Food for Thought #6 - Flake and Dim Sims

Flake is the short name for a shark fillet. You can get it grilled or fried, and I’ve had it both ways. It’s kind of a white fish, and I wouldn’t say the flavor is strong, but it is good. Not too expensive, you can find it at local fish and chipperies around Melbourne. Another interesting fish dish was Barramundi, which is just another white fish from the area. I really enjoyed it, and would say that I probably slightly prefer it to flake, though I had it at a nicer restaurant, and it isn’t as fun as saying I ate shark.

Dim sims. I’ve been trying for weeks to figure out how to convey what a dim sim is to Americans. It’s kind of like a pork meatball surrounded by the same coating on an eggroll. But that isn’t a fair comparison. They come either fried or steamed, though anyone worth their salt would say that the fried ones taste better (not surprisingly). I’ve had several of them, both steamed and fried, from a number of places, and I enjoy them, but not as much as Aussies. I’ve met more than one Aussie who said they weren’t sure if they could give up dim sims to live overseas for a while.

One friend actually went to Kenya for a while, and upon returning, insisted on having dim sims on the way home from the airport – it was the only thing she missed. In fact, she had tried to get family to figure out how to ship some to her in Africa while she was gone.

The next time you meet an Aussie living internationally, recognize the great sacrifice they have made – the dim sim.