Yum Cha traditionally means –drinking tea, the Chinese would meet at tea houses for yum cha, they soon decided that it was nice to eat food with their tea so they added “dim sim” – food, to their yum cha so that the people could gather together, enjoy company in a relaxed setting and eat.
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The students partook in 5 different yum cha delicacies – chicken dim sims, pork buns, vegetable gowgees, dumplings and vegetable puffs, all served with soy sauce or spicy plum sauce. All the food was steamed and served fresh as was the traditional way. The students enjoyed the experience and were enthusiastic to try the yum cha experience further with their friends and families outside school.
Even thought the student ate with forks, traditionally the Chinese would use either chopsticks or for smaller items toothpicks, the toothpicks would them be used to clean food from around the teeth. This was not considered impolite to do in public. There were many other customs we learnt about, one was the one of tapping two or three fingers on the table at the end of the “tea” to show that we appreciated the meal and to thank the host or inviting us. Another is when someone does finish a pot of tea the lid is always turned upside down to indicate this. This custom began when a poor young boy who had just caught an exotic bird which he could sell for lots of money, placed the bird inside the teapot. The waiter lifted the lid of the pot to see if he was finished his tea and the bird flew out, thus resulting on a brawl over who should pay for the boys lost income, thus the sign for an empty pot was to turn the lid over.
It was a great way to learn about the Chinese “yum cha” and a culture that have influence the Australian diet.
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