25 Best Dim Sum Recipes (2024)

FAQs

What not to do in dim sum? ›

Always move an item from the communal dish to your own before eating using a serving utensil or the top ends of your chopsticks. Do not eat directly from the steamer basket or shared plate. Dim sum is for sharing! Never lay claim to any one dish.

The most popular types of dim sum range from dumplings, buns, wraps and noodle rolls (often filled with a mixture of fresh seafood, meat and vegetables) to puffs, tarts and puddings.

Start with tea.

You should be given a pot of tea as soon as you first sit down. Most dim sum restaurants will have a few varieties of tea on hand and will probably get you a different type if you prefer it over their house tea. Check the tea before you pour to make sure it's steeped enough.

Popular fillings include: beef, dough fritter, shrimp and barbecued pork. Often served with sweetened soy sauce. steamed rice noodles rolled around youjagwai (油炸鬼), typically doused in soy sauce, hoisin sauce, or sesame paste, and sprinkled with sesame seeds. Duck feet wrapped in bean curd sheets.

Dim sum has a lot of calories

max out at around 300 calories for the sugariest, fattiest ones, but most range between 50 and 100 calories. Taking a ballpark average of 75 calories, it takes 9-12 items to fill out a meal, depending on your calorie needs.

It makes a big difference when you steam dim sum for one minute more or one minute less. You should eat them hot. Their flavors will totally change if you warm them by microwave at home.”

Dim sum is a traditional Chinese meal made up of small plates of dumplings and other snack dishes and is usually accompanied by tea.

Steamed shrimp dumplings are one of the recommended dim sum dishes if you are looking for healthy options. Chinese steamed buns are among the healthier dim sum offerings.

PU-ERH. Pu-erh (Bo-Lay in Cantonese) is popular in China but apparently less well known in the west. It is a traditional tea of choice to be served with Dim Sum, but remember that it's strong and considered by many to be an acquired taste.

Dim sum is not meant to be eaten in one bite; it's not sushi. The flavors are best enjoyed when eaten slowly. More complex dim sum such as Xiao long has to be eaten carefully. Allow the soup to cool down before taking a bite.

Do you eat rice with dim sum? ›

As well as dim sum, you can also order bigger plates of food, such as rice or noodles to share with the group. I would say strictly that these are not dim sum, but are commonly ordered alongside it.

The reason restaurants don't serve most dim sum dishes in sets of fours is simply to avoid any associations with bad luck. In Chinese culture, the number four is considered unlucky because it is nearly hom*ophonous to the word "death," while the number three is associated with life and new beginnings.

The most popular dim sum menu items include Har Gow (shrimp dumplings), Siu Mai (pork and shrimp dumplings), Char Siu Bao (BBQ pork buns), Cheong Fun (rice noodle rolls), Lo Bak Go (turnip cake), Fung Zao (chicken feet), and Dan Tat (egg tart).

Dumplings are balls of flour filled with a stuffing. Momos are also dumplings that contain some form of filling, be it vegetarian or meat. Dim sums are small snacks in Chinese cuisine that are eaten for lunch. They too have fillings covered with dough, but the dough is semi- or completely transparent.

As mentioned above, it's best for people not to put the whole dumpling in their mouth at once. Instead, they should take a small bite from the side of the dumpling while it's still on the soup spoon. This allows some of the hot broth to drain so the diner can slurp on it first.

The reason restaurants don't serve most dim sum dishes in sets of fours is simply to avoid any associations with bad luck. In Chinese culture, the number four is considered unlucky because it is nearly hom*ophonous to the word "death," while the number three is associated with life and new beginnings.

Healthy tip: Although this dish is a good source of fibre and protein, it is very high in fat, saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium. Eating this dish exceeds the daily saturated fat allowance, and provides 70% or more of the daily cholesterol and sodium allowance for an adult!