Dim sum (點心, literally “touch the heart”) is a Cantonese tradition of small dishes served with tea — originally a Cantonese breakfast and brunch ritual, now available throughout the day in dedicated dim sum restaurants. Here is what to know.
The Ritual of Yum Cha
Yum cha (飲茶, “drink tea”) is the full ritual — dim sum is the food component, yum cha is the social act of gathering to eat it. The traditional dim sum restaurant experience: arrive and be seated at a large round table; the server brings a pot of tea (you choose from pu-erh, chrysanthemum, jasmine, or oolong — pu-erh is standard and cuts through the fat of the dumplings); dishes are ordered from carts pushed around the restaurant (in traditional establishments) or from a paper checklist (in modern ones). At cart-service restaurants, servers push trolleys with baskets of dumplings, plates of rice rolls, and other dishes; you point to what you want; they mark your bill. The price is typically stamped on the basket or determined by a size category (small, medium, large, special). Etiquette: the most senior person at the table pours tea for others before pouring for themselves; the person whose cup is being refilled taps two fingers on the table as a silent gesture of thanks (a tradition originating from the Qing dynasty).
What to Order
Har gow (蝦餃): steamed shrimp dumplings — the standard by which a dim sum restaurant is judged. Should have a thin, slightly translucent skin that doesn’t stick together; the filling should be whole shrimp, not paste. Siu mai (燒賣): steamed pork and shrimp dumplings with a thin wonton-style skin, open at the top, typically garnished with flying fish roe or carrot. Char siu bao (叉燒包): barbecue pork buns, either steamed (白包 — soft, white, slightly sweet dough) or baked (焗包 — golden brown, glazed). The steamed version is the original; the baked version is a Hong Kong modification. Cheung fun (腸粉): steamed rice noodle rolls wrapped around shrimp, beef, or char siu, served with soy sauce and sesame oil — the texture contrast between the silky rice noodle and the filling is the point. Lo mai gai (糯米雞): sticky rice stuffed with chicken, Chinese sausage, mushroom, and egg, wrapped in lotus leaf and steamed. Turnip cake (蘿蔔糕, lo bak go): pan-fried cake of shredded radish and rice flour, slightly crispy outside. Egg tart (蛋撻): custard tart with either a shortcrust or puff pastry shell — the Hong Kong version uses a flakier puff pastry; the Macanese version (Pastéis de Nata influence) is the standard elsewhere. Cheong fun with fried dough (炸兩): the sleeper hit — a rice noodle roll wrapped around a youtiao (Chinese cruller/fried dough stick), dressed with sauce. Turnip puffs (蘿蔔酥): flaky pastry turnip puffs, usually fried rather than baked.
Regional Variations
Hong Kong-style: the most internationally exported version — efficient service, emphasis on freshness, available from early morning. Cantonese mainland style: similar but may include more elaborate cold dishes and congee. Shanghai-style: technically not dim sum but xiao long bao (小籠包, soup dumplings) culture — a separate tradition where the key skill is a thin skin holding a liquid pork soup filling without breaking. Taiwanese: often sweeter, with wider adaptation of fillings. The key test of a dim sum restaurant’s quality: the har gow skin (should be tender, not gummy), the siu mai texture (filling should be springy, not paste-like), and freshness of the cheung fun (should be ordered fresh from the kitchen, not reheated).
