12 Healthy Dim Sum Dishes  (Is Dim Sum Healthy?) 

Dim Sum is a cantonese cuisine that features a huge variety of dumplings and exciting dishes that are similar to tapas as they are meant to be eaten with small portions and in high variety. 

A question that I always get from my clients is “what can I eat at Dim Sum in order for me to stick to my fitness or weight loss goals?”

My answer is to always find the lowest carb and highest protein options since it’s very easy to overeat on the carbs when you’re at a typical Dim Sum joint. 

So, is Dim Sum Healthy?

Dim Sum is a style of traditional Cantonese cuisine that focuses on a variety of dishes such as dumplings, rice noodles, meats, and stir fried vegetables. Many of the dishes consist mainly of carbs and fats so it can be hard to fit into a balanced diet. However, by looking into the nutrition labels of the certain foods you can find, it is totally possible to eat Dim Sum while staying healthy.

There is a wide variety of options at Dim Sum and, as one of my favorite foods ever, I’ve done some extensive research on what the best options are regarding both flavor and nutritious value.

You’d be surprised to see what kind of options there are that can definitely fit into a healthy diet. 

Let’s take a look at these 12 foods and dive into my ranking of the healthiest and most delicious dishes out there. 

12. Vegetable Dumpling Chi Chau Style

Vegetable dumplings are a great way to eat some Dim Sum without too much guilt as it’s essentially just vegetables wrapped in a flour dough.

What’s great about these dumplings is that they are not steamed which reduces the calories compared to your typical pan fried or deep fried dumplings. 

Vegetable dumplings usually contain a lot of greens such as spinach, cabbage, and green onions so it’s a safer bet than eating a typical pork or beef dumpling which can be loaded with fats. 

Let’s take a look at it’s nutrition facts and see what goes inside a typical Vegetable Dumpling.

For every 5 grams of fat, there are 21 grams of carbs and 2 grams of protein.

Not bad compared to the other fatty options that you can find in a typical Dim Sum dish. 

Our tip here is to eat the dumplings and pair it with either a veggie dish or a higher protein dish like the ones listed in our number 1 or number 2 spot.

Protein is the key to dieting and a dish like Vegetable Dumplings could definitely use some. 

11. Steamed Shrimp Rice Roll 

In terms of flavor, the Steamed Shrimp Rice Roll has to be one of my favorite dishes in all of Dim Sum cuisine.

It’s a chewy rice paper that surrounds pieces of steamed shrimp that is covered in a sweet and savory soy sauce. 

If you’ve had this dish before, then you know how delicious it can be and how easy it is to overeat this dish.

I remember as a child, this was the very first thing I’ve ever eaten at a Dim Sum restaurant when my parents took me.

It hold a special place in my heart through all the memories of friends and family I have eaten Dim Sum with. 

Enough with the sentimental stuff.

How about we take a look at the calories and what goes inside a typical Steamed Shrimp Rice Roll. 

For every 1 gram of fat, there are 12 grams of carbs and 2 grams of protein.

The problem with this dish, nutritionally, is that, once again, there is a lack of protein with higher amounts of carbs.

It’s essentially 80 percent rice roll and 20 percent shrimp so you don’t really get too much protein in this dish. 

Our tip here is the same as the last.

Make sure you order your greens when you go out to your favorite Dim Sum joint and pair this with one of the higher protein meals you can find.

This is a delicious dish but moderation might be required if you’re sticking to your fitness goals. 

10. Sweet Tofu Pudding 

This is a dish that my mom loves and is the first thing she looks for when we go out to a Dim Sum restaurant.

She loves eating vegan foods so this is her thing. 

Sweet Tofu Pudding is essentially a Tofu stew that has an awesome sweet flavor that comes from a mixture of honey and syrup.

What’s great about this dish is they serve the sugar mixture on the side so you can choose how sweet your individual bowl of Tofu Pudding can be. 

If you don’t like your Pudding too sweet, then add half the amount you usually order.

This is definitely key for this dish as it is so easy to overeat on the other higher carb and sugar dishes such as the char siu bao or the yellow custard buns. 

Carbs aren’t really the enemy when you’re dieting. It’s really the act of overeating carbs that get people fat and bloated.

If you understand how many carbs you need to eat on a daily basis, you’ll start to see that carbs are your friends and help you get through the day. 

With that being said, I believe that carbs are the easiest macronutrient to eat so they’re so delicious and addictive.

Just be aware of how many carbs you’re eating and stick to the foods we’ve done our research on! 

Let’s take a look at the nutrition facts and see what goes inside a typical Sweet Tofu Pudding dish. 

There is no fat in this dish and the calories come from the 12 grams of carbs and 4 grams of protein you can find.

This is not bad at all considering you can customize your bowl to have more or less sugar in your pudding. 

