The mooncake has always been a pastry that evokes strong sensory memories for me.
Growing up, every autumn, my childhood home would begin to fill with mooncake gift boxes from friends and family members. I vividly remember the exciting joy of lifting tin covers and seeing the pastries — fat, beautiful and sweetly fragrant.
I would unearth a mooncake from its little nook within the tin, marveling at the pretty designs embossed on top. Then my mom would slice it into thickly sweet wedges for me and my little brother to enjoy.
Mid-Autumn Festival
For so many folks in Asia and those within the Asian diaspora in other countries around the world, Mid-Autumn Festival evokes similarly fond memories tied to this sweet traditional pastry.
The Mid-Autumn Festival is a traditional Chinese holiday that dates back to more than 3,000 years ago. Today, similar festivals are celebrated in Japan, Korea, and Southeast Asia — each festival, depending on the country, may involve different traditions, but all revolve around gathering with loved ones during a time when the harvest moon is at its peak.
Another nickname for this holiday is the “Moon Festival” or the “Mooncake Festival.” Mooncakes refer to delicious pastries that are traditionally gifted between family and friends and eaten together during the holiday’s celebrations.
In Chinese culture, the shape of a mooncake evokes the harvest moon at its fullest in the night sky. Its roundness symbolizes unity, togetherness, and harmony. Mooncakes are today widely enjoyed in other countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Vietnam.
But there isn’t just ONE type of mooncake. In fact, we can think of at least six styles that are highly popular.
Cantonese Style Mooncake
The Cantonese-style is the most traditional, common type of mooncake. It’s characterized by golden, thin skin with an intricate pattern embossed on top. While there are a variety of sweet or savory fillings, it’s typically filled with lotus paste and salted egg yolks.
Suzhou Style Mooncake
Unlike the soft skin of the Cantonese mooncake, the Suzhou style features a crisp, buttery and flaky pastry skin. It’s usually filled inside with savory ground pork. On top, it’s marked by an edible red stamp or black sesame seeds.
Teochew Style Mooncake
This unique type of mooncake features delicate layers of flaky crust. There is a “Thousand Layer” variation, marked by its spirals. Its rings are balanced between two doughs — the “water dough” made with flour and water, and “oil dough” created from a mix of flour and lard. The Teochew-style mooncake is usually filled with sweet yam, mung bean or black bean paste.
Yunnan Style Mooncake
The golden, crisp crust of this mooncake type is made from a mix of wheat flour, rice flour and buckwheat flour. The most popular filling is a blend of Yunnan specialty ham, honey, lard and sugar. The taste is an intriguing sweet and salty combination.
Hokkien Style Mooncake
Also known as the “scholar mooncake,” this type was traditionally gifted to scholars sitting for Imperial exams. Fragrant and bright, it has white skin with a red stamp on top. The filling is a mix of candied winter melon, tangerine peel, melon seeds, sugar and lard.
Snow Skin Style Mooncake
This type is the first no-bake mooncake. Its translucent white or pastel-colored skin is made of cooked glutinous rice flour. Fillings can range from sweet to savory. These lovely mooncakes often need to be kept cold or even frozen depending on what’s inside.
Are these six styles the only types of mooncakes out there? Not at all!
In different countries, there are even more variations — from exotic fruit fillings like durian and jackfruit in Southeast Asia to more modern spins like low-fat, lard-free and ice cream versions in Taiwan.
And if we want to venture into additional pastries that mark the Mid-Autumn festival in yet other countries? There is the songpyeon, a rice cake filled with ingredients like sesame seeds, red beans, and chestnuts in South Korea; and the tsukimi dango, round white dumplings made of rice in Japan. But all of that is for a future savory post!
Whichever mooncake or dessert you choose to enjoy this year to mark the harvest moon, chances are, it’s guaranteed to be delicious. And if there is a style described here that you haven’t had the chance to taste yet, this could be your reminder to sample something new.
I’m inspired to eat a mooncake myself now.
Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!
