Dim Sum's Varieties

Traditional Dim Sum includes steamed or fried dumplings, filled buns, rice rolls, and noodles. Ingredients include chicken, pork, beef, prawns, and a number of vegetarian options. Dim Sum restaurants often additionally offer plates of steamed green vegetables and desserts including pastries and fruity porridges. The assortment of dishes is truly a marvel, though certain staples will nearly always appear on the roster. 'Gow' is a standard of most Dim Sum bistros.

Dumplings wrapped in translucent rice-flour skin, 'Gow' allows a chef to draw attention to his artistry, as the dumplings are quite challenging to create.

'Chiu-chao' style dumplings resemble Thai dishes, containing peanuts, garlic chives, dried shrimp, shitake mushrooms, and served with a sharp chilli sauce. 'Potstickers', a familiar Chinese favourite, are sometimes included in a Dim Sum meal, though they are not categorised as a traditional element in the cuisine. A Northern Chinese style of dish, 'potstickers' are delicious dumplings stuffed with a filling of cabbage and meat.

Aside from dumplings, Cantonese varieties of buns comprise many Dim Sum specialties. Shanghai steamed buns are filled with meat, often seafood, and are distinguished by a hearty soup concealed within the bun. 'Bau' is another type of bun, served baked or steamed. A fluffy treat, 'bau' is filled with an assortment of meat and vegetables. Perhaps the most distinct and popular type of 'bau', 'cha siu baau' consists of Cantonses barbeque-flavoured pork, meat, and onions inside a light outer casing.

Many items within the Dim Sum catalogue don't fall as easily into the typical bun/dumpling category. Aforementioned phoenix talons (chicken feet), sesame seed balls, steamed spare ribs, lotus leaf rice, mango pudding, tofu desserts, spring rolls, egg tarts and fried squid are all potential features in a Dim Sum dining encounter. Some restaurants may offer up to one hundred different items on a particularly demanding day.

Source : bangkok.com - restaurant dining experiences

See also :
Steak
Sushi