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From the Sunday Times - Lifestyle, 21 February 2016

 

Salty-sweet, flaky-gooey and yummy salted egg yolk croissants

 

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Da Paolo Gastronomia's Ms Francesca Scarpa (first photo), Antoinette's Pang Kok Keong (second photo) and Kokomama Marketplace director Francis Huang (below) with their salted egg yolk custard croissants.

 

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Salted egg yolk custard croissants are the first food craze of the year in Singapore.

 

The croissants, which originated in Hong Kong, started making inroads here late last months, when brunch cafe Flavour Flings in Hougang started selling them.

 

Since then, five bakeries and cafes have jumped on the bandwagon to offer the sweet-savoury pastry.

 

The latest to fuel the craze is Italian deli chain Da Paolo Gastronomia, which will  sett its salted egg yolk croissants from today.

 

It joins French patisserie chain Antoinette, Kokomama Marketplace in the School of the Arts, Bridge restaurant-bar in Seah Street and Black & Ink in Changi Road, all of which started selling the item earlier this month.

 

Do.Main Bakery in Tanjong Katong Road will launch its version on Saturday.

 

It was European bakery chain Urban Bakery in Hong Kong that started offering molten egg yolk croissants in September 2014.

 

The move followed the success of its Ball Law Cowssant, a croissant topped with the crumbly cookie dough found in bo lo bao (pineapple buns). The chain sells more than 1,000 molten egg yolk croissants across its 10 outlets daily. Each croissant costs HK$22 (S$4).

 

Mr Rico Cheng, 30, food concept manager of Maxim's Group, which owns Urban Bakery, says he was inspired by the popular dim sum item liu sha bao - steamed buns filled with flowing salted egg yolk custard. "We are thrilled and proud that the croissant, which was created to celebrate Hong Kong's food culture, has become a hit in other countries too," he says.

 

He adds that more tourists, mostly from Singapore and Malaysia, have been buying the pastry. The craze has also spread to Kuala Lumpur and Johor Baru in Malaysia, Jakarta, Indonesia.

 

Some home-grown eateries have been quick to spot a potential hit.

 

Antoinette, Da Paolo Gastronomia and Kokomama Marketplace make their croissants from scratch, while the other cafes get theirs from bakeries or pastry suppliers. Most of them pipe the filling into the pastry from a hole at the top or base of the croissant.

 

Da Paolo Gastronomia director Francesca Scarpa, 33, says a love for liu sha bao and requests from customers prompted her to expand the chain's croissant selection.

 

She says: "We use the dim sum favourite as a reference to create the taste and consistency of the custard filling, which has a touch of coconut milk."

 

The chain has been nimble in adapting to food trends. It introduced its version of cronuts, a hybrid of croissants and doughnuts, in 2013, when the confection was trending in New York City.

 

Ms Scarpa says: "We can react fast to such trends as we can tap on our croissant-making expertise and experiment with new recipes."

 

At Antoinette, sales of its liu sha croissants have doubled over the past three weeks, with 600 sold within four hours daily across its three outlets. Its chef-owner, Mr Pang Kok Keong, says the craze has sparked interest in his pastries.

 

"The pick-up rate of these pastries has not been as good as our cakes, but more people are interested to understand what makes a good croissant," he says.

 

The chain also enjoys a spillover effect on its dine-in business, as diners order the croissants to go with their meals there.

 

For cafes such as Kokomama Marketplace and Black & Ink, getting in on the custard croissant trend is a way to extend their existing selection of salted egg yolk dishes, such as pizza, pasta and muffins.

 

Kokomama director Chris Chew, 54, says: "We have been developing croissants stuffed with red beans and matcha since November, and when the trend hit Singapore, we didn't want o be left behind."

 

While there has been an increase in walk-in sales, he says business has not risen significantly.

 

Mr Lawrence Ngan, 35, managing director of Bridge, which sells up to 250 croissants a day filled with salted egg yolk or truffle honey custard, says: "People from the offices nearby have been ordering up to 20 pieces at a go, but we do not sell them during dinner time as diners will be full after eating one and it makes business sense to focus on dinner service."

 

As salted egg yolk custard croissants gain popularity, health experts caution against indulging in them too often.

 

Ms Claudia Correia, a dietitian at Raffles Diabetes & Endocrine Centre, says a plain croissant is rich in saturated fat and salt, and when salted egg yolks and custard are added, the pastry can contain about 600 calories and up to 80 per cent of a person's daily recommended intake for saturated fats.

