HELLO! You are holding in your hands the very first edition of Yum Cha zine! Maybe you scooped it at our ragin’ DJ set, maybe we hand-delivered it to you with love, or maybe you just stumbled upon it at the Bushwick alley we hang out in every Wednesday. However you got here, we’re glad you picked this up and hope you enjoy the lil treats inside. Yum Cha literally translates to “drink tea” in Cantonese, but it really means hanging out and gabbing over dim sum. We both grew up with fond dim sum memories, and even pushed a mimosa cart wearing matching braids together at the biggest dim sum restaurant in NYC (shoutout Jing Fong), so once we decided to start a radio show on the wonderfully weird KPISS.FM, it made perfect sense - what else would we call our hour of chit-chat and tasty sonic treats? This zine is the pocket-sized version of our show - a little slice of everything we’re obsessed with right now. We’ll take you to Jing Fong and teach you how to Yum Cha like a pro, introduce you to creative people that inspire us, and rave about music/books/food. We’ve got hot takes and bad jokes and big hearts and short attention spans. So dig in!
LOVE,
THE REAL YUM CHA
Dim Sum is an amazing Chinese brunch tapas (I guess?) and literally means “to touch the heart”. But it can be intimidating - here’s a guide to the dishes you’ve gotta get. Fair warning - it’s tough out here for vegans and folks with allergies.
5 6 4 2
1 3 8
7
1
Cha Siew Bao
5 Fried Turnip Cakes
2
Fung Tzao
Fun 6 Cheong Shrimp (or beef) enveloped in delicate
3 4
Crowd-pleasing sweet minced roast pork in a fluffy steamed bread bun.
Chicken feet in a sweet and savory bean sauce. The texture is like a rich, fatty rotisserie chicken skin. Be adventurous, you gotta try it once!
Siu Mai
Steamed pork and shrimp, a staple of every dim sum table.
Har Gao
Juicy steamed shrimp in a delicate rice dumpling wrapper.
Starchy, sweet, filling, and veggiefriendly.
rice noodle rolls in light sweet soy sauce.
Taat 7 Dan Flaky, sweet little clouds of egg custard. Lan 8 Gai Chinese broccoli cooked in oyster sauce, because Brooke said we HAD to put a vegetable on here.
TUNEAGE It wouldn’t be Yum Cha without a mix! Here’s the songs that are soundtracking summer seventeen for us. JAMS ABOUND.
First Hate - The One Did You See - J HUS Early - Juls ft. Maleek Berry Someone That You Love - Jarreau Vandal Woman - Harry Styles California Dreamin’ - Amason Show Me - Black Party ft. Kari Faux Madiba Riddim - Drake Suddenly - Drugdealer Roller Skates - Nick Hakim Anita - Smino Guilty - Lady Wray Social Sites - Cosmo Pyke Body and Soul - William Onyeabor Friendship (Is a Small Boat In a Storm) - Chicano Batman Tyrant - Kali Uchis + Jorja Smith Undercover - Kehlani Unpretty - TLC The Charade - D’Angelo Cleva - Erykah Badu Balance in All - Anna Wise One More Time, Please - Jay Som Angelina - Pinegrove I’m on Fire - Chromatics I’m on Fire - Bruce Springsteen Dear One - Jim James Anybody Else - Phil Cook Long Hot Summer Night - Jimi Hendrix Looking For You - Nino Ferrer Iceblink Luck - Cocteau Twins
LALA’S LIBRARY
The category is: modern SE Asian lit. Shoutout to Kinokuniya, which always has the best selection of Asian writers and cute desk toys. CRAZY RICH ASIANS by Kevin Kwan This novel and soon-to-be-hit-movie (directed by and starring ACTUAL Asian people, a miracle for Hollywood) is a hilarious inside look at the decadent lifestyles of rich as fuck Singaporeans. ABC (American Born Chinese) girlfriend of Singapore’s most eligible bachelor navigates high society and you bet your ass there is DUH RA MA. Private jets! Intimidating matriarchs! Food, food, food! Pettiness at levels us mortals can only imagine! What’s not to love?
THE ART OF CHARLIE CHAN HOCK CHYE by Sonny Liew This graphic novel tells the story of Singapore’s greatest comics artist Charlie Chan, whose work spans genres of illustration and decades of Singaporean politics from colonialism to independence and one-party rule, all from a critical leftist perspective. But it’s not dry at all - Charlie and the narrator Sonny Liew are funny, endearing, and endlessly optimistic in the power of comics. Pro tip: don’t Google it until you’re done cause I got hit with a little spoiler.
THE KL NOIR SERIES published by Fixi Novo This four-volume anthology of disturbing short stories is set in the darkest corners of Kuala Lumpur and features some of its most nefarious characters, from crooked cops to ass-exploding vigilantes. The authors span Malaysia’s ethnic diversity and write in the Malaysian creole of English, Malay, Cantonese, Hokkien - it’s deeply, distinctively Malayisian pulp fiction with a depraved sense of humor. Trigger warning: everything.