Our tip here is to just be mindful of your carbs.

Find out how many grams of carbs you need to eat in a day and stick that amount.

Overeating on the carbs is why you feel bloated and fat at the end of your day. 

9. Beancurd With Shrimp & Pork 

If you love chewy, savory dishes that have seafood and pork in there, then this is definitely the dish for you.

I was first introduced to Beancurd when I was in college and this was definitely a part of Chinese culture that I’m new to eating. 

There’s a ton of flavor when it comes to the dish but what makes it really shine is the texture of the dish.

It’s so unexpected from what you think beans can do as it tastes similar to tofu skins except it’s stuffed with pork and minced shrimp. 

Let’s take a look at the calories and what goes into a typical Beancurd With Shrimp & Pork dish. 

For every 18 grams of fat, there is gram of carbs and 18 grams of protein.

The good thing about this dish is that it offers 18 grams of protein per serving.

However, a 1:1 ratio of fats and protein is not the most optimal for weight loss and keeping lean. 

Fats are the least satiating macronutrient so it’s also very easy to overeat these.

They’re also the macronutrient with the highest calorie count for every gram served.

There are 4 calories per 1 gram of carb or protein. However, there are 9 calories per gram of fat served.

This means that fats and proteins should never be at a 1:1 ratio as fats should be way lower and should be eaten more conservatively. 

Our tip for this dish is to make sure to eat it in moderation. It’s delicious and has protein so it’s still a viable choice; however, it can be easy to overeat! 

8. Eggplant With Shrimp 

I always talk about which cuisine takes the crown for who does eggplant the best and, I have to say, Chinese and Cantonese chefs are hands down the winner.

There’s nothing quite like the way they cook and season the eggplant dish: especially the one we’re going to be talking about today. 

In this traditional Dim Sum dish, they somehow take a piece of shrimp and attach it to the eggplant.

The shrimp provides a great bite and chew to it while the eggplant has a nice creamy texture that compliments the shrimp so well. 

Let’s take a look at its nutrition facts and see what goes inside a typical Dim Sum eggplant dish.

For every 10 grams of fat, there are no carbs and 4 grams of protein.

This is pretty amazing as it contains no carbs which is super rare when eating Dim Sum. 

It’s a little high on the fats but, for no carbs at all, this is a dish that can provide protein while allowing you to enjoy some other dishes that might be rich in carbs.

Our tip here is to use this dish as a tool to keep your carbs low. 

7. Shrimp Dumpling (Har Gow) 

This is the iconic dish that probably makes Dim Sum so popular.

Har Gow is a super simple dish as it is simply a shrimp wrapped in some rice paper that is eaten with soy sauce and goes well with Chinese mustard that tastes similar to wasabi. 

I’m actually not the biggest fan of these and actually prefer shumai when comparing the two dishes.

I know that’s not popular opinion but it’s what I truly feel.

Shumai is not on this list, however, due to its high fat and carb counts so we have to do with Har Gow. 

If we’re speaking in terms of health and what’s better for your fitness goals, you definitely gotta go with Har Gow since it's low in both fats and carbs.

Let’s take a look at what goes inside a typical Har Gow dish and its calorie content. 

For every 2 grams of fat, there are 12 grams of carbs and 10 grams of protein.

This is a really balanced dish as there are low fat, decent carbs and lots of protein which comes from the shrimp.

It’s simple and is hard to overeat which makes it a great option if you’re trying to be healthy when eating Dim Sum. 

6. Steamed Meatballs

There’s something special about the way Asian cuisine does meatballs.

It’s not pan fried like italian cuisine and is usually steamed and much chewier than your typical meatball.

Not to hate on the Italians, there is definitely a time and place for those meatballs as well.

When we’re speaking in terms of health, however, steaming your meats is a much better alternative as you can avoid rendering the fat in the meatballs and adding extra fat calories from the oil that drips off. 

The great thing about these meatballs is the fact that they still have a ton of great flavor and texture to it and come at a relatively low cost for calories.

Let’s take a look at the nutrition facts and what goes into a typical Dim Sum Meatball dish. 

For every 12 grams of fat, there are 8 grams of carbs and 8 grams of protein.

This is a little high on the fats but, for a meatball dish, this is a huge win.

The great part about this dish is that it contains protein with a small amount of carbs.

It’s also very satiating and is hard to even eat a single serving of this dish. Our tip here is to just eat it in moderation. 

5. Steamed Pork Ribs

If you like Ribs that fall off the bone but comes in tiny miniature sizes, then this is definitely the dish for you.

There’s a sweet savory element to this dish and is one of the best ways I’ve ever eaten pork ribs.

Like many of the other meats in Asian cooking, these ribs are steamed and marinated in a thick sauce that is made from Shaoxing wine, sesame oi, white pepper, salt, and sugar. 

