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Speaking of western desserts in Asia, what do you think of the Japanese western desserts? I've heard some people raving about them. The Japanese have a very similar food ethic to the French, so I'm not surprised if they excel at it.
Speaking of western desserts in Asia, what do you think of the Japanese western desserts? I've heard some people raving about them. The Japanese have a very similar food ethic to the French, so I'm not surprised if they excel at it.
only from the outside. Things like macarons are almost unbearably sweet, and Japanese desserts are never that sweet.
East Asians do not like extremely sweet desserts. For example, chocolate cakes, brownies, macarons are considered to contain way too much sugar to their liking. A small piece makes them sick of it. On the other hand, many Japanese and Chinese (southern) love spongy/sticky food.
I was in japan last month and we were tasting green tea flavoured mochi cakes. Most white people find them to be weird, but green tea flavour is almost the most popular in east Asia. Things like cheese cake are considered way to heavy and sugary, and most of the western cakes are not liked by Asian due to being too sweet.
only from the outside. Things like macarons are almost unbearably sweet, and Japanese desserts are never that sweet.
East Asians do not like extremely sweet desserts. For example, chocolate cakes, brownies, macarons are considered to contain way too much sugar to their liking. A small piece makes them sick of it. On the other hand, many Japanese and Chinese (southern) love spongy/sticky food.
I was in japan last month and we were tasting green tea flavoured mochi cakes. Most white people find them to be weird, but green tea flavour is almost the most popular in east Asia. Things like cheese cake are considered way to heavy and sugary, and most of the western cakes are not liked by Asian due to being too sweet.
I meant ethic in terms of their pursuit of perfection, their fastidiousness, demand for the best ingredients, emphasise on cooking techniques, presentations.
Maybe not traditionally, but they've developed a taste for it. I had some Japanese cookies, they were as sweet as any ones here.
I've developed a taste for green tea/matcha myself. Yes it's very popular in Japan. I like mochi too, especially mochi ice cream (yukimi daifuku).
There's a bubble tea place/bakery here that does some fantastic sponge cakes/swiss rolls, macarons, cheesecakes, chocolate cakes, portuguese egg tart, mousse, pudding.etc.
I can't stand chocolate cakes in China. Their chocolate cakes are all the same " light brown, dry and very bland " instead of the usual " very dark and moist " chocolate cake. I don't know if it is because it is very hard to find cocoa powder/ dark chocolate bar for baking, that it is expensive or simply because they did not really get expose to real dark, moist chocolate cakes that the bakeries are not really aware that they use very little amount of cocoa powder or cocoa bars.
I meant ethic in terms of their pursuit of perfection, their fastidiousness, demand for the best ingredients, emphasise on cooking techniques, presentations.
well, that's not exclusive to Japan. If you go to the right place, there are plenty of Chinese desserts that boast top notch ingredients, skills and presentation too.
Japan may deserve its good reputation, but I find that too often it is generalized as if Japanese = high quality, and Chinese = low quality, which is so wrong. Many westerners seem to hold that steoreotype only because they had very limited experience in Asian food.
I can't stand chocolate cakes in China. Their chocolate cakes are all the same " light brown, dry and very bland " instead of the usual " very dark and moist " chocolate cake. I don't know if it is because it is very hard to find cocoa powder/ dark chocolate bar for baking, that it is expensive or simply because they did not really get expose to real dark, moist chocolate cakes that the bakeries are not really aware that they use very little amount of cocoa powder or cocoa bars.
chocolate cakes are simply not a popular dessert in China. Maybe only kids would love them. Most adults find them to be too heavy and therefore the formula is altered to suit local taste. Most Asians I know in north America can't stand the traditional western style cakes for birthdays etc because they are just too sweet. If you go to an Asian supermarket, you will find plenty of much ligher Asian cakes. That's just their preference.
The same goes for cheesecakes. Asian cheesecakes are rarely made of a whole big chunk of 100% cheese because people don't like the heaviness. They are more like cheese flavored cakes.
well, that's not exclusive to Japan. If you go to the right place, there are plenty of Chinese desserts that boast top notch ingredients, skills and presentation too.
Japan may deserve its good reputation, but I find that too often it is generalized as if Japanese = high quality, and Chinese = low quality, which is so wrong. Many westerners seem to hold that steoreotype only because they had very limited experience in Asian food.
That's true, I guess the French and Japanese are known for taking it to extremes. There's a sushi chef called Jiro (forget his last name) who's been a sushi chef for like 70 years, and he's like 'I am still trying to reach perfection' - of course he doesn't know when that will come, or if indeed there is such a thing, it's kind of Zen, but it's fascinating how that philosophy is intertwined in with the arrangement of fish and rice. He and his 3-michelin star sushi place was the subject of the excellent documentary 'Jiro Dreams of Sushi'.
While China has a very distinguished food tradition, it seems when it comes to the common people the Chinese sometimes go for quantity over quality. For instance like when they do western desserts etc they're just not up to par with the Japanese or the Taiwanese.
chocolate cakes are simply not a popular dessert in China. Maybe only kids would love them. Most adults find them to be too heavy and therefore the formula is altered to suit local taste. Most Asians I know in north America can't stand the traditional western style cakes for birthdays etc because they are just too sweet. If you go to an Asian supermarket, you will find plenty of much ligher Asian cakes. That's just their preference.
The same goes for cheesecakes. Asian cheesecakes are rarely made of a whole big chunk of 100% cheese because people don't like the heaviness. They are more like cheese flavored cakes.
That's a generalisation. In Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, many desserts are pretty rich and buttery. There are tons of cake and pastry shops with rich western and western-inspired/influenced cakes, pastries and other sweets. Kek lapis is a very dense, rich, egg/and butter heavy cake that has a texture a bit like mudcake. Bengawan Solo is a well known outlet. Maybe you speak more of China itself.
FYI cheesecake isn't made out of a hunk of cheese...
That's a generalisation. In Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, many desserts are pretty rich and buttery. There are tons of cake and pastry shops with rich western and western-inspired/influenced cakes, pastries and other sweets. Kuih lapis is a very dense, rich, egg/and butter heavy cake that has a texture a bit like mudcake. Maybe you speak more of China itself.
true. I was mostly referring to east Asia.
When I was in Thailand, I find the food including desserts to be too heavy, and that's surprising considering the weather.
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