HERE COME THE DOGS by Omar Musa I can’t recommend this one enough. Omar Musa is a MalaysianAustralian slam poet, and his debut novel beautifully weaves poetry and prose in a compelling coming-of-age story told from the perspective of three young men for whom the most stable part of their identity is breathing hip-hop and dealing with bullshit. They navigate their identities as immigrants and people of color in Australia with a keen understanding of the challenges they face that borders on nihilistic.
BEAUTY IS A WOUND by Eka Kurniawan This is nothing short of an epic, blending folklore and the supernatural with an incisive look at the darkest parts of Indonesian colonialism and the fight for independence. Centered on the tragic story of the most beautiful prostitue in all Halimunda (a fictional port town on the coast of Indonesia), the most compelling characters are all women fighting to seize agency as they face unspeakable tragedy and violence. Vividly imagined and at times darkly funny, it’s a disturbing page-turner.
LEMME UPGRADE YA We hereby declare these things OVER and these things MUCH BETTER.
NAH
yAH
Oh, you have a lot of energy and like things that spin? They’re called rollerblades. Get hip. See you at the rink, nerds. (Prospect Park, 4 real)
North West, there’s a new celeb baby in town. We love you, but our Instagram Explore feeds are all Luna Legend pictures these days.
2017 has been chokered to death. Stop. Bandanna Time.
It’s way too hot for makeup so we’re not here for that Kardashian Kontour. No makeup life.
ASK YUM CHA
Send your questions to dumplingwhisperers@gmail.com!
SAY HELLO:
Sinjun Stro Sinjun Strom is a visual artist, photgrapher, fashion and set designer, #stylegoals, and all around bad bitch. Get to know her in our Q&A and check out her work at sinjun-strom.com: YUM CHA: Hi Sinjun! We’re obsessed with your recent project Hot Mamma. Can you tell us more about it? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: You work in so many creative fields - we first met on set of a music video shoot. What different mediums and practices do you engage with, and do you find that these ways of viewing the world bleed into each other? How does that affect your work? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: How has your community at SVA influenced your work? Any other sick artists we should check out that you wanna namedrop? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: Personally, I think you are style goals as fuck. What’s your personal aesthetic, what inspires you, and where do you get the rad pieces you’re rocking? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: What are some challenges you’ve faced as a young woman artist of color? Any words of advice? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: What are some projects you’ve been working on recently? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: Do you have any big plans coming up for bringing together the different mediums you work in? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: Hi Sinjun! We’re obsessed with your recent project Hot Mamma. Can you tell us more about it? SINJUN STROM: xxxx
om YUM CHA: Hi Sinjun! We’re obsessed with your recent project Hot Mamma. Can you tell us more about it? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: You work in so many creative fields - we first met on set of a music video shoot. What different mediums and practices do you engage with, and do you find that these ways of viewing the world bleed into each other? How does that affect your work? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: How has your community at SVA influenced your work? Any other sick artists we should check out that you wanna namedrop? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: Personally, I think you are style goals as fuck. What’s your personal aesthetic, what inspires you, and where do you get the rad pieces you’re rocking? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: What are some challenges you’ve faced as a young woman artist of color? Any words of advice? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: What are some projects you’ve been working on recently? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: Do you have any big plans coming up for bringing together the different mediums you work in? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: Hi Sinjun! We’re obsessed with your recent project Hot Mamma. Can you tell us more about it? SINJUN STROM: xxxx YUM CHA: You work in so many creative fields - we first met on set of a music video shoot. What different mediums and practices do you engage with, and do you find that these ways of viewing the world bleed into each other? How does that affect your work? SINJUN STROM: xxxx
YUM CHA DOES BALTImORE
ROLL ONE UP
Summer rolls are cheap, easy and fun to make, healthy and veggie/vegan friendly, and will get you lots of instagram likes. Growing up in NoVA - the epicenter of East Coast Vietnamese dankness - these are everywhere in the summer. Make classic rolls with the recipe below, or experiment with adding some refreshing flavors. INGREDIENTS: THE BASICS 1 package circular rice papers 1 package thin vermicelli noodles Thai basil Chives and/or spring onions Shrimp (cooked, chilled, butterflied) Bean sprouts Cilantro Mint leaves Lettuce Dip 1: Hoisin sauce & chopped peanuts Dip 2: Fish sauce, lots of sugar, & cilantro INGREDIENTS: THE FUN STUFF Very thinly sliced boiled pork Pickled carrot & daikon radish Mango Cucumber Avocado
HOW TO DO IT 1. Prepare vermicelli according to package, and julienne all the veggies and fruits you’ll be using, making sure to remove stems and spines. Make sure you have a flat space to roll these bad boys up. 2. Fill a pie dish with an inch of warm water, and soak a rice paper until pliable but not soggy (about a minute). 3. Carefully lay the rice paper out, and put three shrimp halves down in the middle of the circle, orange side up. Put your leaves down next, then add a small handful of vermicelli and whatever else you want in your roll. 4. Flip the bottom flap up to cover the filling, roll tightly once, and then close in the sides and roll to finish. Add a garlic chive before your final roll for extra IG likes. 6. Dip, eat, and repeat!
LISTEN WEEKLY 10-11PM ET STREAMING ON KPISS.FM XO BORK + LALA