Dragon's beard candy

Dragon's beard candy
Alternative names Chinese cotton candy
Region or state China
Main ingredients Fine white sugar, peanuts, desiccated coconut, white sesame seeds, corn syrup, glutinous rice flour
Cookbook: Dragon's beard candy  Media: Dragon's beard candy
Dragon's beard candy
Traditional Chinese 龍鬚糖
Simplified Chinese 龙须糖
Literal meaning dragon beard candy
Alternative Chinese name
Traditional Chinese 銀絲糖
Simplified Chinese 银丝糖
Literal meaning silver silk candy

Dragon's beard candy (or Chinese cotton candy) is a handmade traditional art of China. It is also a traditional Chinese sweet similar to spun sugar, which can be found in many Chinese communities. Dragon's Beard Candy was initially created in China, but soon spread in popularity and became a regional delicacy in other parts of East Asia, as well as (and more recently) Canada, Singapore, the United States, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Japan. Dragon's Beard Candy was a highly prized sweet within the Korean royal court as well.

Description

Dragon's beard candy has been described as an old-fashioned candy characterized by a "rich, sweet flavor" with a threaded, chewy texture. Its appearance resembles that of a white cocoon or pillow shape.[1] It has a high sugar content (19%), and 2% saturated fat content.[2] By comparison, cotton candy is fat free with a very high sugar content (94%).[3] Dragon's beard candy has a very short shelf life. It is highly sensitive to moisture,[4] and tends to melt when exposed to higher temperatures, notably during warm weather.

Nutrition

The following table presents the nutritional information of dragon's beard candy per serving (37g).

Nutritional Value of Dragon's Beard Candy per Serving Size
Amount per Serving Daily value
Calories 141.2
Calories from Fat 54 38%
Total Fat 6.1 g 9%
Saturated Fat 0.8 g 4%
Cholesterol 0.0 g 0%
Total Carbohydrate 21.1 g 7%
Dietary Fiber 1.0 g 4%
Sugars 7.2 g 29%
Protein 3.2 g 6%

[2]

History

The legend of Dragon's Beard Candy was first notably practiced during the Chinese Han Dynasty.[5] As the story recounts, an imperial court chef entertained the Emperor one day by performing steps involved in making a new confection. The process of making the candy involved stretching a dough-like mixture composed from rice flour into small, thin strands. These strands reminded the Emperor of a dragon's beard, and were sticky enough to adhere to one's face quite easily, so thus the concoction was there-forth named as Dragon's Beard Candy. The name may also be attributed to the status of the mythical dragon as a symbol of the Chinese Emperor,[6] so presenting the confection as Dragon's Beard Candy was deemed acceptable due to the social nature of the candy, as it was reserved only for the ruling class, likely due additionally to the complexity of the preparation process. Dragon's Beard Candy provided a source of conflict several centuries later, however, as during the Chinese Cultural Revolution the Red Guard, acting in accordance to the orders of the Communist Party of China, forbade the Chinese populace to hold activities that could be attributed to the Han Dynasty.[7] Because the initially rare nature of the candy was at this point combined with government enforcement of disdaining this art, the craft of making Dragon's Beard Candy became even more isolated and sparsely practiced. Nevertheless, in recent years, the art has resurfaced in tourist destinations such as various street festivals, and has even spread to farther reaches of the globe through dedicated masters of the task. One of the more famous instances of this occurrence involved the spread of Dragon's Beard Candy to Montreal, Canada, through a Hong Kong-born Canadian named Johnny Chin[8] who began practicing the theatrical candy-making art in Montreal in 1991.

Preparation

Dragon's beard candy being made

Traditionally, Dragon's Beard Candy is made from sugar and maltose syrup, although recipes based on corn syrup are now used in the United States. The main ingredients[2] of Dragon's Beard Candy include approximately 75 grams of fine white sugar, 75 grams of peanuts, 75 grams of desiccated coconut, 38 grams of white sesame seeds, 150 grams of corn syrup, and 1 bowl of glutinous rice flour. Due to the presence of large amounts of syrup, the candy is very high in fat and sugar.

