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Editors Note: This article was contributed by frequent poster, Heiney.
A mooncake...or maybe a Hockey puck ?
If hockey had been invented in China, no doubt they would have used a moon cake as the first hockey puck!
Certainly people with a distaste for this delicacy from the Middle Kingdom would say such a thing.
Sure enough, every year around this time people are divided into two camps.Friend or Foe. Supporter or Detractor. Lover or Hater.
A round little object the same shape and almost the same size as a hockey puck can turn brother against brother. Husband against wife. Neighbor against neighbor. If it's not the love or hate of moon cakes, it's an argument about which kind is best that can create a simple gathering amongst friends and families into something Jimmy Carter or Kofi Annan would need to mediate. How can something so small and seemingly innocent become so polarizing? So, for those of you new to the Middle Kingdom, and for those who've got more than a few pages of entry/exit stamps in your passports, I give you the One-Stop Guide to the Moon Cake.
First, is there some Moon Cake Legend?
You betcha!If you recall on 27 October 2007, Chinalaunched a rocket carrying a lunar rover, named Chang’e 1 to explore the surface of the moon.Chang’e is the mythical Moon goddess of Immortality who ended up living on the moon, thus the Moon Cake Festival. There are at least three different stories about Chang'e and one of the stories has about six variations. There is also a different story about moon cakes that takes place during the Yuan Dynasty (1280AD -1368 AD).Ming revolutionaries used moon cakes to pass secret messages to each other as a way overthrow the Mongolian rulers.Some messages were baked inside the moon cakes.Other messages were actually imprinted on the surface of four moon cakes that would be sent together.Each of the four moon cakes would then be cut into four separate pieces.The resulting 16 pieces would be rearranged to reveal a message.Once the moon cakes were eaten, the message was gone!
In regards to the moon cakes themselves, there are four main traditional fillings used in moon cakes.They are:
Lotus seed paste (莲蓉, lían róng)
Sweet bean paste (豆沙, dòu shā)
Jujube paste (枣泥, zǎo ní)
Five kernel (五仁, wǔ rén)
Other fillings include meat (but don't ask what kind of meat), egg yolk, and what I can only describe as a custard type filling.In recent years new and different types of fillings are being used to both success and failure.These new fillings include, strawberry, kiwi, pineapple, carrot, tomato, chocolate, coffee, ginseng, rose, green tea, and even XO Brandy!
The crust of the moon cakes can be either chewy, flaky, or tender.The chewy crust is more of a cake type crust that is golden or reddish brown and quite shiny.The flaky crust is somewhat similar to what we would know as filo dough.The tender crust is more closely associated with a pie crust.Typically lard is used to make the crust, but you can find some varieties made with vegetable oil.So, just because the filling may be safe for vegetarians to eat, the crust may not be vegetarian safe. The crust also usually has a design on the top.Designs vary and can have the shape of a moon, an animal, a flower, the name of the filling, or just nothing in particular. Each region has its own style of moon cakes.The types of traditional moon cakes include Beijing-style, Cantonese-style, Chaoshan-style, Ningbo-style, Suzhou-style, and Yunnan-style.The most commonly eaten style on the mainland is the Cantonese-style moon cake.
Even more modern types of moon cakes will have a jelly type “crust.”Some specialty shops are selling moon cakes with “crusts” of white, dark, and milk chocolate.Häagen-Dazs even introduced the first ice-cream moon cake! Additionally, a lot of moon cake manufacturers have discovered that not only can the packaging be something to put the moon cakes in, but the box can serve a purpose after the moon cakes have been eaten.Some of the boxes are tins with fancy designs on them to store things in, other more elaborate packages are actually wooden boxes with drawers to hold jewelry or other small nick-knacks. Needless to say, all this is driving the price of moon cakes through the roof!One user here on the site recently quipped that moon cakes have become just another form of earning some “guanxi.”
