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    Home » Recipes » dessert and bakery

    Chinese Mooncake (Yue Bing)—Traditional Version

    September 7, 2016 by Elaine 100 Comments | Jump to Recipe

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    Learn how to make traditional Chinese Mooncake with egg yolk, collect all the important tips for perfect Mooncake for the Chinese Mid Autumn Day.

    mooncakes|China Sichuan Food

    Baked mooncakes after 1 day

    Hello, mooncake season!

    Elaine was born on the Mid Autumn day 30 years ago. Eating mooncakes and homemade sticky rice cake along with the birthday cake have been our family activities for 30 years. Starting from last year, Elaine makes mooncake for my family instead of purchasing some from the market.Chinese eat mooncakes to celebrate the family reunion day. Mooncakes on the market are either round or square shaped. Most of the traditional mooncakes are round. The roundness symbolizes completeness and reunion. Family members usually share mooncakes together.

    Mooncakes can be differ from filling to crust. This is a guide to traditional Cantonese style sweet mooncakes. But recently mooncakes are a large group for example Su style savory mooncakes(minced pork as filling), snow skin mooncake (this one does not need baking), Yunnan ham and flower mooncakes, ice cream mooncakes, chocolate mooncakes etc. We even heard of reman noodles mooncake this year.Cantonese sweet mooncakes usually use different pastes, nuts and egg yolk as the ingredients for the filling including lotus seed paste, red bean paste, black sesame paste, mung bean pastes or mixed nuts(五仁月饼). Firstly, the two important ingredients for the dough of Cantonese mooncake: lye water and golden syrup (invert syrup). Following picture is the store bought versions I get from bakery stores in China.

    Lye water (枧水)
    Lye water sometimes called as alkaline salt is a alkaline solution. Tradition Chinese lye water is made with Kansui powder (蓬灰) and alkaline. But today's version is a combined alkaline solution contains potassium carbonate and sodium carbonate. The ingredient label on the store bought bottle contains 80% pure water, 15% sodium carbonate and 5% potassium carbonate. The lye water can raise the alkalinity (pH) to neutralize the acid in the golden syrup. Baking soda does too, but sodium hydroxide is far more potent. Another purpose is the Maillard reaction, which is responsible for the crisping and browning crust skins.
    This one might quite hard to find.  Lye water You can try to search it at  large Asian store, especially with lots of bakery ingredients.  There are several approaches to make substitutes for lye water used in mooncake. They might work slightly different but can yield a very similar result.
    Approach 1: dietary alkali  powder with clean water at the ratio of 1:4.
    Approach 2: If you use baking soda directly, you will get much softer and less browned crust. So firstly bake baking soda on a lined baking tray at 120 degree C  for around 1 hour to turn it into stronger alkali. Do not touch it during the process to prevent skin irritation. And then mix 1 teaspoon of baked soda with 4 teaspoons of water. 
    Approach 3:
    A better substitute than baking soda due to its high pH is sodium carbonate. The pH value is between the pH of baking soda and lye water. I find this one on amazon.

    mooncake ingredients|golden syrup

    Golden syrup
    I have tested several times with my fellow housewives, golden syrup can be replaced by honey.
    Golden syrup is made with sugar, water and acidic material (lemon juice). It is also known as artificial honey usually used in moon cakes and other cakes to replace sugar. It can add sweet taste, create a deep dark color of the final cakes and maintain the water. You can either choose homemade version or store bought version.
    If there is any chance that you need to make mooncakes soon and do not want to bother simmer 40 minutes or access to Asian stores, you can replace golden syrup with honey at the same amount. I have tested several batches last year. Honey can work as a reliable substitute. Following picture is the batch using honey instead of golden syrup. There is little difference in texture and taste, but it yield a light color comparing with the ones using golden syrup.

    mooncakes made with honey

    mooncakes made with honey instead of golden syrup

    A few tips before starting your mooncakes

    1. You need a kitchen scale to measure all the ingredients, accurate amount really matters to the final texture and taste.
    2. Success mooncakes=well balanced taste+well wrapped fillings+well kept shape (including the clear pattern on surface)
    3. If you are using homemade paste filling, make sure your paste is dry enough. Moist fillings might cause cracks on the skin.
    4. Cover all the fillings and divided wrapper dough with plastic wrapper to prevent drying out.
    5. Do not use too much flour to dust, otherwise it influences the pattern.
    6. Mooncake assembling needs patience and skill.  I even spoil my first one during this batch(as it is my first batch this year). But wearing plastic gloves can make the process easier. But be gentle and slow down when pushing the wrapper up.

