The Oyster pail originally, later informally a Chinese food box or Chinese takeout container is a folded, waxed or plastic coated, paperboard container, traditionally with a handle made of solid wire, most commonly currently in use by American Chinese cuisine establishments primarily throughout the United States, to package hot or cold take-out food. They are not commonly used outside of America, not in Canada or Mexico, though they are quite common in some European countries like Germany and England. They are rarely seen in China; where they are found, they are usually not used by restaurants serving Chinese cuisine.
"Microwave-safe" oyster pails (without the metal handle, which can cause arcing in a microwave) are also available.[1]
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The container has the advantage of being inexpensive, durable and fairly leakproof. The top usually includes a tab so that they are self-closing. The folded construction also allows for some escape of steam from hot food. If care is used to remove the flaps, and the sides are unfolded, the container can also double as a somewhat flimsy plate. However it is also possible to eat out of the container, a feat that the long reach of chopsticks makes possible. It is primarily used in American Chinese cuisine - it is practically unknown even in Canadian Chinese cuisine, though it has started to spread in some European countries.[2]
The paperboard oyster pail was developed in the early 20th century at a time when fresh oysters were more popular, more plentiful, and less expensive than they are at present. Since shucking oysters (removing the raw meat from the shell) takes some amount of skill and can be difficult and dangerous, it was common to have the oyster seller open the oysters so they could be taken home for use in cooked dishes. The oyster pail provided an inexpensive and sanitary way to accomplish this. In the early 20th century oyster pails were also used to hold honey.[3] However, in the mid-20th century, overfishing (and the subsequent rise in price) of oysters left manufacturers with a significant number of unsold oyster pails.
However, after World War II, there was a huge increase in the United States in interest in prepared foods that could be purchased from restaurants and heated or finished at home. Chinese food proved to be a popular choice, since it was tasty, unusual, fairly inexpensive and traveled well. The oyster pail was quickly adopted for "Chinese take-out." The paperboard pails were to some extent self-insulating and could be used for a wide variety of foods: cooked rice, moist dishes such as egg foo young and sauced dishes – though generally unsuitable for hot highly liquid dishes such as soups. Today, the majority of oyster pails are manufactured by the Fold-Pak company.
In the United States oyster pails are now available in standard sizes and can also serve as self-measuring containers, so that many take-out foods are sold in pints and quarts and packed into pails of the appropriate size.