"Moonlight shines on the ground hall". Every time the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, the moonlight pours, and many Hong Kong citizens begin to echo this childhood Cantonese nursery rhyme in their minds. The Mid-Autumn Festival, a traditional festival, combines the history, humanities, customs, cultures and living habits of various places: the full moon in the south of the Yangtze River, the boating on the cliff in western Gansu and the dragon dancing in Hong Kong, all of which have unique and rich local characteristics. But the tacit understanding is nothing more than moon cakes, the leading role in the festival. Delicate and soft golden legs of eggs, sweet and delicious rose bean paste and fragrant fresh meat moon cakes … The golden moon cakes not only satisfy the taste buds of diners in different regions, but also arouse people’s expectation for a happy reunion.
During the Mid-Autumn Festival in Hong Kong, in addition to experiencing the rigorous pursuit of traditional mooncake crafts, Hong Kong people’s inheritance and innovation of tradition is also an endless story to tell before the flowers bloom under the moon, which is worth talking about.
Precision work and fine grinding: tracing back to tradition
On the table of Mid-Autumn Festival, there must be several kinds of moon cakes to relieve the amorous feelings. The moon cake market in Hong Kong is full of flowers, but traditional moon cakes still occupy an important position in the hearts of diners.
Egg yolk moon cakes with red and white lotus seed paste are the signature dishes for Hong Kong moon cakes to enter China. Xiang lotus seeds from Hunan are soaked in water to remove the lotus coat, and the full and oily duck egg yolk is selected, and the burnt yellow cake crust is crisp and firm. It takes nearly three months for a box of double yellow and white lotus seed cakes to be served: sacred worship, long cooking of lotus seed paste, fine hand-wrapped cakes and moderate roasting. After a series of complicated processes, the fragrant and delicious double yellow and white lotus seed cake was officially unveiled.
In a cross lane in Yuen Long, Hong Kong, Datong Old Bakery, the oldest Tang bakery in the region, has been engaged in mooncake business for more than 70 years. Making moon cakes is of almost sacred traditional significance to neighborhood cake shops that build their homes from scratch and serve their neighbors.
Xie Yuyuan, the second generation descendant of the cake shop, said that the quality of moon cakes depends on the weather, location and people. Weather refers to the texture of lotus seeds, sugar water and flour in that year; Location, look at the temperature of baked moon cakes; Human harmony refers to the strength and feel of pastry chefs wrapping moon cakes.
For authentic moon cakes with egg yolk and lotus seed paste, the Hong Kong master who strives for perfection has strict numerical requirements: the standard double yellow lotus seed has a net weight of 5 taels, including 3 halves of lotus seed paste, 7 yuan of egg yolk and 8 yuan of cake crust. Sensually speaking, the crust of moon cakes is syrup crust, which is thin, soft and uniform in thickness; The stuffing is pure lotus seed paste, which tastes greasy and emits lotus seed fragrance; The two salted egg yolks are neatly centered, and the golden yellow is dotted with red oil. This double-yellow lotus seed cake is divided into four parts, each of which can see the contrast between egg yolk and lotus seed paste, and the product is crisp and fragrant with a blend of salt and sweetness.
In order to pray for such a production, the moon cake season in most traditional cake shops begins with the "opening ceremony". The seemingly "superstitious" process of worshipping God, giving out red envelopes and praying for blessings has continued to this day, and it has been endowed with profound and sincere details, pinning the pastry craftsmen’s reliance on their families and their longing for the Mid-Autumn Festival.
"In the past, every family could only buy a box of moon cakes. After eating them, there would be no more. Everyone should worship God before eating them. It’s not the same now, but after enjoying the moon, the established habit of using moon cakes to entertain has not changed and will not change. " Xie Yuyuan said.
Taste innovation: the fusion of gourmet culture
If Shuang Huang Lian Rong represents the influence of traditional Cantonese cakes on diners, then the "ice-skinned moon cakes" and "flowing milk yellow moon cakes" that have emerged in recent years are wrapped in the concept of innovation and integration of Cantonese cuisine. Every year since July and August of the Gregorian calendar, slightly famous restaurants and cake shops begin the annual ordering period of moon cakes, and also try to promote them at exhibitions to attract diners. From traditional lotus seed paste and five kernels to cold and refreshing ice-covered moon cakes, from Hong Kong-style milk tea and sausages to French black truffles and foie gras, there are all kinds of flavors.
