![]() ![]() “A riesling will bring out the sweeter elements in some dishes too.The first, early 20th century incarnations of dim sum dishes were larger, starchier dumplings intended for the blue collar appetites of day laborers who needed a quick, hearty meal during the day. “I sometimes like to have a cold Tsingtao or a light sauvignon blanc with dim sum,” she says. Beyond tea, Chan-Waller recommends pairing beer and white wine with dim sum. ![]() Fine teas continue to be a specialty at legendary dim sum parlors, such as New York’s Nom Wah, which opened in 1920 and where a selection of varieties are available for in-person dining at the restaurant’s locations in Chinatown and Philadelphia. “It is the most traditional accompaniment,” he says, and no proper dim sum feast is complete without at least one pot. After all, dim sum’s roots lie in 19th-century tea rooms. “I would never microwave dim sum because it tends to take the moisture out of everything.” Drink dim sum with… “If I’m reheating spring rolls, for example, I would just stick them in the oven on low heat, and cover them with a little gap - put the cover on sideways - so they stay warm and don’t get soggy,” she advises. If you want to reheat any items, Chan-Waller says the oven is the way to go. Lee also endorses “trying the sticky rice bundle instead of the usual white rice,” such as the one served at New Furama in Chicago: sticky rice with pork, sausage, mushroom, and salted egg, all wrapped in a lotus leaf. Turnip cakes or the even rarer radish cakes are other dishes that dim sum aficionados never pass up because of their unique texture. Restaurants that serve them usually put a lot of effort into them.” This deep-fried, steamed, and stewed delicacy is a point of pride for many dim sum spots, such as LA’s ABC Seafood, where they are simmered in black bean sauce. ![]() While diners new to dim sum might not order chicken feet at first, Lee says that “when done well, they are really worth it and can enhance the entire dim sum experience. Photo credit: Christine Wong, Dim Sum Go Go Be adventurous. “I always order them, and if the skin is very delicate, I know I am in for a good dim sum experience,” he says. Har gow, tender shrimp in a translucent wrapper, also often called crystal shrimp dumplings, are the standard by which Lee judges a dim sum meal. Those chicken-mushroom dumplings are a prime example of that.” …but definitely get the dumplings.ĭumplings are considered staples of dim sum, and, according to both Chan-Waller and Lee, among those you should not miss are shumai, steamed dumplings usually filled with shrimp, pork, or both snow pea leaf dumplings, a vegetarian favorite which can also include shrimp and xiao long bao, dumplings filled with hot soup, a skillfully made staple at Din Tai Fung in Seattle. “This is the aromatic quality that a wok gives to a dish. “In Chinese, there’s a word for a unique flavor that we call wok hei,” she says. Anything comforting that calls to you is the right thing to choose.” The dish that touches her heart the most? The chicken-mushroom dumplings that have been on Yank Sing’s menu since 1958 - and are just one of more than 100 dishes in rotation. Photo credit: Allie Tong, Yank Sing First, follow your heart…ĭim sum literally translates to “touch the heart,” which, Chan-Waller says, “is why you should order anything that touches your heart. ![]()
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