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Chinese choose chopsticks as their tableware rather than a knife and fork since
Chinese people, under the cultural guidance of Confucianism, consider a knife
and fork to represent a sort of violence, and to resemble cold weapons. However,
chopsticks reflect gentleness and benevolence, the main moral teachings of Confucianism.
Chinese food seems to taste better when eaten with chopsticks which are the special utensil that the Chinese use to dine with. It is usually an awkward first experience for foreigners to use chopsticks with their meal. Fortunately, learning to eat with chopsticks is not difficult.
The secret to using chopsticks is to hold one chopstick in place while pivoting the other one to pick up individual portions. How to position the chopsticks is the secret you have to learn. First, place the first chopstick so that the thicker part rests at the base of your thumb and the thinner part rests on the lower side of your middle fingertip. Then, bring your thumb forward so that the stick will be firmly trapped in place. At least two or three inches of chopstick of the thinner end should extend beyond your fingertip. Next, position the other chopstick so that it is held against the side of your index finger by the end of your thumb. Check whether the ends of the chopsticks are even. If not, then tap the thinner parts on the plate to make them even. Ok, now you are going to practice. Just place a little pressure on the upper chopstick, the one against your index finger, to make it pivot on the index finger while keeping the bottom chopstick stationary. Isn't it easy?
After a little practice, you can use them to enjoy any meal including Chinese food. Certainly in the first few attempts, you have to take care.
Using chopsticks to eat rice is a problem for most foreigners. Generally the
tip to eating rice is to bring one's rice bowl close to one's mouth and quickly
scoop the rice into your mouth with one's chopsticks. Since this is difficult
for foreigners, simply lift portions of rice to the mouth from the bowl held
in the other hand - this is perfectly acceptable.
There are superstitions associated with chopsticks too. If you find an uneven
pair at your table setting, it means you are going to miss a boat, plane or
train. Dropping chopsticks will inevitably bring bad luck. Crossed chopsticks
are, however, permissible in a dim sum restaurant. The waiter will cross them
to show that your bill has been settled, or you can do the same to show the
waiter that you have finished and are ready to pay the bill.
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About Chinese Chopsticks
Chopsticks play an important role in Chinese food culture. Chopsticks are called "Kuaizi" in
Chinese and were called "Zhu" in ancient times (see the characters
above). Chinese people have been using kuaizi as one of the main tableware
for more than 3,000 years.
It was recorded in Liji (The Book of Rites) that chopsticks were used in the Shang Dynasty (1600 BC - 1100 BC). It was mentioned in Shiji (the Chinese history book) by Sima Qian (about 145 BC) that Zhou, the last king of the Shang Dynasty (around 1100 BC), used ivory chopsticks. Experts believe the history of wood or bamboo chopsticks can be dated to about 1,000 years earlier than ivory chopsticks. Bronze chopsticks were invented in the Western Zhou Dynasty (1100 BC - 771 BC). Lacquer chopsticks from the Western Han (206 BC - 24 AD) were discovered in Mawangdui, China. Gold and silver chopsticks became popular in the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907). It was believed that silver chopsticks could detect poisons in food.
Chopsticks can be classified into five groups based on the materials used to make them, i.e., wood, metal, bone, stone and compound chopsticks. Bamboo and wood chopsticks are the most popular ones used in Chinese homes.
There are a few things to avoid when using chopsticks. Chinese people usually don't beat their bowls while eating, since the behavior used to be practiced by beggars. Also don't insert chopsticks in a bowl upright because it is a custom exclusively used in sacrifice.
If you are really interested in chopsticks, you may want to visit the Kuaizi Museum in Shanghai. The museum collected over 1,000 pairs of chopsticks. The oldest one was from the Tang Dynasty.
