I’ve been forever on a hunt for a good dimsum buffet. I love dimsum. I find dimsum to be light, flavorful, and interesting. The endless combinations and flavors that constantly surprise me is the big attraction and restaurants and I find that a meal which consists of nothing but dimsum and tea is filling enough. But what is this art called dimsum?
Dim sum translates from Cantonese as “a touch of heart”, or “order to your heart’s content” as “dim” has multiple meanings. It is Chinese cuisine only served at brunch time. The unique culinary art of dim sum (Cantonese) or dian xin (Mandarin) means “a little bit of heart” and originated in China hundreds of years ago. It is said to have started along the Silk Road where farmers, laborers and travelers often stopped at roadside teahouses to have afternoon tea, regain sustenance and relax, an olden days version of the local neighborhood bar.
Dim Sum is usually linked with the older tradition of yum cha (tea tasting), which has its roots in travellers on the ancient Silk Road needing a place to rest. Thus teahouses were established along the roadside. Rural farmers, exhausted after working hard in the fields, would also go to teahouses for a relaxing afternoon of tea. At first, it was considered inappropriate to combine tea with food, because people believed it would lead to excessive weight gain. People later discovered that tea can aid in digestion, so teahouse owners began adding various snacks.
Traditional dim sum includes various types of steamed buns such as char siu baau, dumplings and rice noodle rolls (cheong fun), which contain a range of ingredients, including beef, chicken, pork, prawns and vegetarian options. Many dim sum restaurants also offer plates of steamed green vegetables, roasted meats, congee porridge and other soups. Dessert dim sum is also available and many places offer the customary egg tart. Having a meal in a Chinese teahouse or a dim sum restaurant is known as yum cha (yam cha, 飲茶), literally “drinking tea”, as tea is typically served with dim sum.
Types of DimSum
- Gao (餃, Dumpling; 餃子 gau zi, Gow gee): Gao is a standard in most teahouses. They are made of ingredients wrapped in a translucent rice flour or wheat starch skin, and are different from jiaozi found in other parts of China. Though common, steamed rice-flour skins are quite difficult to make. Thus, it is a good demonstration of the chef’s artistry to make these translucent dumplings. There are also dumplings with vegetarian ingredients, such as tofu and pickled cabbage.
- Shrimp Dumpling (蝦餃 har gau): A delicate steamed dumpling with whole or chopped-up shrimp filling and thin wheat starch skin.
- Chiu-chao style dumplings (潮州粉果 chiu-chau fun guo): A dumpling said to have originated from the Chaozhou prefecture of eastern Guangdong province, it contains peanuts, garlic, chives, pork, dried shrimp, Chinese mushrooms in a thick dumpling wrapper made from glutinous rice flour or Tang flour. It is usually served with a small dish of chili oil.
- Potsticker (鍋貼, woh tip) Northern Chinese style of dumpling (steamed and then pan-fried jiaozi), usually with meat and cabbage filling. Note that although potstickers are sometimes served in dim sum restaurants, they are not considered traditional Cantonese dim sum.
- Shaomai (燒賣 siu mai): Small steamed dumplings with either pork, prawns or both inside a thin wheat flour wrapper. Usually topped off with crab roe and mushroom.
- Haam Sui Gaau (鹹水餃, salt-water (i.e. savoury) stuffed-dumpling, alternatively 鹹水角 (haam Sui Gok): deep fried oval-shaped dumpling made with rice-flour and filled with pork and chopped vegetables. The rice-flour surrounding is sweet and sticky, while the inside is slightly salty.
- Bau (包 bau): Baked or steamed, these fluffy buns made from wheat flour are filled with food items ranging from meat to vegetables to sweet bean pastes.
- Char siu baau (叉燒包, char siu baau): the most popular bun with a Cantonese barbecued pork filling. It can be either steamed to be fluffy and white or baked with a light sugar glaze to produce a smooth golden-brown crust.
- Shanghai steamed buns (上海小籠包 seong hoi siu lung bau): These dumplings are filled with meat or seafood and are famous for their flavor and rich broth inside. These dumplings are originally Shanghainese so they are not considered traditional Cantonese dim sum. They are typically sold with pork as a filling.
- Rice noodle rolls or cheong fun (腸粉 cheong fun): These are wide rice noodles that are steamed and then rolled. They are often filled with different types of meats or vegetables inside but can be served without any filling. Rice noodle rolls are fried after they are steamed and then sprinkled with sesame seeds. Popular fillings include beef, dough fritter, shrimp, and barbecued pork. Often topped with a sweetened soy sauce.
- Phoenix talons (鳳爪 fung zao): These are chicken feet, deep fried, boiled, marinated in a black bean sauce and then steamed. This results in a texture that is light and fluffy (due to the frying), while moist and tender. Fung zau are typically dark red in color. One may also sometimes find plain steamed chicken feet served with a vinegar dipping sauce. This version is known as “White Cloud Phoenix Talons” (白雲鳳爪, bak wun fung jau).