    Let's start making the beautiful mooncakes.

    Attention: The following recipe is based on 7: 3 (filling vs wrapper) for 14 moon cakes around 50g. If you want to use ratio 8:2, adjust the ingredients accordingly.  And this is based on 50g moon cake shaping tool. If your egg yolk is too large, divide them into halves and wrap in two moon cakes.  I am using New Moon Cake Decoration Mold mould  to shape my moon cakes.

    Wrapper : prepare all the other ingredients: golden syrup, alkaline water, flour and vegetable oil together. Combine golden syrup with vegetable oil and alkaline water in a large mixing bowl. Add flour in. Mix well. Knead to a ball, wrap with plastic wrapper and knead several times until smooth. Reset for 2-3 hour in refrigerator.

    mooncake skin

    Firstly all of the fillings should be prepared previously. I usually make them in the previous day. I combine lotus seed paste, mung bean paste, red bean paste, and black sesame paste this time. But it is ok if you choose only one filling.
    Treat the egg yolk: If you can find fresh salted duck egg, crack the egg and then wash the egg yolk in clean water. Set aside to drain before using. If you are using packaged salted duck egg yolk, remember to sprinkle some white spirit (白酒) on the surface to remove raw taste.
    Measure the filling:  I made 14 mooncakes in the video tutorial and 8 of them are loaded with salted egg yolk (Measure: egg yolk+paste filling=35g) and 6 of them are pure filling (30g).

    Wrap the egg yolk with bean paste firstly:carefully shape into round ball and set aside. It is quite important to cover all of the ready fillings with plastic wrapper to prevent drying out. 

    1. When the crust dough is ready, use a kitchen scale to divide them into 14 balls (each 15g).Take one portion of the wrapper, press into a round wrapper (larger is better but do not break the wrapper) and then place one filling ball in center.
    2. Push the wrapper from bottom to top little by little until the whole ball is completely wrapped.
    3. Shape into a round ball. This step can help to make the skin as even as possible. Then slightly shape the ball into an oval so you can easily place it into the mould.
    4. Dust your mould with flour and then shake several times to remove the extra amount of flour. Use mooncake mould to shape it.
    5. When the assembling process is done, coat the ball with a layer of flour. Also coat your tool please. Place the ball on your board, then carefully cover with the shaping tool, press the rod and gently remove the cake from the tool.

    Chinese traditional mooncake step--asseme the mooncake

    Bake mooncakes
    Preheat oven to 180 degree C  (356F). Spay a very very thin layer of water on the surface of the mooncake can help to avoid cracking surfaces. But too much water will spoil the pattern on the surface. Bake for 5 minutes to firm the shape.
    In a small bowl, whisked one egg yolk with 1 tablespoons of egg whites.  Transfer the mooncakes out and brush a very very very thin layer of egg wash on the surface. Low the oven temperature to 170 degree C and put them back to the oven and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes. I baked around 16 minutes.

    Mooncakes |China Sichuan Food

    When well-baked, transfer out cooling crack to cool down completely.

    Mooncakes

    Keep and Serve
    When the mooncakes are out of the oven, the skin is not oily like the ones on the market. We need the last step: place in an airtight container (I am using single package as I need to ship them to my family). Wait for around 1 or 2 days for the pasty to become soft (This process is named as”回油”, meaning the process of returning the oil to the surface).After this last step, mooncakes can be kept for around 2 weeks in fridge.

    Mooncakes |China Sichuan Food

    Other mooncake recipes
    1. Snow skin mooncakes - no baking, a super soft and lovely wrapper made from sticky rice flour.
    2. Nuts mooncake - if you are tired of sweet filling, check this version with lots of nuts.

    Chinese Mooncakes—Traditional Version

    Traditional Cantonese Chinese Mooncakes.
    5 from 11 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: Chinese
    Keyword: mooncake
    Servings: 14 Making 14 moon cakes (50g*8 and 45g*6)
    Calories: 178kcal
    Author: Elaine

    Ingredients

    Wrapper dough

    • 115 g plain flour
    • 28 g peanut oil ,around 2 tablespoons, or other vegetable oil
    • 1 tablespoon flour for coating the tool
    • 75 g golden syrup homemade or store bought
    • 2 g lye water

    Filling:

    • 8 salted egg yolks ,each 10g
    • 380 g bean paste or black sesame filling ,25g*8+30g*6

    egg wash:

    • 1 egg yolk
    • 1 tablespoon egg white

    Instructions

    • Prepare the filling paste in the previously, lotus seed paste, mung bean paste or red bean paste.

