Snow skin mooncake, snowy mooncake, ice skin mooncake or crystal mooncake is a Chinese food eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Snow skin mooncakes are a non-baked mooncake originating from Hong Kong. snow skin mooncake is also found in Macau, Mainland China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Although snow skin mooncakes are usually made and sold by bakeries, these mooncakes are not baked in ovens like traditional cakes. Further, unlike traditional mooncakes which are served at room temperature, snow skin mooncakes are typically eaten cold.
Snow skin mooncakes gradually become popular in the 1970s. At that time the snow skin mooncake was also called a “crystal mooncake” (水晶月饼).[7] The name “Bing Pei Yuet Beng” (冰皮月饼) appeared in advertisements in the early 1980s. Snow skin mooncake skin is made by freezing glutinous rice. [9] Snow skin mooncakes are similar to mochi ice cream and Yukimi Daifuku, both of which have mochi rice husks and need to be frozen. Snow skin mooncakes are usually white and can be served chilled. Therefore, it is called “snow skin”. However, mooncakes may have other colors due to the added flavor of the crust. For example, adding chocolate can make the crust brown. The green rind is made from the juice of the aromatic Pandanus amaryllifolius, a unique flavor that is popular in Southeast Asia.
Snow skin mooncakes are not baked in the oven, so they cannot kill bacteria at high temperatures. Factories need to remain sterile and many manufacturers are encouraged to comply with the HACCP food safety scheme. Mooncakes are also kept cold in storage, transportation, and retail stores to prevent bacterial growth. Before the 2000s, snow skin mooncakes were difficult to find in mainland China because they needed to be refrigerated on the move from the farm to the table. [12] Read more…