The annual Hong Kong Food Expo held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center this year is also a big gathering of moon cakes. Many citizens choose to purchase moon cake coupons from merchants in the food Expo in advance, taking advantage of low prices and discounts to take the lead. Sister Xie, a citizen who lives in Kowloon Bay, began to queue up from the first day of the exhibition and bought two boxes of ice sheets and a box of milky yellow moon cakes at a price of nearly 30% off the market price.
Sister Xie said that although the company will distribute mooncake coupons to employees over the years, most of them are traditional "double yellow and white lotus seed paste", while children at home prefer fruity ice skin with refreshing taste and low sugar but not greasy, and it is better to give friends milky yellow mooncakes with bright color and small shape, so order them early in case there is not much left near the Mid-Autumn Festival.
The innovation of mooncakes in Hong Kong has also attracted a large number of subscribers from the Mainland. As soon as the Mid-Autumn Festival arrives, "purchasing Hong Kong moon cakes" has become a hot topic in the circle of friends, making Hong Kong’s "new school" moon cakes a lot of supporters. Ms. Guo, from Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, said that she came to Hong Kong to buy moon cakes. "The family members of moon cakes made in Hong Kong feel at ease, give them away with more face, and the price is affordable, and there are not so many messy packaging."
There are traditional moon cakes that are rigorous and refined, and there are also new tastes that integrate Chinese and Western inclusive innovation. This land is as enthusiastic and persistent in keeping watch and innovation for tradition as the pursuit of food.
Festive gifts: the warmth in moon cakes
The Mid-Autumn Festival begins with enjoying the moon and ends with eating cakes, but what runs through it is the happy reunion of every family and the warmth to the neighborhood and society. Therefore, in the face of the over-consumption of moon cakes and the plight of elderly people living alone, there are many stories about helping the weak and helping the poor during the Mid-Autumn Festival, which have become a routine ceremony for a large group of volunteers in Hong Kong.
The Guangzhou Association of Hong Kong, which was established at the end of August 2015, was put into operation. The first project put into service was to give moon cakes to elderly people living alone in housing estates, and it was designated as a traditional project over the years. At present, it has benefited more than 1,000 people who are widowed and sick. Similar actions, around the Mid-Autumn Festival every year, there are over 100 volunteer groups to take care of the homeless and the vulnerable people living alone, and to convey the warmth of the festival with moon cakes.
So where did these moon cakes come from?
Similar to the situation in the Mainland, the number of mooncakes discarded in Hong Kong is staggering every year. Even though mooncakes have been refined and miniaturized, there is still a problem of over-production. According to the survey of "Good Food Morality" in Hong Kong, in 2016, every household in Hong Kong had 1.85 mooncakes left in the Mid-Autumn Festival, and there were 1.03 million surplus mooncakes in Hong Kong. Donating surplus moon cakes to people in need has become a ceremony for everyone to contribute during the Mid-Autumn Festival in recent years.
The charity "Pity Canteen" in Hong Kong is one of the "conveyor belts" of love moon cakes. According to reports, this year is the fourth year that Xicanteen has cooperated with Swire Real Estate, and set up a recycling point in the community every year to collect the surplus moon cakes and gift certificates from the public. Around the Mid-Autumn Festival in 2016, the Xi canteen collected more than 10,000 moon cakes and gave them to about 6,000 beneficiaries, with an average of 1 to 2 per person.
Song Qi, who participated in the 2016 "Pity Canteen" moon cake recycling program, told reporters that there are moon cake recycling points designated by charities or food banks in many communities in Hong Kong. As long as the individually packaged moon cakes are placed in boxes to ensure that the moon cakes are not expired and unpolluted, they can be donated to the recycling groups.
"Most of the mooncakes distributed by the company are traditional mooncakes, which are left over every year. The mooncake recycling plan is specially aimed at these traditional mooncakes, which just solves the food surplus and balances the needs of people in need in society, thus achieving multiple goals. Nowadays, even if you can’t finish eating moon cakes, you don’t have to waste food with guilt during the festival. " Mr. Song believes that this is another kind of blessing on the night of reunion, in order to "grow old with us" and "everyone is reunited with the moon".
The moonlight shines on the ground hall. The image behind the wonderful nursery rhymes, in addition to the crisp and golden delicious moon cakes, is also passed down from generation to generation. (Sebrina)
