Dim sum () is a large range of small Chinese dishes that are traditionally eaten in restaurants for brunch. Most modern dim sum dishes are commonly associated with Cantonese cuisine, although dim sum dishes also exist in a few other Chinese cuisines. In the tenth century, when the city of Canton (Guangzhou) began to experience an increase in commercial travel, many frequented teahouses for small-portion meals with tea called "yum cha" (brunch). "Yum cha" includes two related concepts. The first is "jat zung loeng gin" (), 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". Cantonese dim sum culture developed rapidly during the latter half of the nineteenth century in Guangzhou. Cantonese dim sum was originally based on local foods. As dim sum continued to develop, chefs introduced influences and traditions from other regions of China. Cantonese dim sum has a very broad range of flavors, textures, cooking styles, and ingredients 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 and lunch foods and late-night snacks.
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. 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.
Dim sum restaurants typically have a wide variety of dishes, usually totaling several dozen. The tea is very important, just as important as the food. Many Cantonese restaurants serve dim sum as early as five in the morning, while more traditional restaurants typically serve dim sum until mid-afternoon. Some restaurants in Hong Kong and Guangdong province even offers dim sum all day till late night. Dim sum restaurants have a unique serving method where servers offer dishes to customers from steam-heated carts. It is now commonplace for restaurants to serve dim sum at dinner and sell various dim sum items à la carte for takeout. In addition to traditional dim sum, some chefs also create and prepare new fusion-based dim sum dishes. There are also variations designed for visual appeal on social media, such as dumplings and buns made to resemble animals.
Etymology The original meaning of the term "dim sum" remains unclear and contested. Some references state that the term originated in the Eastern Jin dynasty (317 AD–420 AD). 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 (), later shortened to , of which is the Cantonese pronunciation, came to represent dishes made similarly.
Some versions date the legend to the Southern Song dynasty (960–1279) after the term's earliest attestation in the Book of Tang (). Written in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (907–979), the book uses 點心 as a verb instead: 「治妝未畢, 我未及餐, 爾且可點心」(), 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." In this context, "dim sum" means "to barely fill your stomach". Dim sum dishes are usually associated with "yum cha" (), which is known as the Cantonese brunch tradition. Chinese food historian Yan-kit So has described dim sum as: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, and over one thousand available in Guangdong alone. Dim sum are usually eaten as breakfast or brunch. Cantonese dim sum has a very broad range of flavors, textures, cooking styles, and ingredients, 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.
The subtropical climate of the southeast quadrant of Guangdong partly influences dim sum's portion size. It can cause a decrease in appetite, so that people prefer eating scaled-down meals throughout the day rather than the customary three large meals. Teahouses in Guangzhou served "three teas and two meals," which included lunch and dinner, and breakfast, afternoon, and evening teas with dim sum.
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. 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 wheat dumplings, and rice noodle rolls that contain a range of ingredients, including beef, chicken, pork, prawns, and vegetarian options. Many dim sum restaurants also offer plates of steamed green vegetables, stuffed eggplant, stuffed green peppers, roasted meats, congee and other soups. Dessert dim sum is also available and can be ordered at any time since there is not a set sequence for the meal.
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. Small portion sizes allow people to try a wide variety of food.
Dishes Dim sum restaurants typically have a wide variety of dishes, usually several dozen.
