指定産品滿$300(折扣後)即免運費！(只限香港*)
Steamer Legend．Ming Sang Steel Bamboo Receptacle
Master Lui Ming is the founder of Ming Sang Steel Bamboo Receptacle. With his skillful hands and creativity, he combined bamboo and steel arts to invent the bamboo steamer with steel rims that was popular in the 1970s and 1980s, creating a steamer legend. The 94-year-old Master Lui returns to his workshop in Tuen Mun to make steamers every day after having his morning tea at dim sum restaurant. He has been doing this for decades and never gets tired. This is the true "craftsman spirit".
Invention of Steel and Bamboo Steamer
Master Lui came to Hong Kong to make a living in 1962 and started his own steamer factory in the 1970s. His products were appreciated by many restaurants. However, he did not rest on his laurels. He found that traditional bamboo steamers were not durable and tended to crack after being used for a period of time. He then invented a steamer that mixed with steel and bamboo, and the top and bottom of the steamer were also connected with steel. The durable and easy-to-clean steel rim steamer became very popular. Ming Sang Steel and Bamboo steamers were very popular in the 1970s and 1980s. In addition to accounting for 80% of the market in Hong Kong, it is also exported to other places.
Left is a Ming Sang's bamboo steel rim steamer, and the right is an ordinary steamer.
Master Lui now make steamers of different sizes, including a mini steamer customized by a catering group (used to steam small abalone siu mai).
Later, many mainland factories replicated the design of Ming Sang's steel and bamboo steamers. The quality varied, and the prices were cheap. Ming Sang's business was greatly affected, so it had to sell other kitchenware (steel pots, flour sifters, etc.) in order to survive the crisis.
Master Lui enthusiastically introduced us to the tools for making a steamer, including the hardware tools used to bend the bamboo and trim the width of the bamboo slices. He proudly said, "I designed all these machines myself, and the hardware is not a problem for me."
Master Lui demonstrated the process of making a steamer to us. With his flexible and powerful hands and neat movements, he completed a steamer in more than ten minutes. It was hard to imagine that he was in his nineties.
Steamer making process.
Bamboo art has unlimited creativity
In addition to focusing on making steamers, Master Lui also applies his bamboo skills to other bamboo products, and occasionally makes special bamboo utensils customized for customers. "Previously, Wong Tai Sin Temple wanted to digitize the bamboo sticks and put a chip in the bamboo stick, so I helped them cut it and insert it. Another restaurant wanted to use a steamer as a lampshade, but the rest of the decoration was very cumbersome, so they finally came to me. He talked endlessly about these bamboo products, with a look of pride on his face.
Steamer-shaped lampshade made by Master Lu.
Craftsmanship has no successor
A pair of skillful hands supported his family, and he founded the "Ming SangSteel and Bamboo Receptacle" from scratch. This alone created a steamer legend. When asked about the inheritance of craftsmanship, Master Lui lamented: "There is no future in this industry now. Handmade products cannot be sold at a high price. No one is willing to make them, and my son has no interest in learning." His daughter-in-law, Ms. Wong, also said that she could not learn either.
Wrinkled but still nimble hands
Master Lui still works tirelessly making steamers every day. He only does one thing in his life, and his enthusiasm is admirable. "The more I do, the more energetic I become. I make a steamer every day when I have time. Sitting at home and watching TV will make you feel uninspired. Therefore, I will keep doing it." Master Lui said to us with a smile.
The "Ming Sang Steel Bamboo Receptacle" located in Yick Yuen Tsuen, Tuen Mun, is also facing the problem of land resumption and reconstruction.
Thanks to Mr. Lui Ming and Mrs. Wong Yim Wah for arranging this visit and filming.
Written by: Tony Sze
Source from the Hong Kong Landscape Photography Association (referred to as the Landscape Photography Association) - Steamer Legend. Ming Sang Steel Bamboo Receptacle