Chinese Cuisine Highlights - dim sum, tofu, bubble tea, fortune cookies and how to use chopsticks
Some Dim Sum?
Dim Sum means "A little bit of Heart" in Chinese. In Tea-Rooms in China the Dim Sum is an inseparable part of the "Yum Cha" (The Tea Drinking). With the tea, little dough dumplings, filled with vegetables, all kinds of meat, shrimps, and other small dishes, salty or sweet, are being served. The dishes are served in bamboo vaporization bowls, which are placed over a steam trolley. Every several minutes the kitchen makes different dishes, and the diners choose their favorite course.The making of Dim Sum requires both skill and expertise, and it is taught in special schools.
"Yum Cha" means Tea Drinking in Chinese. According to the Chinese tradition, each time tea is being served into your cup, you should tap twice with your fingers on the table, as a "Thank You" gesture. The custom of tea drinking in China dates back to the legendary Shen Nung, who is said to have personally tried hundreds of grasses and herbs to test their medicinal effects and toxicity.
Tea was a popular drink with the Sung Dynasty (960-1280 A.D.), and gradually, innovations in the tea drinking custom were introduced, a broad variety of accompaniments to tea drinking began to appear - Dim Sum. A known Chinese phrase says that "Nothing Compares to Good Dumplings"... In China's ancient agricultural society, people would often head for a tea house after an exhausting day in the fields. Here they would mix warm conversation with fine tea and a tantalizing selection of Dim Sum. The quantity of each was kept small so that many different varieties could be sampled. This custom has continued up through present day. Many Dim Sum restaurants were opened in Western countries and are popular everywhere.
About Tofu
There are two broad categories of tofu - firm tofu and soft (or silken) tofu.
Firm tofu is the more versatile of the two varieties.
Silken tofu is best eaten raw or used in soups, most notably miso soup. Silken tofu does not stir fry well. Because of its consistency, it will not absorb the flavors of the meats and vegetables being fried as firmtofu will, and also it tends to crumble.
Both firm and silken tofus are available in most grocery stores in the vegetable section. Tofu is like a dairyproduct in that it must be refrigerated and has a short shelf life. It is normally sold in plastic tubs,immersed in water. Naturally, the water should be poured off, the tofu rinsed and patted dry before using.
Silken tofu often comes inside foil packages from Japan. In this case, the silken tofu is ultra-pasteurized and so has a very long shelf life. Firm tofu is always fresh.
Tofu - fermented soybeans made into a concentrated curd form. Originally from Japan. Tofu is astringent, sweet, cooling and heavy. Tofu is also mild tasting and very versatile. It will take on the flavors of any food it is cooked with. Tofu is high in calcium, iron and phosphorus. Good for Kapha, use extra spicing, Vata, should eat in small quantities because it may cause constipation. Pitta, very good for strong Pitta and cooling. Tofu should always be prepared by cooking or warming and needs warming spices cooked with it for easy digestion. Use Cumin and Coriander. Do not overcook tofu. It should be gently cooked and heated. Eat small quantities of tofu (3 or 4 oz) at a time.
Tofu is made from soybean milk mixed with a thickener and pressed to form a block. Not only is tofu an excellent vegetable protein, but recent discoveries have found estrogen-like compounds that lower risk in breast and prostrate cancers. By promoting calcium retention in bones,soybean products lower the risk of osteoporosis.
Soybeans are the perfect food. They contain very little cholesterol and saturated fats; the fat is mostly unsaturated. Soybeans provide a complete protein, approximately 35% protein, compared to 20% in other legumes. It is high in vitamins A, B1, B2, E, niacin, calcium, lecithin and mineral salts. It contains amino-acids, such as linoleic acid, which is one of the Omega-3 fatty acids, helpful in reducing heart disease. Soybeans contain genistein, a plant-based estrogen known as phytoestrogens, which helps to block the growth of tumors and prevent the growth of cancer. Overall, soybeans contribute to a healthy diet, rich in nutrients that help in the prevention of cancer, heart diseases and postmenopausal symptoms.
Tofu Salad Recipe
Ingredients (2 servings)
- 1 lb Firm tofu
- 1/4 c Tahini
- 1 ts Mustard
- 1 tb Tamari
- 1 tb Eggless mayo
- 1/4 c Onion; finely chopped
- 1 sm Garlic clove; minced
- 1/4 c Shredded carrots
- 1 tb Chopped fresh parsley
Instructions: Mash tofu. Add other ingredients and mix well. Spread on toast, pita, crackers, or roll up in lettuce leaves.
What is Bubble Tea?
Bubble tea, also known as boba, pearl tea, milk tea, bubble drink, zhen zhu nai cha, or any combination of the above, started at least 10 years ago in Taiwan. In the past few years, this drink has gained popularity in the West, in cities such as Los Angeles, Seattle, Vancouver, New York, the Bay Area and now in Toronto.
The two main ingredients of bubble tea are the tapioca balls and the milk tea.
The tapioca balls in bubble tea are round, black, gummy, and the size of gumballs. In Taiwan, these tapioca balls are referred to as pearls or "zhen zhu." Little kids in Taiwan like to call them "QQ," which in Chinese means chewy. In the West, the popular term is "boba" or slang for female boobs. If pearls don't sound too pleasing, you can try ai-yu, grass jelly or almond tofu instead.
Milk tea is made from black tea and sweetened milk, but green and red tea are also used. So, if you want to try to make it at home, I suggest Lipton's.
