What is Yum Cha?
It’s the weekend routine that many families are accustomed to. Any Sydney food guide would tell you that the city has many restaurants serving yum cha. On Saturday and Sunday mornings, diners hungry for har gow, siu mai and barbeque pork buns, queue in excited anticipation. Whilst it may be taken for granted that yum cha takes place in large dining floors with fragrant push-carts trundling around, there may be a surprising aspect to its original meaning.
Yum Cha has Cantonese origins
Cantonese is a dialect spoken in the Guangdong region of China, as well as in Hong Kong and Macau. It was amongst people chatting in Cantonese where the practice of yum cha flourished. During the Qing Dynasty (1644 – 1911), people would stop by small houses to catch-up with each other and drink tea. In Cantonese, drinking is “yum” , and tea is “cha”. There weren’t many tables, just benches and seats where people could rest for a moment. Over-time, as more and more people grew fond of this activity, small plates of dumplings appeared, along with tables for people to eat them on.
What makes Dim Sum special?
Who knew that small dumplings paired so well with hot tea! Dim Sum is a Cantonese term for a large range of small-portioned dishes. What is special is exactly how large this range is. You could be enjoying Lo Mai Gai (sticky rice wrapped in lotus leaf), Pai Kuat (steamed pork ribs), Chao Siu Bao (barbeque pork buns) and Dan Tat (egg tarts) all in one sitting. In fact, if you eat with a group, you would probably order at least twice as much variety as that. The variety of dim sum dishes is large enough that you could even learn English online from googling the translations from their Cantonese names.
It’s the vibrancy of the meal and the communal aspect which makes having yum cha and dim sum special. In selecting your own dish from the push-cart, you’re deciding on what you’re going to be savouring. For many, there will be a slight thrill at the thought of trying a dish for the first time. Have you tried tripe, or Ngau Pak Yip? We’d recommend it as one of those ‘braver decisions’. The texture and taste is delicious! According to us, at least.
A gathering of friends and family
Yum cha is more than just a meal. Traditionally eaten in the late morning or early afternoon periods, yum cha is a time for people to catch-up on the latest news in each others’ lives. Or a time preceding an intense game of mahjong. A familiar scene in Hong Kong would be a table of older citizens enjoying virtually unlimited cups of tea whilst reminiscing over fond memories. Or a typical weekend in Macau, with families occupying every table whilst trolley ladies enthusiastically hawked their dim sum varieties. Similar to the Japanese concept of omotenashi, these trolley ladies are passionate about introducing what steamers they have in their cart, not to mention carefully saucing up your Cheong Fun (Chinese rice paper roll) for you. As fond of ‘brunch’ and ‘avocado on toast’ as many people in Western cultures are, yum cha is the Chinese equivalent. It’s a warm routine loved by family and friends.