Dim Sum

Dim Sum, also referred to as Yum Cha, may just about be one of th best things in the world.

This is a meal I shared with my family the last time we visited them in California.

What is it, you ask? It a Cantonese style meal comprised of small dishes that you can get right off the cart, or in some places, order it off the menue. I like the carts better. Imagine being in a big restaurant filled with sounds of people and plates. The large, round tables each have a lazy susan on them where the steamer-baskets and small plates are placed so they an be easily shared. People pushing carts filled with all sorts of goodies manuver their way through the crowded tables, calling out what kind of foods their rolling meal carries are tacked high with.

That is essentially Dim Sum. I remeber it fondly growing up, and love it today. The sounds and smells of a good Dim Sum is one of the favorite things in life.

 Looks amazing, am I right?

Dim Sum is usually comprised of buns, dumpling, rice noodle rolls which have all sorts of meats in them. Chicken, pork beef and shrimp are usual fair. Roasted meats, steamed veggies and desserts can also be found.

Fresh egg custards are divine and my all-time favorite dish is Ha Gao, a shrimp dumpling in a thin, tranparent skin made of glutous rice flour. I tried to make these babies from scratch once, and the skins are haaaard o pin down just right. So extra kudos to the ones who make them well.

An irreplaceable element of Dim Sum is, of course, the tea. If you want to eat a Dim Sum meal properly, tea is a must. Typically, tea is chrystanthemum (which is also wonderful for the complexion), oolong or puer.