If you're from the U.S., the closest thing to the traditional style moon cake would be a Christmas fruitcake.People either love them or hate them.Fruitcakes keep for years and often people who don't like them will likely pass them along to others. So, what do people have to say about moon cakes?Here's some quotes I saved from an old website no longer in existence:
“I accept them gratefully and then pass them on to people I don’t like, but I mark them first. You never know, maybe 5 or 10 years on I will get one of my boxes back. “
“I happen to like mooncakes. However, I also happen to like fruit cake. “
“Moon cakes are nothing more than red envelopes disguised as snack food. Have you seen the boxes that come with solid gold Buddha’s or diamond necklaces inside?But, I have to admit, I do like the ice cream ones. I will probably buy them for my staff this year.”
“Last year I made the mistake of eating one. The next day was horror.”
“I have to say that I’ve tasted 3 different moon cakes and all three went down well. One was a bit on the fruity sweet side with jujubee, but the two others were very tasty together with a cup of black coffee. That they completely mess up your feeling of hunger for 5 hours is another case.
Add your moon cake comments, either positive or negative, to the following thread: http://www.dalianxpat.com/component/option,com_fireboard/Itemid,474/func,view/catid,30/id,24203/#24203
Nice article, I had them the day I landed in China...it was Autumn festival at that time back in 2004, and the mooncakes were the first thing I tasted... I'm afraid I haven't had the guts to try another one even after 4 years...good luck to the others!
I tried my first moon cake in 2005. It was so bad, that the next one I dared to try only this year. But this time it was really delicious - not too oily, fresh and a little sweet. With coffee filling. Nicely packed and expensive, I guess.
I liked it.
Played in Europe for several hundred years, field hockey is a predecessor of ice hockey, which sprang up in Great Britain during the 1820s. The game blossomed in the British protectorate of Canada in the second half of the nineteenth century. In Canada where long, cold winters are a certainty, ice hockey soon became the national game. Hockey also became popular in the northern parts of the United States during the same time period. At first, amateurs dominated hockey and the rules were ever changing. The first professional league was organized in 1904 and called the International Hockey League but it only lasted three years and in 1917, the National Hockey League (NHL) was created. Today, hockey is played by all ages, both men and women, throughout North America and many parts of the world. In the early years, c. 1860-1870s, a rubber ball was the object used in hockey, a block of wood was sometimes used, in 1875 students sliced a rubber ball in half to make a puck and others used a rubber ball sliced in half. In any case, the first recorded use of a flat disk was in Montreal in March 1875. Early pucks were made by gluing two pieces of rubber together (sometimes from recycled tires) Oh, we are talking about moon cakes
At least you have your own article now! Congratulations!
This may be suitable in the Chinese Customs Section.
I never knew some people would have arguments over this food. Very interesting indeed but I am not fully convinced yet.
Hey there, Cookie. I guess HYPERBOLE isn't something you're familiar with. But you call yourself a philosopher so maybe you are familiar with the term.
I still remember when i was a children,my mother always buy 4 cakes for my family on the mid-autumn day each year and then only one left for me. Now i can buy many delicious mooncakes for myself but i am far from home.Taste is the same feeling is different. I think the meaning of mooncake means the whole family get together. That is the only meaning for me^.^
At least you have your own article now! Congratulations!
This may be suitable in the Chinese Customs Section.
I never knew some people would have arguments over this food. Very interesting indeed but I am not fully convinced yet.
Hey there, Cookie. I guess HYPERBOLE isn't something you're familiar with. But you call yourself a philosopher so maybe you are familiar with the term.
Have a mooncake on me.
And who are you? excuse the thread is for comments in this article, and not for the commentators. This one need no HYPERBOLE.
I do not call myself a Philosopher, you did. Maybe you read my profile. You are also a Philosopher by nature. Do you like a cookie? I thought you said mooncake!!! You are as curious as a cat, Meowwwwawawaw!!! I bet you are a newbie or a returnee in disguised.
I personally don't like mooncakes... but I grew up with it, which is a tradition, and become a symbol of good wish of family reunion. Don't be so afraid to try, read more about it, as there are sooo many different kinds out there, maybe you will found yours one day!
abhijeet
jim