It makes for an extremely flavorful dish and is great for getting your much needed protein in.

Let’s take a look at its nutrition facts and what goes into a typical Steamed Pork Ribs Dish. 

For every 15 grams of fat, there are 6 grams of carbs and 14 grams of protein.

Once again, another great dish that carries higher fats and protein. The thing about this dish is that it is very filling and comes in a very small portion. 

The secret to dieting is keeping yourself full and satisfied which these tiny Pork Ribs do a great job of.

It’s really hard to overeat this dish and three to four pieces will probably be enough for you.

The fats can add up so, just like our other tips on this list, make sure to eat this in moderation. 

4. Stir Fried Yu Choy 

It’s time to get those greens in and there is no better way to do that with a Chinese stir fried Yu Choy dish.

This is one of the cheapest dishes available when ordering Dim Sum so make sure to order a lot of it!

Stir Fried Yu Choy is a very simple dish and is made by stir frying the veggies in chicken broth, garlic, and vegetable oil.

It sounds simple but it has so much amazing flavor that really brightens up the veggies. 

Vegetables are great for dieting as the fiber keeps you full without having to eat too much.

You will be in a deficit of calories so hunger is natural when getting down to the low bodyfat numbers.

Satiation is key when shedding fat which is the perfect job for a green veggie dish like Stir Fried Yu Choy. 

Let’s take a look at the nutrition facts and what goes into a typical Stir Fried Yu Choy dish. 

For every 4 grams of fat, there are 1 gram of carbs and 2 grams of protein.

These are amazing macros as this goes for a whole plate of these veggies.

You’re essentially getting a lot of food for the prices of 80 calories which is something you can only get from fresh green veggies. 

3. Stuffed Green Pepper With Shrimp 

It’s time to get to our top three which starts off with Stuffed Green Peppers With Shrimp.

This is essentially the same as the eggplant dish except made with green peppers.

The difference, however, is the size of the shrimp they usually put onto the green peppers.

Eggplant is much smaller than a typical pepper so there is more protein added to the peppers per slice. 

This dish is great because it adds another green veggie to shrimp which is high in protein.

It’s amazing as this combination really adds a crunch factor that you don’t get from the eggplant dish.

Let’s take a look at its calorie count and what goes into a typical Green Pepper With Shrimp dish. 

For every 26 grams of fats, there are 2 grams of carbs and 25 grams of protein.

This is great as it is one of the highest protein options that Dim Sum has to offer.

It’s high on the fats once again, but for this much protein, it has to be one of the staple dishes if your fitness goals need to be met. 

2. Xiao Long Bao 

Soup dumplings are one of the best dishes that Dim Sum has to offer.

There are so many ways to eat this dish and it can be so exciting to try this dish out if it’s your first time having it. 

The traditional way to eat the dumpling is to put it on your spoon, bite out the top of it so the soup doesn’t pour out from the side, add the soy sauce and vinegar mixture into the dumpling, and take a bite from there.

It’s very difficult to make these so having them at your local Dim Sum spot is the best for you. 

This takes the number 2 spot of the whole list as it is actually a well balanced dish that is not really high in anything which makes it a dish that you can splurge on.

Let’s take a look at the calorie count and what goes inside a typical Xiao Long Bao dish. 

For every 2 grams of fat, there are 3 grams of carbs and 5 grams of protein.

This hits all the great signs of a diet food that will really get you to where you want to be.

High protein, low carb and low fat.

Xiao Long Bao is arguably the best dumpling dish you can get out there as hardly any carbs come due to its thin layer of dough.  

Our tip here is to eat as much of this dish as you can! 

1. Steamed Beef Tripe

Taking our number one spot has to be the beef tripe dish that is very underrated in my opinion.

It’s a pretty complex dish as it adds tripe into a chicken broth and is then cooked with rice wine, white pepper, ginger, scallions, salt, sugar, and peanut oil. 

It’s delicious and is a very unique dish that contains a ton of protein per serving.

Let’s take a look at its nutrition facts and what goes into a typical Beef Tripe dish. 

For every 6 grams of fat, there are 0 grams of carbs and 20 grams of protein.

This is comparable to something like fish or chicken and is unbelievable for the amount of flavor you get from this dish.

It’s chewy and hearty and great for balancing out all the fatty foods that Dim Sum tends to offer. 

If you haven’t ordered this before, then I highly recommend that you add it to your usual dishes when you get Dim Sum.

It won’t disappoint and it’ll help you stick with your fitness goals. 

There It Is! 

12 Dim Sum dishes that are both delicious and great for dieting.

There is some sacrifice involved with this list, I understand.

However, if you’re someone that is dedicated to seeing those abs or a flat stomach, this is definitely the go to items that you should try out.

Make sure to check out our other blogs to see other healthier Asian foods out there and tips on how you can stay lean and mean. 

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