aelle, around the world.

Chopsticks are utensils used in pairs in the far east to eat food – but not just that.
In the kitchen, very long chopsticks are used as well, to mix stir fries or flip cuts of meat off a grill.

Chinese chopsticks usually have a round cross section (or square at one side, going to round) and a blunt end.
Japanese chopsticks, on the other hand, have a thin pointed end.
Korean chopsticks are made of metal and are sometimes flat!

In all these places, knives are traditionally absent from the dinner table. Food comes pre-cut in chopstick-grabable portions, or you’ll need to tear it apart with them (omelettes or tofu, for example)
And contrary to a (less and less) frequent misconception in the West, chopsticks are not intended to push your food in your mouth. You actually grab your food and bring it from bowl to mouth, Yes, it is possible to eat slippery noodles or tiny blueberries or crumbly tofu with chopsticks.

Kids can use « training » chopsticks, or tie them together at one end with a little flexible plastic contraption. Thus turned into tongues, they are easier to use. However, even kindergarteners are usually capable of using them the adult way!

Chopstick length varies by country, but also by gender. In Japan, chopstick stores will measure the length of your palm to fit your chopsticks perfectly.

Disposable chopsticks are widely used. They are becoming an increasing environmental problem – not so much through their production, as they are made from bamboo which grows like a weed, but because of the amount of garbage generated. It has become popular in some places to carry your own chopsticks with you, along with your reusable grocery bag and your reusable mug.

Chopstick etiquette: as a foreigner, you are expected to screw up – but you can still try and avoid the worst offenses.

Obviously, don’t play with your chopsticks, just like you wouldn’t play with cutlery. Don’t drum with them, point at people or food with them, use them to pull bowls towards you or use them to tie your hair…

It’s also rude to spear your food like you would with a fork, although some people do it for particularly tricky items.

For hygiene reasons, avoid using your own chopsticks in the communal dish. There are usually serving chopsticks, spoons or tongs dedicated to this. Otherwise, you can also choose to use the other end of your own pair (the end you don’t suck on) to transfer food from the main dish to your plate. Of course, this varies on the meal and the environment. You can be more relaxed for a a hope meal with family or friends.

Do not leave your chopsticks stuck vertically in a rice bowl, as this resembles a funeral rite. Similarly, in Japan, do not pass food from chopstick to chopstick – put it on a plate. This is often a reminder of Buddhist funeral rites: during a burial ceremony, the deceased is cremated and the remaining bones are passed around among the mourning crowd using chopsticks. So this would be comparable to your culturally clueless friend bringing a funeral crown as a thank you for having him over for dinner. Awkward.

You will most likely get congratulated for your chopstick skills. After a few years of eating in Asia, it gets annoying (yes, I haven’t starved to death yet, so evidently I can use chopsticks). Especially once you realize that the more of a mess you make, the more congratulations you receive. Then again this will happen for anything and everything, from your language skills (the crappier the more compliment-worthy apparently) to your ability at eating spicy food or icky stuff . Never mind that the same icky stuff is served in your home country too. No one believes me when I explain my family eats oysters for Christmas dinner.