For preparation of Dragon's Beard Candy, the preparer must initially[9] boil and melt the saturated maltose solution (which may include sugar or corn syrup) for 5 minutes until thickened, followed by leaving the mixture to chill for 10 minutes until a solid state is reached. This resulting solid, which is somewhat flexible or elastic, is then formed into a torus. Next, the preparer must take the gooey sugar, corn syrup, or sugar cane based gel and dip it into the sugar dough. Thirdly, the gooey chunk must be shaped into a ring resembling a doughnut, the key feature being the large hole. This step must by followed by repeatedly pulling, twisting, stretching, and folding the dough over on itself, doubling the number of strands created after each repetition. While the candy is being folded, it is recommended to keep the dough covered in toasted glutinous flour to prevent it from sticking to surfaces. The dough must then be stretched into paper-thin strands, where each strand should be three to four inches long. Then, the strands should be tangled into a circular shape, and dipped into corn flour to keep the strands from sticking together. Finally, the ring should be cut into small pieces and wrapped around crushed peanuts, sesame seeds, crunched chocolate, or coconut inside. Specific Dragon's Beard Candy filling depends on several factors, such as region, purpose, and respective chef.

The candy is recommended to be consumed immediately after its preparation is complete, but it should remain fresh for up to six minutes in proper conditions.

Comparison to Western cotton candy

Both cotton candy and Dragon's Beard Candy are made of sugar and share the characteristic of notable stickiness and a high sensitivity to moisture. Both substances will clump together when exposed to the air for a certain amount of time. However, cotton candy has a larger surface area, thus allowing a small amount of sugar to generate into a greater volume of product. Its serving on each stick is 37 grams, including food dyes[10] and flavor, containing around 110 calories per serving.[11] While Dragon's Beard Candy contain a lower content of sugar (7.2 grams),[12] it contains a slightly higher caloric content of 141.2, as well as a higher fat content (6.1 grams), compared to Western-style cotton candy, typically containing 0g of fat.[2]

Dragon's Beard Candy as compared to Western cotton candy
Amount Per serving = Serving Size:1(37g)
Dragon's Beard Candy Western-style cotton candy
Calories 141.2 110
Total Fat 6.1 g 0 g
Saturated Fat 0.8 g 0 g
Cholesterol 0.0 g 0 mg
Total Carbohydrate 21.1 g 28 g
Dietary Fiber 1.0 g 0 g
Sugars 7.2 g 28 g
Protein 3.2 g 0 g

Presentation

It is common for street vendors of Dragon's Beard Candy to carry out the folding process involved in preparation of the confection at their stall, which can attract customers fascinated by the process as much as by a desire to purchase the candy. However, customers can purchase Dragon's Beard Candy through online stores.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Jennifer Bain. URL accessed on February 8, 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 4 V'nut-Beyond Redemption . URL accessed on Feb 19, 2004.
  3. ↑ CalorieKing Wellness Solutions, Inc. URL accessed on June 16, 2013.
  4. ↑ . URL accessed on November 10, 2011.
  5. ↑ Ng Yan Yan. URL accessed on April 14, 2009.
  6. ↑ Chinese Dragon.org. URL accessed on December 2, 2010.
  7. ↑ Wikipedia. URL accessed on November 10, 2011.
  8. ↑ Evelyn Reid. URL accessed on November 10, 2011. page 3.
  9. ↑ Jack. URL accessed on November 10, 2011.
  10. ↑ Dean Tersigni. URL accessed on 2001-2003.
  11. ↑ MyFitnessPal, LLC. URL accessed on 2005-2010.
  12. ↑ RecipeOfHealth, LLC. URL accessed on 2010.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/3/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.