    To make the wrapper

    • Combine lye water, golden syrup, and vegetable oil in a small bowl and then mix with flour. Stir until well combined. Wrap with plastic wrapper and then knead several times until smooth. Set aside in fridge for 2-3 hours.
    • Transfer out and then divide into 14 equal balls (each one 15g)

    Assembling

    • Measure the fillings for egg yolk mooncake: paste+ egg yolk=35g. Measure the fillings for pure paste filling: paste filling=30g. Wrap the egg yolks with paste firstly. And shape all the filling into round balls. Take one portion of the wrapper, press into a round wrapper and then place one filling ball in center. Push the wrapper from bottom to top little by little until the whole ball is completely sealed. Shape it into a round ball firstly and then into an oval.Slightly dust your mooncake tool and press the rod and gently remove the cake from the tool.
    • Preheat oven to 180C (356F). Spray a very thin layer of water on surface to avoid cracking surface (especially you used larger amount of dusting flour). Bake for 5 minutes.
    • In a small bowl, whisked the egg yolk and combine with egg whites. Transfer mooncakes out and brush a very thin layer of egg wash on the surface.
    • Continue bake for around 15 to 20 minutes until the mooncake becomes well browned.
    • Transfer out to a cooling down crack to cool down completely. Place in an airtight containers. Wait for around 1 or 2 days for the pasty to become soft and oily. After the "oil return" process, keep the mooncakes in fridge up to 2 weeks.

    Video

    Notes

    For mooncakes, smaller duck egg yolk around 10 grams each one is highly recommended. If your egg yolks are larger, for example near 20g. Divide it into two halves and wrap in two moon cakes.
    When pushing the outer wrappers, be carefully and slow down your process. Do not break the wrapper. If you do, pinch any small holes together. The time needed for assemble one moon cake should be around 1 minute even you are quite skilled. Be patient during the process.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 178kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 125mg | Sodium: 7mg | Potassium: 20mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 17g | Vitamin A: 165IU | Calcium: 21mg | Iron: 1.1mg
    mooncakes|China Sichuan Food

    Pure Black Sesame paste mooncake after 1 day

    Following picture is taken 3 days after baking.

    mooncakes three days after baking

    mooncakes three days after baking

    « Lotus Seed Paste
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. lee

      September 15, 2018 at 1:46 am

      5 stars
      Thank you for sharing the recipe. I try the snow skin mooncake and it come out perfect.
      For the above mooncake recipe do you have the ratio for 75g mold and 100g mold?
      Thank you.

      Reply
      • Elaine

        September 20, 2018 at 11:26 am

        Hi Lee,
        I do not make larger mooncake previously so currently unable to provide precise amounts. But you can simple calculating by multiplication based on the amount given in the recipe. For example, if you plan to make 75g mooncakes, use 1.5 times for both filling and wrappers.

        Reply
        • Pris

          July 14, 2020 at 12:27 pm

          Hi Elaine, I have bought a 100g mold instead of 50g. May I know if the baking time And temperature will still be the same or different

          Reply
          • Elaine

            July 16, 2020 at 8:18 am

            For larger ones, you need to increase the time by 8 to 10 mins.

            Reply
    2. happycyclist

      September 20, 2018 at 6:02 am

      5 stars
      These are beautiful snapshots of your creation. Thank you for sharing!

      Reply
      • Elaine

        September 20, 2018 at 7:43 am

        Thank you!

        Reply
    3. Jasmine

      September 24, 2018 at 5:02 pm

      5 stars

      Hi! I don't know if you remember but I was the one who asked a little while ago about my mooncakes being too dry- well I tried it again, except this time with your lotus filling- and it was great!! My parents really liked it (and they really liked the maltose taste- I've never had it before, but my parents loved it! 🙂 My mum had a little nostalgia since she used to eat maltose sweets as a kid!)
      But I have another problem now... I noticed that when I take my mooncakes out of the oven and they cool down, the filling shrinks (from when it expanded in the oven) but the skin doesn't, so between the filling and skin there are air bubbles?? Like when I push down I feel air trapped between the skin and filling! Any suggestions??
      Thanks for the great recipe (I will try the red bean filling next time with the suggestions you made!) and wishing you a happy Mid-Autumn festival!!

