In this post, I am going to teach you how to use Chopsticks. It is a very useful skill to have whether you are eating at your local kimbap restaurant in Korea or eating sushi in a Japanese restaurant in midtown Manhattan.
The size, shape, and material of chopsticks vary from country to country. Before I came to Korea, I had never seen metal chopsticks; now I eat with them almost everyday. Chopsticks in Korea tend to be metal and short to medium length with a flat rectangular cross section, whereas Chinese chopsticks tend to be made of a hard plastic and have a round or square cross section. Japanese chopsticks tend to be made of wood and have a pointed end. I have never eaten with a real pair of Japanese chopsticks, but I find that eating with Korean chopsticks are much easier than eating with Chinese chopsticks. Below are some photographs of the different chopstick styles that can be found across Asia.
Image Source: Wikipedia (rom top to bottom: Plastic chopsticks from Taiwan, porcelain chopsticks from mainland China, bamboo chopsticks from Tibet, palmwood chopsticks from Indonesia (Vietnamese style), stainless flat chopsticks from Korea (plus a matching spoon), a Japanese couple's set (two pairs), Japanese child's chopsticks, and disposable "waribashi" (in wrapper))
Directions for accurate chopstick usage:
1. Pick up the first chopstick with your middle finger and thumb.
2. Grip the second chopstick with your index finger.
3. Check to make sure you have a steady grip with your chopsticks by checking to make sure that the chopsticks do not move or slide around in your hand when you attempt to pick up food.
4. Open and close the chopsticks. Your chopsticks should not make an ‘X’ when you open and close them, but rather, they should lightly touch each other at the ends.
5. Pick up your food at a 45 degree angle or an angle that is most comfortable to you.
You may be wondering, why do Korean people use metal chopsticks? Well, lucky for you, you can discover the reasons and history behind Korean chopsticks and see a little chopstick action in this video made by Arirang, a Korean news company.
I should probably mention that this is not the way that I use chopsticks at all, and that there is not one “correct” way to use them, though Koreans may look at you funny if you do not use them in what they see to be the regular way. However, not only do chopsticks differ in different countries, but ways of using them do too. I figure that as long as I can get food from the plate to my mouth without any of it falling off, I’m using them just fine.