The presentation of the drink is as important as the drink itself. Traditionally, bubble tea comes in a 16-ounce clear plastic cup with a big fat straw. Since the pearls sit at the bottom of the drink, the straw becomes very important while you are trying to enjoy the last pieces of your drink.
Finally, there are some words of wisdom from someone who drinks a lot of these drinks: - Be careful sucking up the pearls at the end of the drink when all the tea is gone. People have been known to choke on those things, and it's quite embarrassing when others are around. - Make sure it's shaken not stirred. When it's shaken, bubbles form on the top of the drink like foam and you know the person took the time to make it a good drink. - One more thing about pearls, make sure they are fresh. After the pearls have been sitting for a day, they tend to breakdown and are not chewy anymore. You want to have good pearls because rumor has it that 7 pearls are about 100 calories and there are at least 30 pearls in a drink!
Bubble Tea Recipe
- Bring a large pot of water to full boil.
- Put tapioca balls in pot of water.
- Add 1 piece of brown wafer sugar for each 1/2 pound of tapioca balls.
- Let boil for 10 minutes, stir often.
- Decrease to half heat until water comes to a slow boil.
- Continue to slow boil and stir often for 30 minutes or until tapioca balls become transparent.
- Check one tapioca ball to ensure center is soft.
- Put aside pot to let it cool to room temperature.
- In a kettle, boil some water for the tea.
- For each 2-3 cups of water, put in an Earl Grey teabag.
- Let the tea fully boil for 5 minutes.
- Put aside kettle to let it cool.
- When kettle cools to room temperature, add condensed milk. Adjust to flavour.
- Now comes the fun part...
- Obtain a drink mixer shaker (like the one Tom Cruise used in Cocktail).
- Add milk tea mix, ice cubes, and sugar syrup. Adjust sugar syrup to flavour.
- Shake the mix well.
- Fill a clean glass with tapioca balls to about 1/3 full.
- Pour milk tea mix into glass and serve with large straw.
- The tapioca balls will keep in the refrigerator for about 12 hours. The tea will keep for a day.
How to Order Bubble Tea and Recommended Flavors
When you came to the tea house and get seated at the table, you will be given a piece of paper where you need to check off the tea you want to order. If you don't know how to do it, ask the waiter for help.
Normally you have to check off 4 things:
- flavor
- kind of tea (milk, green or black)
- size
- hot/cold
- w/pearls, pudding or w/o.
Here are the suggestions:
- Recommended flavors: banana, nutty (coconut, almond, peanut), taro, lichee and apple
- I personally prefer milk tea: it's more like a cocktail than a tea and has a frothy texture
- Milk tea is best when it's served cold with ice
- Have a large size: it's served in a round glass with a leg, similar to a big cognac glass
- Definately have pearls: it's a fun exotic experience and you'll be getting a drink and dessert in one.
Fortune Cookies
Like so many things like fireworks and chopsticks, fortune cookies were invented by the Chinese in 1909 but not Peking or Shanghai but in San Francisco.
Fortune Cookies are made from a thin, light, delicious, batter which are folded in half to make the familiar crescent shape, which is about 2 inches long.
They are then baked until they are a beautiful light, golden brown colour. Each Fortune Cookie is then individually sealed in its own little bag.
The real secret of Fortune Cookies is the message on a slip of paper carefully hidden inside the cookie.
Chopsticks
When the Chinese began to use chopsticks as an eating instrument is anybody's guess. They were first mentioned in writing in Liji (The Book of rites), a work compiled some 2,000 years ago, but certainly they had their initial form in the twigs which the primitive Chinese must have used to pick up a roast after they began to use fire. The twigs then evolved into the wooden, tapering sticks as we know them today.
Chopsticks may be made of any of several materials: bamboo, wood, gold, siler, ivory, pewter, and plastics. In cross-section, they may be either round or square. Some of them are engraved with coloured pictures or calligraphy for decoration. Ordinary chopsticks used in Chinese homes are of wood or bamboo, those for banquets are often ivory, whereas gold ones belonged only to the royalty and aristocracy.
The correct way to use chopsticks is to hold the pair in the hollow between the thumb and forefinger of your fork hand. The one closest to your body should rest on the first joint of the ring finger and stay relatively immobile. Hold the other one with the forefinger and middle finger, which manipulate it like pincers to pick up the food. The strength applied by the fingers should vary with the things to be taken hold of. The skill to pick up, with speed and dexterity, small things like beans and peanuts and slippery things like slices of preserved eggs can only come from practice and coordinated action of the fingers.
Incidentally, using chopsticks has a great deal in common with wielding a brush to write Chinese characters. Those who write a good hand, some scholars have observed, are invariably those who handle the chopsticks correctly. One holds the writing brush basically in the same way as one would the moving chopsticks and, while writing, one must achieve a coordination in the movement of the shoulder, arm, wrist and fingers in order to write well.
Westerners are often impressed with the cleverness of the Chinese hand that makes embroideries and clay sculptures with such consummate skill. Could not this also be attributed, at least partly, to the constant use of chopsticks?
How to use Chopsticks?
1. Place the first chopstick in the hollow between thumb and index finger and rest its lower end below the first joint of the third finger. This chopstick remains stationary.
2. Hold the other chopstick between the tips of the index and middle fingers, steady its upper half against the base of the index finger, and use the tips of the thumb to keep it in place.
3. Pick up things, move the upper chopstick with index and middle fingers. After a few practices you should be able to use chopsticks, it's not that hard but takes practice.