Who Invented the Dim Sim?

The Question Many Ask

We’ve all grabbed a dimmie at the footy or from a fish and chip shop, but have you ever stopped and wondered: who actually invented the dim sim? It’s one of those questions that seems simple, but the answer is tied up with migration, family stories, and a bit of Aussie ingenuity.

Meet William Chen Wing Young

The name you need to know is William Chen Wing Young, a Chinese-Australian businessman in Melbourne in the 1940s. At his restaurant, Wing Lee, he noticed Australians were curious about Chinese food, especially the little pork-and-prawn dumplings known as siu mai. Trouble was, they were fiddly, small, and not exactly built for mass appeal. Wing Young saw an opportunity.

Adapting Siu Mai for Australia

He took the siu mai idea and turned it into something heartier: bigger, pepperier, with thicker skins and a filling that mixed pork, beef, cabbage, and whatever meat was available during the war years (mutton, veal, even chicken at times). Unlike dainty yum cha dumplings, these were built tough: they could be steamed, fried, frozen, and shipped by the thousands.

The Fish and Chip Shop Moment

Here’s where the story really gets interesting. According to family legend, William’s son Tom dropped some of these dim sims off at a fish and chip shop in Mordialloc. The owner, Joe, decided to throw them in the deep fryer, and just like that, the fried dimmie was born. It was an instant hit. From there, dim sims went from Chinatown curiosity to a staple of suburban Australia.

A Family and Cultural Legacy

William’s daughter, Elizabeth Chong, later became one of Australia’s best-known cooking teachers and TV food presenters. She’s spent years telling the story of her father’s invention, pointing out that while he didn’t exactly “invent” dumplings, he made dim sims what they are today, a truly Australian food.

The original business, Wing Lee, didn’t last forever. After William retired, it was taken over by bigger brands like Marathon and Chien Wah. But the dim sim lived on, finding its way into every fish and chip shop, supermarket freezer, and sporting ground in Victoria.

An Aussie Icon

So, who invented the dim sim? The credit goes to William Chen Wing Young, a man who turned a traditional Chinese dumpling into something uniquely Australian. The next time you bite into a dimmie, whether steamed or fried, you’re tasting a little piece of history that’s as Melbourne as it gets.