Tai Thong Mooncakes

Fancy Fuji apples in a mooncake?  Frankly, this is a first for me.

But then when it comes to Tai Thong mooncakes, “innovation” and “creativity” seem to be their forte.  This year, they take on a Japanese flair in their repertoire of mooncakes.  Using some of Japan’s unique ingredients such as matcha (powdered green tea), Fuji apples, Tokachi red beans and even wasabi, you can be sure there are some pretty funky combination of flavours in Tai Thong mooncakes this Mid Autumn Festival.

Besides the distinct Japanese slant, the other thing about Tai Thong mooncakes is their reduced sugar concept.  According to Tai Thong Group Executive Mooncake Chef Yiu Wing Kiung…

“In line with the Ministry of Health’s encouragement for Malaysians to reduce their sugar intake, we are supporting this trend by keeping the sugar content in our mooncakes to the minimum level without compromising the taste and aroma.”

Low Sugar Matcha Lotus with Tokachi Red Beans

High sugar levels are not necessary as some of the Japanese ingredients employed are already naturally sweet, like the Imperial Matcha Lotus with Tokachi Sweet Red Beans (RM16 each) features high quality green tea lotus paste dotted with naturally sweet Tokachi red beans from Japan.  We all know that green tea actually goes very well with red beans (ahhh, the popularity of green tea red beans icecream!) so this combination can’t go wrong.

Low Sugar Sesame White Lotus Single Yolk

Roasted Japanese black sesame seed puree is blended with white lotus will give you that distinct earthy flavour and the salted eggyolk gives it a savoury twist.  I like salted yolks in mooncakes, so this was a natural choice for me.

Low Sugar Fuji Apple & Violet Lotus with Pumpkin Seeds

Coming back to the Fuji apple, well, the Fuji Apple and Violet Lotus with Pumpkin Seeds (RM16) has a strong aroma of apples, for sure althought there aren’t any chunks of apples there.  The pumpkin seeds are crunchy and add a slight nutty taste to the mooncake.

Low Sugar Wasabi Lotus with Wakame Seaweed

What really made an impression is the Wasabi Lotus with Wakame Seaweed (RM16 each).  The tart wasabi taste is quite distinct but I could hardly single out the Wakame seaweed in the lotus paste.  Just for the sheer novelty of eating a mooncake with infused wasabi is reason enough to check this one out!

If you like the snowskin versions, check out some of Tai Thong’s new offerings: Peanut Snow Skin Okinawan Sweet Potato with Kuri Chestnut, Black Sesame Snow Skin Japanese Gourmet Coffee with Ground Almond, Chestnut Snow Skin White Lotus with Tokachi Red Beans and Kuri Chestnut or the very rich and luxe Cheesy Snow Skin Durian Infusion with Hokkaido Cheese.  These are all at RM16 each.

Tai Thong’s mooncake boxes feature colourful origami birds, not only to jive with the Japanese theme but also because these colourful paper folded birds have always been synonymous with good luck and blessings in Asian culture.  The 2-piece and 4-piece boxes come in 4 auspicious colours: red for good fortune and joy; green for health and harmony; yellow for warmth and promise of a brand new day and purple for wealth and grace.  So, take your pick.

Tai Thong mooncakes are available in all their restaurants, major hypermarkets and mall kiosks.  For more information, check out their website www.taithong.com or call their Customer Care Line at 1800-88-2338.