Show it before you order. Hand the card over first and ask staff to pass it to the chef. A spoken request is easy to lose in a busy kitchen.
Point at a dish and ask if it can be made. Ask about one dish at a time. If the answer is a shrug, choose something simpler.
Prefer plain cooking when unsure. Plain steamed rice, steamed (清蒸) or blanched (白灼) dishes and simple stir-fries with salt carry fewer hidden sauces.
Check when the food arrives. Ask whether this is the dish made for your card. Sauces are often added at the last moment.
Carry your own medication. The card is a way to explain, not a guarantee. Follow your doctor's plan for reactions.
What should I know before using it?
Checked ingredients
Where alcohol hides in Chinese cooking
The card names cooking wine in Chinese. Recipes differ by kitchen, which is why it asks the cook to check what they actually use.
Shaoxing wine, the usual Chinese cooking wine, is fermented from glutinous rice, water and a wheat-based yeast. Source
Chinese kitchens often 'velvet' meat before stir-frying: a coating of cornstarch, often with egg white, sometimes with Shaoxing wine and soy sauce. Source
Card questions
What does the halal card say in Chinese?
我只吃清真食品 (I eat halal food only), then: no pork or pork products, including lard, ham, Chinese sausage, bacon, char siu and pork-bone stock, and no cooking wine, beer, rice wine or any other alcohol in the food. It also asks for a clean wok and fresh oil.
What does 清真 (qingzhen) mean?
清真 is the Chinese word for halal, and you will see it on restaurant signs. The card is not a certificate: it asks the kitchen to leave out pork and alcohol and to cook your dish separately.
Why does it mention cooking wine and fermented tofu?
Chinese cooking wine goes into marinades, braises and the coating on stir-fried meat, and fermented tofu is often made with rice wine. The card names them in Chinese so the cook can leave them out.
Does the card ask how the meat was slaughtered?
No. It covers pork and alcohol in your food. If you need halal meat, choose a 清真 restaurant or vegetable dishes.
Can I add allergies or ask for no chilli?
Yes. Add any allergy, and under Taste choose Not spicy, Mildly spicy only or No coriander. Everything goes onto one card.
Is anything I choose sent to your server?
No. The card and the saved image are made in your browser. If you unlock the card, Stripe handles the payment and we only check that it was paid; there is no account.
This card helps you explain your needs; it does not make any dish safe. Kitchens, sauces and brands vary, and staff may misunderstand. Keep your own medication with you and follow your doctor's advice. See the disclaimer.