by Vivien Chang
As a city immersing Chinese and Western cultures, Hong Kong is full of all kinds of different cuisines from all over the world. As a result, Hong Kong is given the name of ‘Cuisine Paradise’. Among all the cuisines, Hong Kong is especially famous for ‘dim sum’, which is a large variety of delicate Chinese dishes. What makes it more attractive is that some of their names are very straightforward while others may sound interesting without knowing their names. Most of them may have interesting stories behind. Let’s come and find out!
Dim Sum
‘Dim Sum’ is written as ‘點心’ in Chinese, which means ‘bits and bits of goodwill’. Based on traditional Chinese tales, a general was touched by the soldiers bravely fighting against the enemies at the frontline, so he asked people to make them snacks and send to them, in wish of offering them goodwill.
Siu Mai
As one of the most well-known Dim Sum, Siu Mai has a quite confusing name. Written as ‘燒賣’, it will be directly translated as ‘burning sell’, which is meaningless? The name actually comes from homophonic. It should originally be named as ‘burning wheat’, describing it has a shape similar to wheat being burnt. Do you think its vivid?
Cheung Fan
‘腸粉’, a very popular dish for breakfast, also has a special name. Translated as ‘flour intestine’, this weird name came from a story in which the Chinese Emperor in the Ching Dynasty once tried out this dish and found it really tasty. He commented that ‘it looks like pig intestines (which is also a popular Chinese dish)’. After that, people call it ‘Cheung Fan’ regarding the story.
Sponge Cake
Another popular dish among Hong Kong is Sponge Cake ‘馬拉糕’. Although the English name sounds perfectly fit with the characteristics of the cake, the direct translation of Sponge Cake is actually ‘Malay Cake’. It is because this cake is originated from Singapore and Malaysia. It is then brought to Hong Kong and Guangzhou. Therefore, the cake is named after the Malaysians.
Omasum
Chinese people are famous for cooking viscera, and omasum is one of them. It is a part in a cow’s stomach. The Chinese name for it is ‘牛栢葉’, which has an interesting story behind. In ancient China, there is a doctor Li Shi Zhen, who has written a guide for herbs and medicine. In the book, he used ‘栢葉’ to refer to something precious. As Omasum is a precious part in a cow’s stomach, and it is very little comparing to the size of the cow, ‘牛栢葉’ stands for the treasure is a cow’s stomach.
Steamed Dumplings
Being one of the most iconic dim sum, steamed dumplings is among the first Chinese cuisines sold in Western countries. Therefore, its name ‘小籠包’ is partially affected by the West. Originated in Shanghai, steamed dumplings started appearing in Chinese restaurants opened by Chinese immigrants decades ago. At that time it was named ‘Chinese bread with meat inside’. After it grew more and more popular among the Westerns, it was then being called ‘Little Dragon Bread (小龍包)’, as people believed that Chinese are the offspring of dragon. They advertised as bread with dragon meat in it. This simple name is recognizable and easy to remember, that it slowly become the name of steamed dumplings.
References
Dim Sum. (2019). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from http://www.discoverhongkong.com/us/dine-drink/what-to-eat/must-eat/dim-sum.jsp.
Dim Sum Names. (2006, January 11). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/phorum/read.php?12,46740.
點解腸粉叫腸粉，點解加茶水要揭蓋？廣州味道有段古. (2017, March 24). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from https://kknews.cc/zh-hk/food/enbzry4.html.
Language Culture and Society in Hong Kong (and beyond) 
A very interesting blog article which shows the stories behind the names of dim sum! Unlike the dull English dish-naming culture which the dishes are usually named after the creator or the major ingredients, that of Chinese tends to be more variable. The example of dim sum as ‘touching heart’ is meaningful, while ‘Siu Mai’, ‘Cheung Fan’ and ‘Sponge Cake’ are of more delicate imaginations and more meticulous observations. Through the hidden stories in the names, we can also see some foreign perceptions towards Chinese, i.e. from ‘Little Dragon Bread’. In addition, the translation of Chinese dishes has been causing headache to translators(especially Chinese restaurant owners). We might often find some hilarious Chinese-English translations on menu. Despite the possibility of involving those in your post, the post has shed some light on Chinese culture!
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Thanks for your reply! The reason I talk about dim sum is because the found the names very intersting! I’m glad that you also feel the same with me :>
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I love this article. It’s nice to have an insight into this because I think dim sum names are really interesting. Although I’ve never push much thought to it while looking at a menu admittedly. But I always used to think “點心” meant ‘touching heart’ or ‘dot heart’ because although dim sums are small, they touch the heart, because its usually eaten with friends and/or family and such.
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I think this is a really fun article because it tells some stories behind the names of Hong Kong Dim Sums. Also, the Chinese tea culture is a remarkable Hong Kong food culture. So, I appreciate that you choose to introduce the Dim Sum names to us. It’s interesting and great!
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This article is really fun because it tells some stories behind the names of Hong Kong Dim Sums. Indeed, the Chinese tea time and the Dim Sums are the crucial and remarkable parts of Hong Kong food culture. It’s really interesting to know more about the Hong Kong Dim Sum! Very nice!
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