Beyond delicacies, Asian culinary heritage encompasses the technique, methods of eating, etiquettes to set the tables, rituals and superstitions associated with foods, and the art of turning unexplored ingredients into masterpieces in the kitchen. If you segregate Asian cuisines by countries and dive deeper into studying them, you will be surprised by the mammoth of the informational web.
Take chopsticks for example. If you have watched C-dramas, K-dramas, and J-dramas, you must have been fascinated by how easily people hold these two sticks between their fingers and effortlessly pick up food, even the tiniest pieces in the bowls. While these sticks look similar in all three cultures, their designs are quite different (your 4K or 8K HD television didn’t catch that).
The interconnected webs of cultural and culinary heritage make the study of chopsticks in all three countries quite interesting. Not just their designs but the superstitions associated with them will leave you baffled.
Chinese Chopsticks
If you ask for Chinese chopsticks, you will witness that they are rectangular (not circular with round edges). Usually made from unfinished wood, they flaunt a blunt end with a longer and thicker structure compared to Korean and Japanese tools. Traditionally, bamboo is used to make these because it is heat resistant, inexpensive, available in plenty, and has no odour or taste.
Chinese chopsticks are also made from other kinds of wood, including sandalwood, cedar, pine, and teak. A coating of lacquer makes them waterproof and prevents spoilage while offering a better grip without increasing the chances of bruises and cuts. With the advancement in technology, plastic and porcelain materials are used to make Chinese chopsticks.
A fun superstition associated with them is if you observe a pair of uneven chopsticks on your table, you are most likely to miss your plane, train, bus, or boat. Another fun fact is elites used metal or jade chopsticks to identify if their meals had toxins. Metal chopsticks also indicated that a person using them was prosperous.
Korean Chopsticks
Chopsticks were already famous in India but with the growing popularity of K-dramas and Korean foods, you will find cutlery in many households, especially where people cook ramen and other delicacies in their kitchen. If you are a K-drama fan, you must have observed that these are made of shiny silver metal.
Silver chopsticks also help to identify if the meal is toxic. Korean sticks are flat and come engraved, which is tricky if you work with wood. In Korea, common folks use silver chopsticks while the rich use the ones made with gold.
If you are not Korean, you will find it difficult to work with metal chopsticks as the food will keep slipping away. A funny superstition that Koreans believe is if someone holds the chopsticks close to the tip, they will remain unmarried for a long time depending on the distance between the fingers and the tip.
Japanese Chopsticks
Japanese chopsticks boast tapered structures with narrow ends and thick backs, the kinds you will mostly find in cutleries that come with takeout packets. Like Chinese chopsticks, these are made of bamboo but the fun fact is Japanese use them to eat Miso soup and desserts. Chefs use them to taste and produce local delicacies.
They are easier to hold and work with, especially when it comes to picking food. These are shorter than other kinds of Asian chopsticks. Since the Japanese are fans of consuming fish, these chopsticks are also helpful in removing bones. In older times when men in the house used to go to war, families used to take out their chopsticks and sit on the table as a sign of missing their presence.