5 Steps to Becoming a Chopsticks Pro

Going out for a meal with family and friends is a time to relax, socialise and enjoy good food. Chung Ying plays host to these memorable meals everyday of the week, experiencing new people trying new food and spending quality time together.

A meal out should never be compromised by stress, and Chung Ying also plays host to some of the most embarrassing chopstick mishaps this side of the western hemisphere.

Reaching for the chopsticks is a brave move for some, putting a lot of pressure on yourself to confidently perform without spending more then 5 minutes desperately trying to clasp a spring roll.

We’ve seen a few unorthodox alternatives to using chopsticks in a traditional way, some opting to frantically shovel their food with the chopsticks grasped tightly together or, use a single chopstick as a skewer to stab their dinner.

For those that simply can’t bite the bullet and pick up a knife and fork, we’ve put together a simple tutorial that will make you so skilled with chopsticks that you’ll be  catching flies out of thin air in no time.

Step 1. Give in to the social pressures of using chopsticks and pick them up confidently, possibly with a degrading comment towards a fork-user.

Step 2. Rest one chopstick in the crook between your thumb and index finger and steady it with your ring finger.

Step 3. Hold the second chopstick like a pencil (between your index finger, middle finger and thumb).

Step 4. Now move the top chopstick (held like a pencil) while always keeping the bottom chopstick stationary.

Step 5. The bottom chopstick is always held firmly as you grasp your food and laugh at those without your skills.

Now you can eat with chopsticks you can really embrace “chopstick arrogance” at your table and appear ultra-cultural, even dropping the factoid that the Chinese don’t like using knives and forks as they are believed to be weapons and impress your friends and family even further. Of course eating with chopsticks isn’t that important…but it is. 

5 Things You Didn't Know About Chinese Food

A lot of people eat Chinese food purely for taste, and we can’t blame them, Chinese food offers a huge spectrum of flavours with everything from mild, spicy and sweet dishes.

When you attend a good restaurant like Chung Ying you want more then just silent scoffing; embracing the culture and trying new flavours is a great way to enhance your experience.

Knowing a few facts about the food you are eating is a great conversation starter, especially useful when breaking the ice on a first date, avoiding difficult questions during a business lunch or deterring conversations away from “responsibility” with your in-laws.

In order to save you from the perils of unexpected awkwardness, we’ve put together 5 things you didn’t know about Chinese food…

1. Sharing food from the same plate and putting food in other people’s bowls is a common practice in Chinese culture.
2. In Chinese culture different foods have different meanings, for example noodles represent a long life so cutting them up with your knife and fork is considered bad luck, so make sure you eat them whole getting maximum sauce down yourself.
3. Chinese people choose to use chopsticks as knives and forks are considered weapons in Chinese culture.
4. The fortune cookie is more common in America then it is China.
5. The idea for ice-cream stemmed from Italian explorer Marco Polo discovering “milk ice” when travelling in China.

All you have to do now is book a table at Chung Ying and impress your guests with your vast knowledge of Chinese culture!