DIM SUM 101 Ha Gow Siu Mai Dim

DIM SUM 101 Ha Gow! Siu Mai!

Dim Sum - Intro • Originally a Cantonese custom • Dim Sum is inextricably linked to the Chinese tradition of "yum cha" • • or drinking tea Travelers journeying along the famous Silk Road needed a place to rest, so teahouses began springing up along the roadside. Rural farmers, exhausted after long hours working in the fields, would also head to the local teahouse for an afternoon of tea and relaxing conversation. Originally considered inappropriate to combine tea with food - in fact a famous 3 rd century Imperial physician claimed this would lead to excessive weight gain. However, as tea's ability to aid in digestion and cleanse the palate became known, tea house proprietors began adding a variety of snacks, and the tradition of dim sum was born.

Teas • Healthy - Chinese tea is healthy in a lot of ways. It lowers blood pressure, protects the heart, helps to prevent obesity, prevents tooth decay and increases immunity, etc. • Chinese tea's impact on one's psychological health is immediate. • Sitting and chatting with a few good friends over a couple rounds of tea makes life worth living.

Customs with Chinese Tea • Marriages: parents who long for their sons to get married as "wanting to drink 'daughter-in-law's tea'". In traditional Chinese marriage ceremony, the bride and groom kneel in front of their parents and serve them tea. That is a gesture of gratefulness. • Respect: Younger generation greet elder generation with a cup of tea. That is a way to show their respect. In organizations and families, only people of lower rank serve tea to higher rank people. At least it was like that in the old days.

Customs with Chinese Tea • Apologize: When we have a serious apology to make and words are not enough, we "pour tea and apologize". That is an act of regretfulness and submissiveness. • Remember to say thanks: After guy A pours a cup of tea for guy B, you see guy B knocking his bended index and middle fingers (or similar varieties of finger tapping) on the table. You bet your savings that are secret agents. You are broke. They are just Chinese.

Common Types of Teas • White Tea Shou. Mei Longevity Eyebrow – similar to green tea except that it's roasted, has the lowest caffeine content is very light in color and aroma. • Black Tea Pu’Er - fermented tea class, everyday tea of the west and northwest, good for cleaning up the digestive channel because it's an emulsifier for fat and cholesterol.

Common Types of Teas • Flower Tea Mo Li Hua Cha Jasmine - aka scented tea, base of flower tea can be black, green or whatever. Then ingredients like flower petals might be added. Flower tea is popular in northern China. • Oolong Tea An Xie Tie Guan Yin Iron Goddess - half- fermented and thus is relatively thick in flavor. Oolong tea is very popular in south-east China and Taiwan and also the most used tea for Kung Fu Cha. Oolong is an emulsifier for fat and cholesterol. Like a savior for today's junk food eaters. And since Oolong emulsifies, make sure you don't drink it with an empty stomach.

White Tea • White tea

Flower Tea • Jasmine Tea

Black Tea • Pu’Er

Oolong Tea • Oolong

Shrimp Dumplings • Ha Gao • Starch, water, salt • Filling: Shrimp, Pork fat, bamboo shoots, pepper, ginger, Sesame oil, Egg white & Cornstarch

Phoenix Feet • Fung Jow • chicken feet • oil water fresh ginger Chinese parsley roots sugar Marinade: oyster sauce, sugar, soy sauce, sake, chilly pepper garlic, minced white pepper, black bean sauce & sesame seed oil

Pork Dumplings • Shiu Mai • sesame oil minced mustard cabbage fresh shiitake mushrooms, finely diced water chestnuts, minced ginger, scallion, fish sauce, raw scallops, chopped, raw shrimp, cornstarch, water, wonton wrappers, roe

Deep Fried Octopus • Yau Yu So • Oil, salt, octopus or calamari, flour, starch, white pepper

Egg Custard Tarts • Dan Tat • Butter, Lard, Egg, • Sugar, Sifted all purpose flour. Egg Custard Filling: Whole extra large eggs yolks, Whole milk, sugar

Curry Octopus • Ga Lei Mut Yu • Curry powder, sesame oil, salt, chilli pepper, starch, octopus, soya sauce, water

Beef Balls • Ow Yok • Beef, flour, starch, baking soda, green peas, green onions, salt, water, sesame oil, soya sauce

Deep Fried Beancurd • Ja Dou Fu • Tofu, salt, starch, flour, baking soda, oil, fish cake,

Beef Tripe • Ow Pa Yeep • Beef tripe, ginger, green onion, oil, salt, sesame oil, minced garlic

Shrimp Rice Rolls • Seen Ha Cheung • Fun basic rice noodle dough, shrimp, finely minced green onion; Chinese parsley (cilentro), soya sauce, oil