Why do you call that noodles is Phở? Or why is it called French Fries, not Potato? (Believe me, my friend laughed at me when I asked for Potato at Mc Donald’s). Anyway, it is always a funny part to find out the meaning of a name. Last time I learnt that Tiramisu was “Pick me up”, Tapas somehow meant “Cover”; this time, I know that Dimsum literally means “Touch the heart” (Dimsum in Chinese is Dian-Xin; Dian is “To touch, to poin” and Xin is “Heart”)
Thousand years ago on the ancient Silk Road which linked Western and Eastern, traders from China often stopped by teahouses along the roadsides to appreciate tea – “yum-cha”. The shop owners would often bring out small foods called Dimsum to go with tea. Gradually, Cantonese people turn Dimsum into an art of cuisine.
I find it really difficult to distinguish if this is har gao, siu mai or jiaozi… So I went to meet Chef Phu from Equatorial Hotel in HCMC. He smiled “I can read Dimsum just by looking at its wrapping.” Well, he told me details (and very techniques) ways to see a Dimsum. But what stayed in my mind later after his careful explanation was: If the outside of Baozi was a denim jacket, the skin of siu mai could be compared with a piece of golden silk; meanwhile, the wrapping of Har-gao is as translucent chiffon.
As for Dimsum, the trickiest part starts at the very beginning: how to get the right texture for the skin. Dough for each kind of dumplings should be prepared differently. Watch out when you knead the battle to prepare wrapper! Not too thick, not too thin, not too stretchy,…Don’t rest yet since pleating is quite an obstacle for clumsy hands. Not only you have to pleat each dumpling merely by hands, you have to create multiple shapes: basic flowers shape for har-gao, simple half-moon wrap for dumplings,…
Phew! It’s definitely not easy at all to see the filling and juices trapped inside the crystal-skinned Dimsum. No wonder why Dimsum has become an art on the table with more than 100 distinctive dishes.
Some of good dishes (in case you wanna have Dimsum for lunch at Orientica restaurant in Equatorial ) are shrimp har-gao, Shang-hai boiled dumplings/ or Xiao Long Bao (with hot sauce), yellow fish gao, sweet dimsum such as egg tart or durian viscous cake… Bring family or friends along with you. Never ever eat Dimsum alone!
(Have you read the Never Eat Alone of Keith Ferrazzi w Tahl Raz?), not to mention eating together is a good way to win friends, if you go alone, you can’t have chance to try more different good dishes.
Photos: From Tracy Thai’s source & Internet
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