- Steamed meatball (牛肉球 ngau4 juk6 kau4): Finely-ground beef is shaped into balls and then steamed with preserved orange peel and served on top of a thin bean-curd skin.
- Spare ribs: In the west, it is mostly known as spare ribs collectively. In the east, it is Char siu when roasted red, or (排骨 paai4 gwat1, páigǔ) when roasted black. It is typically steamed with douchi or fermented black beans and sometimes sliced chilli.
- Lotus leaf rice (糯米雞 lou mai gai): Glutinous rice is wrapped in a lotus leaf into a triangular or rectangular shape. It contains egg yolk, dried scallop, mushroom, water chestnut and meat (usually pork and chicken). These ingredients are steamed with the rice and although the leaf is not eaten, its flavour is infused during the steaming. Lo mai gai is a kind of rice dumpling. A similar but lighter variant is known as “Pearl Chicken” (珍珠雞 jan jyu gai).
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dim_sum
After a somewhat long post about Dimsum, together with The Club, we headed on over to Makati Shangri-la to take advantage of the latest promo by Shang Palace; a Dimsum Buffet. Seriously, who can say no? For Php 995++ I think it was well worth it.
With a tall tower of bamboo steamers in front of me, I knew it was going to be a memorable afternoon. Not only because of the place and company but because of the epic amounts of food and shrimp to be consumed by me and rare do I get really amped up for eating! When the first cover was lifted of the Hakaw or Shrimp Dumpling, and I got a quick whiff, I knew it was going to be Legen-wait for it-dary. This was the theme of the afternoon. With steamer after steamer of those tiny little bundles of joy bringing so much happiness and flavor to my already colorful life, this was definitely an afternoon to remember. If Mandy Moore had a walk, I had my dimsum buffet.
These tiny little shrimp bundles of joy were perfectly steamed. The shrimp inside was both plump and firm but was still juicy and flavorful. The glutinous rice wrapper was also thin enough to be translucent, but firm enough to add some bite. This was definitely one of the best Hakaw’s I have ever tasted in the Philippines. Some Chinese restaurants offer the same fare for about Php 90.00 for an order of 3-4. We got 8 orders from the get go. We also ordered 5 more after. I think with the Hakaw alone, it was worth the price.
Of course, no Dimsum meal is complete for me without Chicken Feet. I love these. I admit they are an acquired taste, but I just love sucking the skin and tendons off the feet. Rare do I find another person who loves them as much as I do. Luckily, Irene and I share the same taste! I think I consumed 3-4 orders of these alone. I also secretly enjoy seeing the small pile of tiny bones on my plate after. Again, they were prepared immaculately. Succulent and tasteful, the skin literally fell off as you suck off the skin.
The traditional staple for Dimsum in the Philippines has to have Siomai or Pork Dumpling. As I mentioned above, Shaomai (燒賣 siu mai): Small steamed dumplings with either pork, prawns or both inside a thin wheat flour wrapper. Usually topped off with crab roe and mushroom. Again it did not disappoint. (I think I am starting to see a pattern.) They knew what they were doing. I also noticed that no 2 siomai were alike which means they were all hand prepared. I loved the fact that there was an entire shrimp placed at the top and they used Fish Roe to add to the garnish both gastronomically and aesthetically.
They also had Taro Puffs. I didn’t quite finish my serving because either I was already really stuffed, or the oil made me a bit dizzy. Don’t get me wrong, they were awesome. I just wasn’t able to enjoy them as much because I was really really full by then.
The surprise of the lunch was the Char Siu Sou. These little bun filled with Asado Pork was just perfectly prepared. The croissant-like texture of the bun coupled with the semi-sweet pork melded magnificently in a single unifying dish that surprised everyone!
We continued to order our dimsum and tried a multitude of other dishes that if I blogged about every single thing, this post would never end. The promo allows for appetizers, dimsum, soups, and desserts to be eat-all-you-can. It also comes with 1 main dish. Peter ordered the Beef Tenderloin cubes with mushrooms.
This was another surprise of the night, and Richard actually really enjoyed the dish. The beef was really tender and the mushrooms were firm and tasty.
Being a chinese restaurant, how could we not order the mango sago? Although it was good enough, there was nothing really special to blog about.
Verdict? Dimsum Buffet win. I was stuffed and full after and as I write this entry waaay past dinner, I have not yet begin to feel the hunger. I will definitely be back. There was no end date for the promo, so try to take advantage of it ASAP! I guarantee, you will not regret it.
Shang Palace is located at the 2nd Floor of the Makati Shangri-la Hotel
Ayala Avenue corner Makati Avenue
Makati City 1200
Philippines
T: (63 2) 813 8888
F: (63 2) 813 5499
