Drinking Tea has always been an important part in the daily routines of most Chinese people, but Morning Tea specifically has been enjoyed by Cantonese Chinese  for hundreds of years. Nowadays Morning Tea, Yum Cha, or Zao Cha are all ways to describe the activity Westerners might call “Brunch”,  and Dim Sum refers to the dishes that are served at this leisurely mealtime. As with much international Chinese culture, this tradition has it’s roots in Guangdong province, but is practiced regularly throughout Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, and Chinatowns worldwide. Let’s take a look at what’s in store for first-time morning tea patrons!

Kungfu Tea at your Table

Kung fu Tea

Don’t miss the chance to Pao Cha with your hosts while you sip on piping hot kung fu tea in small tea cups. All Morning Tea establishments provide the option of small tea sets with boiling hot water that you can use to make tea at your table. Sometimes the tea alone costs as much as the food, but worth it for first-time visitors. A common favorite among Cantonese is Pu-er tea, which is a darker tea that reminds me of coffee. It’s known for aiding disgestion and doubles as a dieting tea.

An alternative to Kung Fu tea is just a simple pot of house brew that varies place to place. The cups are usually bigger too.

Steam Baskets

Dim Sum Buffet

Tea isn’t complete without a variety of Dim Sum. There are really too many options for me to list them all here, but most of them include dumpling-sized morsels served 3 or 4 in a basket. They include, but are not limited to: pork and shrimp dumplings, char siu buns, meat and vegie pot stickers, xiao long bao, man tou, chicken claws, steamed meatballs, spare ribs, sticky rice in lotus leaves, taro dumplings, turnip cakes, spring rolls, tofu skin, egg tarts, mango pudding, red bean buns, and much much more.

These dishes are hard to miss because they are served in iconic bamboo steam baskets. These are all collectively refered to as “Dim Sum”.

Porridge/Congee

Congee with Preserved Eggs

Soups, porridge, and congee are all very important too. In my humble opinion, Morning Tea isn’t complete without a choice of Congee (very wet cooked rice), which is best with pork slices, chives, ginger, and preserved eggs. Sometimes congee looks unappetizing, but I guarantee you will not regret trying it. You might come to love it, just as I did.

Deep fried bread is often used to accompany congee. Use the fried bread sparingly, as it isn’t a particularly healthy choice.

Other dishes

Sauteed Green Vegies

Besides the standard components of Morning Tea that I’ve mentioned above, you can also order full dishes that you might expect in Chinese restaurants, including boiled chicken and garlic or wok-fried bai cai with soy sauce. It’s always a good idea to order an extra full-sized dish just in case the dim sum doesn’t fill you up.

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That’s Morning Tea in a nut shell! Visit the links in this overview to learn more about the different parts of this traditional Chinese brunch and leave comments here after you try dim sum where ever you are!

Loose leaf Green Tea

Western science has discovered that the health benefits of tea greatly outweigh the benefits of coffee. But if you like coffee, keep drinking it. But challenge yourself today by drinking 1 cup of tea for every cup of coffee. That way you are not depriving yourself of the cancer-fighting polyphenol antioxidants in tea, especially green tea.

In fact, Green tea was used for medical purposes in ancient China and is now ubiquitous across Asia. If you follow just one Asian secret it should be this one!

A warm cup of milk

There are countless natural ways to get more sleep. Sleeping pills should be a last resort.

Try drinking a cup of warm milk before going to bed tonight. Milk contains tryptophan, which is often attributed to the sleepy feeling you get after a turkey dinner.

So, what’s good about it? After the 35% alcohol content, you can enjoy the benefits of  枸杞子(Gouji)，仙茅(Rhizome)，and 当归(Chinese Angelica), among many other common Chinese medicinal herbs…

Actually, Chinese spirits is a major industry which includes the international favorite: Mao Tai. The basis for so many kinds of Chinese alcohol comes from the domestically ubiquitous “Bai Jiu”, which is basically rice wine. (The Japanese variety is called Shōchū, while the Korean version is called Soju.) When you’ve tried Baijiu, you’ll never forget it.

The taste can do different things to different people, but most westerners tend to vomit at the smell of it. This might be the reason why these medicinal versions have become so popular. The taste is more like cough syrup than pungent dirtiness. However, the company which makes Jing Jiu (see image above), must be doing something right because they had revenues of over 4.9 billion RMB (over $790 million) in 2011 alone.[*]

Some like a Brandy after dinner while others prefer a Grappa; but no matter what your poison, alcohol is still one of the most common relics of any culture’s past.

Green Tea To-Go

All of my guests who have visited China notice the basics: delicious food, hospital people, beautiful landscapes, questionable hygiene, and ancient customs. One aspect of Chinese culture I often get asked about is tea culture. One specific part of the tea culture has been left untouched on AL.ME for years: Green Tea To-Go! So today I finally weigh in on an ancient custom that has been born through thousands of years of medical practice and remains a cornerstone in modern Chinese culture.

“Green Tea To-Go” is what I call the green tea containers which are ubiquitous among everyday Chinese (usually men). Bus drivers, office workers, teachers, and government officials can be seen carrying this simple hot beverage container with a strainer all day long. With all the benefits of (green) tea, it isn’t hard to grasp why they are so tea-crazy.  It has also become more obvious why they are so excited all the time. (Psst, they are high on green tea!)

For some, it is an addiction. They drink it at every breakfast, with lunch, and in the afternoon; They top off the bottle with steaming hot water every chance they get. It’s not hard to understand why… hot water is available everywhere, 24/7. You can top it off at your office, in the bus station, in the markets, and even in the police station! My recent visit to a PSB in Guangzhou proved that you can keep getting your fix practically anywhere! And when you’re surrounded by it, you’ll have difficulty shaking the habit. (i.e.:Dunkin’ Donuts lovers in much of the USA know what I’m talking about…)

Throughout my years in China I have also chosen to replace most of my coffee drinking with tea. I’m a product of my environment, for better or worse. Green Tea To-Go probably does more good than harm and should be considered as a reasonable way to cut-back on other drinking habits that we might develop over time.

Get some loose tea and a portable bottle, and then try it! Tell me how it goes