Dumplings Name Image Chinese DescriptionShrimp dumpling(; haa1 gaau2)steamed dumpling with shrimp filling.Teochew dumpling()steamed dumpling with peanuts, garlic, Chinese chives, pork, dried shrimp, and Chinese mushrooms.Chive dumpling ()steamed dumpling with Chinese chives.Xiaolongbaodumplings containing a rich broth and filled with meat or seafood.古時面皮中有餡之物方稱爲饅頭。見曾维华，〈古代的馒头〉，《上海师范大学学报（哲学社会科学版）》1995年第2期，页157。Tangbao soup-filled steamed bunsGuotie pan-fried dumpling, usually with meat and cabbage filling.Shark fin dumpling steamed dumplings with shrimp, crab sticks, shiitake, and straw mushrooms. Shumai steamed dumplings with pork and prawns, usually topped off with crab roe and mushroom.Hsiung, Deh-Ta. Simonds, Nina. Lowe, Jason. (2005). The food of China: a journey for food lovers. Bay Books. . p 38.Taro dumpling deep-fried dumpling made with mashed taro and stuffed with diced mushrooms, shrimp, and pork.Haam seui gok deep-fried dumpling with a slightly savory filling of pork and chopped vegetables in a sweet and sticky wrapping.Dumpling soup soup with one or two big dumplings.Wontondumpling filled with ground pork and shrimp
Rolls Name Image Chinese DescriptionSpring roll a deep-fried roll with various sliced vegetables (such as carrots, cabbage, mushrooms, and wood ear fungus) and sometimes meat.Tofu skin roll a roll made of tofu skin filled with various meats and sliced vegetables.Hsiung, Deh-Ta. Simonds, Nina. Lowe, Jason. (2005). The food of China: a journey for food lovers. Bay Books. . p35.Fresh bamboo roll a roll made of tofu skin filled with minced pork and bamboo shoot, typically served in an oyster sauce broth.Four-treasure chicken rolla roll made of tofu skin filled with chicken, Jinhua ham, fish maw (), and Chinese mushroom.Cifantuansteamed glutinous rice rollsRice noodle rollsteamed 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.Zhaliang steamed rice noodles rolled around youjagwai (), typically doused in soy sauce, hoisin sauce, or sesame paste, and sprinkled with sesame seeds.Duckfeet Roll鴨腳扎Duck feet wrapped in bean curd sheets.
Buns Name Image Chinese DescriptionBarbecued pork bun ()bun with barbecued pork filling steamed to be white and fluffy. is a variant that is glazed and baked for a golden appearance.Hsiung, Deh-Ta. Simonds, Nina. Lowe, Jason. . The Food of China: A Journey for Food Lovers. Bay Books. . p. 24.Sweet cream bun ()steamed bun with milk custard filling.Lotus seed bun()steamed bun with lotus seed paste filling.Pineapple bun()a usually sweet bread roll that does not contain pineapple but has a topping textured like pineapple skin.Longevity peach()lotus seed bun sometimes with a filling made of red bean paste or lotus paste. Steamed Chinese Sausage Rolls()steamed chinese sausage in a bun
Cakes
Name Image Chinese Description Turnip cake pudding made from a mix of shredded white radish, bits of dried shrimp, Chinese sausage and mushroom that is steamed, sliced, and pan-fried. Taro cake pudding made of taro. Water chestnut cake pudding made of crispy water chestnut; some restaurants also serve a variation made with bamboo juice.Nian gao年糕glutinous rice flour cake, sweetened, usually with brown sugar.Red Date Cake紅棗糕Dessert made with dried jujubes and tapioca flour. Thousand-layer cake a dessert made of many layers of salted egg dough. Malay sponge cakesponge cake consisting of lard or butter, flour, and eggs. White sugar sponge cake steamed sponge cake made with white sugar.
Meats
Name Image Chinese Description Steamed meatball steamed meatballs served on thin tofu skin. Generally served with Worcestershire sauce. Pearl meatballs steamed meatballs coated with glutinous rice. Traditionally from Hubei and Hunan. Lion's Head pork meatballs or beef meatballs stewed with vegetables. Phoenix claws deep fried, boiled, and then steamed chicken feet with douchi. "White Cloud Phoenix Claws" () is a plain steamed version.Shimabukuro, Betty. "Dive In, Feet First" , Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 11 November 1998. Spare ribs steamed pork spare ribs with douchi and sometimes garlic and chili.Phillips, Carolyn (2006) p. 167 Beef tendon Beef tendons are cooked for a long time until it is very tender. In Hong Kong, it is usually served together with beef brisket and/or radish. Reticulum beef tripe Omasum beef tripe () Shrimp toast Bread coated with a paste made from minced shrimp and cooked by baking or deep frying.
Seafood
Name Image Chinese DescriptionDeep fried squidsimilar to fried calamari, the battered squid is deep-fried.Curry squid squid served in curry broth.
Vegetables
Name Image Chinese DescriptionSteamed gai lan Steamed vegetables served with oyster sauce, popular varieties include lettuce (), choy sum (), gai lan (), or water spinach ().Fried tofu deep fried tofu with salt and pepper.
Rice