So, I got this idea in my head the other day. Dim sum. But painted. With watercolors. Seemed like a chill way to spend an afternoon, you know? Capture those tasty little things on paper.
First, I had to dig out my watercolor stuff. It’s not fancy. Just a basic set I got a while back, probably meant for kids, if I’m being honest. And the paper? Let’s just say it wasn’t the archival quality type. More like, ‘let’s hope this doesn’t buckle too much’ paper. Spread out some old newspapers too, because I always, always make a mess.
My Battle with the Bamboo Steamer Contents
I decided to start with what I thought would be easy. Big mistake.
-
Har Gow (those shrimp dumplings): Oh boy. Getting that see-through, delicate wrapper look? My brush just made these greyish blobs. I tried lifting color, adding more water, less water. They ended up looking more like sad, deflated ghosts than yummy dumplings. Seriously frustrating.
-
Siu Mai (pork and shrimp dumplings): Okay, these are more solid, more yellow. Should be simpler, I thought. I mixed up a yellow, tried to get that little orange dot of roe on top. The yellow turned muddy real quick. And the orange dot bled into a weird brownish smudge. They looked a bit ill, to be honest.
-
Char Siu Bao (BBQ pork buns): I figured the fluffy white bun might be forgiving. How wrong can one person be? Trying to get the texture, the subtle shadows on a white bun without making it look like a dirty snowball… well, it mostly looked like a dirty snowball. My respect for people who can actually paint food went up about a thousand percent.
The whole table ended up covered in splotches of paint. Water everywhere. My hands were stained with colors that had no business being on a dim sum palette. And the paintings? Let’s just say they weren’t going to make anyone hungry. More like, ‘what IS that?’
It’s funny, isn’t it? You see these amazing food paintings online, and they look so effortless. So perfect. And then you try it, and reality hits you like a wet fish. My reality was a pile of soggy paper and a distinct feeling of ‘why did I think this was a good idea?’. I could have just GONE for dim sum. Way less effort, way more delicious.
This whole art thing, sometimes it really tests your patience. Or maybe it just reminds you that some things are harder than they look. A lot harder. I spent a good hour just trying to get a single dumpling to not look like it had been run over by a small car. And for what? A lumpy, off-color representation.
But then, after staring at my sad attempts, I kind of had to laugh. It was a disaster, sure. But it was MY disaster. And I did learn one thing: next time I want dim sum, I’m going to a restaurant. Painting them is a whole other level of skill I clearly haven’t unlocked yet. Maybe I’ll stick to painting rocks. Rocks are more forgiving.