups.[44] Dessert dim sum is also available and can be ordered at any time since there is not a set sequence for the meal.[45][46]
It is customary to order "family-style", sharing the small dishes consisting of three or four pieces of dim sum among all members of the dining party.[17][18][47][46] Small portion sizes allow people to try a wide variety of food.[18]
Dishes
Dim sum restaurants typically have a wide variety of dishes, usually several dozen.[11]
steamed rice noodles with or without meat or vegetable filling. Popular fillings include: beef, dough fritter, shrimp and barbecued pork. Often served with sweetened soy sauce.[62][63]
bun with barbecued pork filling steamed to be white and fluffy. 叉燒餐包; chāshāo cān bāo; chāsīu chāan bāau is a variant that is glazed and baked for a golden appearance.[65]
deep fried, boiled, and then steamed chicken feet with douchi. "White Cloud Phoenix Claws" (白雲鳳爪; báiyún fèngzhuǎ; baahk wàhn fuhng jáau) is a plain steamed version.[79][80]
Steamed vegetables served with oyster sauce, popular varieties include lettuce (生菜; shēngcài; saang1 coi3), choy sum (菜心; càixīn; coi3 sam1), gai lan (芥兰; 芥蘭; jièlán; gaai3 laan2), or water spinach (蕹菜; wèngcài; ung3 coi3).[86]
glutinous rice wrapped in a lotus leaf that typically contains egg yolk, dried scallop, mushroom and meat (usually pork and chicken). A lighter variant is known as "pearl chicken" (珍珠雞; zhēnzhū jī; jānjyū gāi).[88]
stir-fried (or steamed) glutinous rice with Chinese sausage, soy sauce-steeped mushrooms, sweet spring onions and sometimes chicken marinated with a mixture of spices including five-spice powder.[89][90][91]
Also called Char Siu So. They are triangular, flaky pastries filled with a savory and slightly sweet barbecued pork filling, topped with sesame seeds for added flavor.
Chrysanthemum teaA typical dining set for "yum cha"
Tea is considered to be very important, so much so that it is considered just as important as the food itself.[13][14] Teas served during dim sum include:
Chrysanthemum tea: instead of tea leaves, it is a flower-based tisane (herbal tea) made from flowers of the species Chrysanthemum morifolium or Chrysanthemum indicum, which are the most popular in East Asia.[102] To prepare the tea, chrysanthemum flowers (usually dried) are steeped in hot water (usually 90 to 95 °C (194 to 203 °F) after cooling from a boil) in a teapot, cup, or glass. A common mix with pu-erh is called guk pou (Chinese: 菊普; pinyin: jú pǔ; Cantonese Yale: gūk póu) from its component teas.
Green tea: freshly picked leaves that go through heating and drying processes but not oxidation, so keep their original green color and chemical compounds, like polyphenols and chlorophyll.[103] Produced all over China, and the most popular category of tea, green teas include the representative Dragon Well (Chinese: 龍井; pinyin: lóngjǐng; Cantonese Yale: lùhngjéng) and Biluochun from Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces, respectively.
Oolong tea: partially oxidizing the tea leaves imparts them with characteristics of both green and black teas.[104][105][106] Oolong teas are closer in taste to green than black tea, yet have less of a "grassy" taste. Major oolong-tea producing areas such as Fujian, Guangdong, and Taiwan line the southeastern coast of China. Tieguanyin or Ti Kuan Yin (Chinese: 鐵觀音
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