      Thanks for the great recipe (I will try the red bean filling next time with the suggestions you made!) and wishing you a happy Mid-Autumn festival!!

      Oh no I'm sorry I meant to give it 5 stars but I clicked 4 by accident (I'm on my phone)!! I don't know how to change it so I'll leave this comment here so others know what I meant!!
      Sorry!!

      Reply
      • Elaine

        September 25, 2018 at 9:22 am

        Never Jasmine for the wrong rating. I have already updated your two comments together.
        As for your problem, the most possible reason is that there are too much water in your filling. After baking, the water runs away and make the filling shrinks.

        Reply
    4. Jasmine

      September 26, 2018 at 12:15 pm

      5 stars
      Hi Elaine! I left a comment I think 2 days or so ago but I just checked and for some reason it's disappeared?? So I'm leaving another comment here because I had a question in my other comment I wanted your help on!!
      The mooncakes turned out great but when I take them out of the oven and the filling shrinks (from when it expanded in the oven) there are air bubbles between the filling and skin! Like when I push the skin lightly on the sides I can feel air trapped between the filling and skin.
      Any suggestions to solve this? Thanks so much!

      Reply
      • Jasmine

        October 23, 2018 at 7:01 am

        Hi! Just wondering about the question I asked! Sorry to be annoying, but a reply would be super appreciated!!

        Reply
        • Elaine

          October 23, 2018 at 8:50 am

          Sorry Jasmine for the late reply. I did not notice the previous question. If the filling shrinks too much, the most possible reason is too much water in the filling. I believe most of your problem happens because of the filling. Can you purchase any store-made filling on your side?

          Reply
          • Jasmine

            October 25, 2018 at 8:34 pm

            Hello, it's no problem at all, thanks so much for replying! I haven't seen store bought filling before but I'm sure I could find it!
            I do want to make it myself though! Thank you so much for the advice- do you think my oven temp or how I wrap the filling could be issues as well?

            Reply
    5. Chelsea

      November 10, 2018 at 9:25 am

      5 stars
      Is leaving it for 3 days required or optional?

      Reply
      • Elaine

        November 10, 2018 at 7:16 pm

        Required.

        Reply
    6. Julia

      August 16, 2019 at 3:32 am

      Hi Elaine, Mid-Autumn Festival is almost here and I would like to make some mooncakes but searching online, I can only find the typical recipes for the filling but cannot find one for winter melon filling. Would you happen to know a recipe for winter melon filling mooncake? Do you think it's the same as the ones for a sweetheart cake (lo-por bang)?

      Reply
      • Elaine

        August 17, 2019 at 7:31 am

        I know the filling. We usually use it for Lo Por Bang, I believe should be wife's cake. Will try to make this one after back home.

        Reply
        • Julia

          August 19, 2019 at 12:52 am

          That sounds great! If you end up making it please do post it!

          Reply
    7. Emily Clark

      November 27, 2019 at 11:55 pm

      To be honest, I never tried a Chinese recipe before but my husband insisted me on trying this one. Looks yummy and you did an awesome job sharing these wonderful pictures inside the article.

      Reply
      • Elaine

        November 28, 2019 at 7:32 pm

        Thanks so much, Emily. I love to make my mooncakes present appealing.

        Reply
    8. Shannigay Williams

      May 16, 2020 at 12:56 am

      5 stars
      I will try your recipe for the moon cakes

      Reply
      • Elaine

        May 17, 2020 at 8:39 am

        Happy cooking!

        Reply
    9. Alice

      August 11, 2020 at 9:32 am

      Hi, thank you for the recipe! Your mooncakes look beautiful. Can you use store bought canned red bean paste? If so, do you need to remove the moisture?

      Reply
      • Elaine

        August 20, 2020 at 7:37 am

        You can use canned red bean paste. I still recommend fry the paste in non-stick pan to remove some of the moisture for mooncakes.

        Reply
    10. Maggie Dane

      August 29, 2020 at 2:05 am

      Hi Elaine,
      Do you recommend waiting 2 days for the mooncakes to become soft & oily before shipping to family? Also, do you have recommendations on shipping mooncakes? I'm wondering things like containers, bags, using ice packs, etc. Thank you for sharing a great recipe and all the work you put into this. 🙂

      Reply
      • Elaine

        August 29, 2020 at 7:01 am

        Maggie,
        There are mooncake packages sold online. You can wait for 1 or 2 days before shipping. The oily and soften process can be further finished with the shipping.

        Reply
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