Executive Chef Ho Pui Yung and Dim Sum
Chef Yip Wing-Wah of The Peninsula's Spring Moon Chinese restaurant are
now in training for the annual mooncake marathon. The Spring Moon team
will produce 360,000 mooncakes this year from 30 August 2004 till 27
September 2004, using 90,000 eggs!
Laid side by side, all these Peninsula mooncakes will not stretch quite
to the moon, but well on the way to it, extending one and a half times
the cruising height of a jumbo jet, or just over one and a half times
the height of Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world! In Hong
Kong terms, that’s nearly half way to the airport from the hotel, 27
times the height of International Finance Centre II (Hong Kong’s highest
building), 26 times the height of The Peak, or 122 times the height of
The Peninsula’s tower!
At the height of production, 27 staff produce 12,000 of the hand-made
cakes per day. Even this is not enough to satisfy demand, explains Ho,
"If we could make twice as many, we could sell them."
The Peninsula's mooncakes have become a traditional favourite in Hong
Kong and are sold through The Peninsula Boutiques at the hotel and The
Landmark, and at the Spring Moon Chinese restaurant on the first floor
of The Peninsula.
The trick, according to Mr Yip, is to get the pastry skin right. It
should be delicate but strong enough to withstand the baking process. He
keeps to himself the exact proportions and nature of the ingredients he
uses for the filling, admitting only that he follows a traditional
recipe using duck eggs to produce the very best quality and flavour.
The Mid-Autumn festival falls on 28 September this year when Hong Kong's
residents will venture out in family groups and with friends to admire
the full moon and to celebrate the unity and good fortune that it
represents. Mooncakes are eaten throughout the festival and are usually
served after a meal with tea.
The Spring Moon keeps up traditions with its range of over 25 Chinese
teas served in the restaurant - including green, oolong, white, black
and pu er teas - and a selection of teas for sale. The Peninsula Chinese
Tea Collection comprises five types of tea, and costs from HK$125 to
HK$135 per 100g tin, while The Spring Moon Collection of premium teas in
attractive art deco boxes reflecting the restaurant's decor, are priced
at HK$80 – HK$150 per box, making the perfect accompaniment to a gift of
mooncakes for friends or business associates.
The mooncake tradition stems from the mid 14th century Yuan Dynasty when
General Zhu Yuan-Chang signalled the start of an uprising by hiding
messages in the mooncakes and distributing them to his supporters.
General Zhu went on to lead the ensuing riot and found the Ming Dynasty.
Available from 30 August 2004 till 27 September 2004, the mooncakes sell
in boxes of eight for HK$140. For enquiries and orders, please contact
the Spring Moon restaurant on tel : 2315 3160.
Mooncakes
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Mooncakes
The Chinese Moon Festival is celebrated on the 15th day of the eighth month of the Chinese lunar calendar. In 2004, this is September 29th when Chinese people will celebrate the Mid-Autumn festival with dances, feasting and moon gazing.
And they will also eat millions of mooncakes. The Peninsular Hotel in Hong Kong makes some of the best as their press release describes below.
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Mooncakes Sky High At The Peninsula Hong Kong
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Mooncakes are inextricably linked with the Moon festival. The traditional mooncake is filled with lotus seed paste and is quite distinctive in appearance. Roughly the size of a human palm, these mooncakes are very filling and are meant to be cut diagonally in quarters and passed around.
The salty yolk in the middle, representing the full moon, is an acquired taste.
A more elaborate version of the mooncakes contains four egg yolks (representing the four phases of the moon). Besides lotus seed paste, other traditional fillings include red bean paste and black bean paste.
In the past mooncakes took up to four weeks to make, automation has speeded up the process considerably. Today, mooncakes may be filled with everything from dates, nuts, and fruit to Chinese sausages. More exotic creations include green tea mooncakes, and ping pei or snowskin mooncakes, a Southeast Asian variation made with cooked glutinous rice flour.
Mooncake molds are custom-made with the insignia of the baker. Many Chinese people are willing to pay a higher price for mooncakes from reputable bakers. Thus, the baker's insignia is very important.
Bakers usese a wooden mold to shape each mooncake. The mold must be seasoned first by soaking it in oil for a few days. Then pour away the oil and wash clean. Dry it well. Dust with flour before use.
Haagen-Daz has introduced a line of ice cream mooncakes in Asian markets. And Starbucks, even in Thailand, is offering coffee flavoured mooncakes.
The best known legend of the Moon Festival of Chang'er flying to the moon. In this story, it is said that a long time ago, there were 10 suns in the sky, causing great misery to the inhabitants of earth, with the seas boiling, mountains falling and the earth cracking. An expert archer Hou Yi decided to help and took his bow and shot down nine of the ten suns. Because of this the people of the earth made him king. However, his pride soon lead him to become a tyrant, drinking, womanising and killing people as he liked. He became much disliked by the people, and seeing that his days were numbered went to see Wang Mu the Fairy Queen in search of the elixir of immortality. Although he obtained the elixir, his wife Chang'er drank it before he could to save the people from his tyranny. Chang'er was transported to the moon where she still lives.
The tradition of eating mooncakes during the Moon festival derives from its possible role in Chinese history. Overrun by the Mongols in the thirteenth century, the Chinese threw off their oppressors in 1368 AD. It is said that mooncakes - which the Mongols did not eat - were the perfect vehicle for hiding and passing along plans for the rebellion. Families were instructed not to eat the mooncakes until the day of the moon festival, which is when the rebellion took place.