Shellfish-Free Chinese Takeout

Overview

Shellfish can appear directly as shrimp, crab, scallop, and lobster, but it can also appear indirectly through oyster sauce, dried shrimp, XO sauce, shrimp paste, and shared woks. This page is a practical restaurant-ordering guide. It helps identify common risk points, lower-risk starting points, and useful questions to ask before ordering.

Better starting points

• Plain rice
• Simple chicken, beef, tofu, or vegetable dishes without oyster sauce
• Sauce on the side only if ingredients are known
• Steamed vegetables without oyster sauce
• Restaurants that can avoid shared woks and utensils

What to watch for

• Shrimp, crab, lobster, scallop
• Oyster sauce
• XO sauce
• Dried shrimp
• Shrimp paste
• Seafood soup base
• Shared fryers, steamers, and woks

Questions to ask

• Does this contain shrimp, crab, lobster, oyster sauce, dried shrimp, or XO sauce?
• Is oyster sauce used in the brown sauce?
• Can the dish be cooked in a clean pan?
• Are seafood items cooked in the same wok?

Useful phrase

我对贝类过敏。请不要放虾、蟹、龙虾、蚝油、虾米或XO酱。

A phrase can help communication, but it cannot verify ingredients, labels, shared equipment, or kitchen practice by itself.

Ordering strategy

Keep the order simple. Prefer dishes with fewer sauces and fewer mixed ingredients. Mention the restriction before asking for dish recommendations. When the restriction is medically important, ask about preparation, not only ingredients.

Sources and related guides

• FDA: Food Allergies
• FDA: Food allergen labeling guidance