Why do asians use chopsticks?

I find it far easier to eat noodles with chop sticks than with the fork/spoon/knife option and food is eaten out of bowls that you pick up with one hand while using your chopsticks in the other hand, this makes using chopsticks much easier.

Note:- not all asians use chopsticks.
Thais often eat with a fork and a spoon, this has something to do with an king at some stage banning chop sticks
Malays traditionally eat with their fingers one handed only (right hand from memory) the other hand is used for going to the bathroom so is considered dirty.

Many Asians consider the use of a knife at the table to be barbaric. It's a cultural thing.

If you notice, Asian food (properly prepared) is cut in pieces that are not necessary for cutting. Personally I find the use of chopsticks an elegant way of eating. Noting that I still use a knife and fork most of the time because many of the foods we prepare are not chopstick friendly.

In Vietnam, they teach me that Vietnamese made chopsticks in the form of bird's beaks. Two parallel sticks can be used to pick up food in the similar way as beaks are used. Remember that, grain food stuff play an more important role than meat and rice and other grains is the favorite food of birds. People imitate what birds do.

Another reason is the philosophy. Chopsticks symbolizes yin and yang. People want to make housewares that can show that philosophical meaning.

In Vietnamese and in other Asian cultures, cuisine is an art. And art must be "concise": small but meaningful. Kings usually had dishes which were in small size. Smallness means sophistication. That is why food must be cut into pieces.

The move of hands when you use chopsticks looks more beautiful than when you use other food utensils. More time people learn to use something, more skillfulness they get. As a result, more artful people become, more regards they get. Therefore, they choose to use something which can show their elegance. That is chopsticks.

However, Kings and Madarins could eat tens of dishes every meal. And they usually were not skinny. Only poor people who ate only about 3 dishes every meal were thin.

Nowadays, people still prefer to eat more vegetable than meat, butter and milk. Therefore, they are still short. But I think this kind of diet is more healthy.

Asians (Chinese) consider the use of a knife at the table barbaric. This came from Confucius: "The honorable and upright man keeps well away from both the slaughterhouse and the kitchen. And he allows no knives on his table."

Confucius also set the standard that food must be cut into small bite size pieces before serving the dish. This further enhanced the popularity of chopsticks.

BTW, did you know that the fork wasn't used that often until the 1500s? Prior to that, it was all spoon and knife. Imagine eating a piece of steak with just a spoon and a knife.

Its a cultural thing and chopsticks are often use to pickup food.

Note asian usually don't eat steak so they don't need a knife, however they mostly eat rice with servings such as stir fry. Hence the use of chopsticks

Just think of a way as to how you can eat rice from a banana leaf with a chopstick. I am an Indian and I don't use a chopstick. I use my god given fingers to eat. Definitely, I wash my hands before eating.

asians chopsticks

made out of wood. in Japan most of them believe in Buddhism or Shintoism. They believe strongly on nature so they use sticks (usualy wood) to eat their food.