 

She says: "I recommend sharing the croissant and eating it mindfully by paying attention to your senses and body cues to reduce overeating."

 

Ms Vanessa McNamara of The Travelling Dietitian says: "Those with coronary heart disease or are trying to lose weight should minimise their intake of salted egg yolk croissants."

 

However, diners are still drawn to the pastry.

 

Digital strategist Rebecca Saw, 35, who is Malaysian and based in Kuala Lumpur, came here to try the croissants from Antoinette, after her Singapore friends told her about them.

 

She says: "They are my second favourite after Urban Bakery's as they have a crisp and good pastry. However, the filling could be sweeter and it lacks the full-bodied flavour of a liu sha bao filing."

 

Project manager Michelle Nah, 38, who has tried the croissants from Antoinette, Bridge and Kokomama Marketplace, was curious about the social media craze over them.

 

She says: "I like Antoinette's croissants best as the custard has the most intense salted egg yolk flavour and oozes like nobody's business.

 

"But I think that croissants and salted egg yolks make a weird pairing. I still prefer croissants with sweet fillings such as chocolate."

 

 

 

Happy - is what we should be, always.

 

Notice: I DO NOT use the Chat Function in this Forum - this has always been written in my profile (and I don't read it too).

{it is unfortunate that this new Chat Function does not allow users to turn/switch off in mobile phone}

 

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From the Sunday Times - Lifestyle, 21 February 2016

 

 

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The panellists are (from left) Straits Times food editor Tan Hsueh Yun, chef Bjorn Shen and food critic Wong Ah Yoke.

 

 

The best salted egg yolk croissant is...

 

The perfect liu sha croissant would be a Franken pastry cobbled together from the top scoring croissants in a blind taste test by The Sunday Times.

 

It would have the intense salted egg yolk flavour of he custard by Italian deli chain Da Paolo Gastronomia, the sexy flow of he custard from fusion cafe Kokomama Marketplace and be encased in the crisp and buttery pastry from Antoinette.

 

The taste test by The Sunday Times to find the best salted egg yolk croissant of the six available here found that none of them were perfect.

 

But those by Antoinette, Da Paolo Gastronomia and Kokomama were he top scorers.

 

The other croissants were from Black & Ink, Flavour Flings and Bridge cafe.

 

The panel comprised Straits Times food editor Tan Hsueh Yun, food critic Wong Ah Yoke and Bjorn Shen, chef-owner of Middle Eastern restaurant Artichoke and casual Thai eatery Bird Bird.

 

The croissants were assessed on the quality of the pastry and the flavour and texture of the salted egg yolk custard. Each of the three elements were scored on a scale of one to five.

 

The panellists thought some of the croissants were bread like and chewy, while the custard filling in some were either too milky or sweet. Others were stodgy and did not flow.

 

Chef Shen, who had not tried a salted egg yolk croissant before the taste test, says: "This taste test shows that we still have some way to go in creating a well-rounded product."

 

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RANKED ACCORDING TO TASTE TEST RESULTS

 

1. ANTOINETTE

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Where: Three outlets including 30 Penhas Road and 02-33 Mandarin Gallery, 333A Orchard Road; various opening hours; go to www.antoinette.com.sg

Price: $6.50+ for takeaway, $6.50++ for dine-in, pre-order required for orders of 20 or more

Score

Pastry: 3.3/5

Flavour of custard: 2.3/5

Texture of custard: 3.3/5

Total: 8.9/15

 

Mr Wong says: "I like the crispy ends and the pastry has a balanced butteriness, but the sweetness of the custard is overwhelming and its texture can be smoother."

 

Chef Shen says of the filling: "It taste like a sweet lotus paste or red bean paste and its thick consistency reminds me of mashed potato."

 

 

 

2. DA PAOLO GASTRONOMIA

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Where: Six outlets including 01-01 Cluny Court, 501 Bukit Timah Road and B1-K8 Paragon, 290 Orchard Road; various opening hours; go to dapaolo.com.sg

Price: $6.90

Score

Pastry: 2/5

Flavour of custard: 4/5

Texture of custard: 2.7/5

Total: 8.7/15

 

Ms Tan says: "The custard has the strongest salted egg yolk flavour of the lot and there is a good balance of sweet and savoury. However, the pastry is too heavy and bread-like."

 

Chef Shen says: "The pastry has a nice, elastic texture and the flavour of the custard is miles ahead of the rest in delivering the salted egg yolk taste."

 

 

 

3. KOKOMAMA MARKETPLACE

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Where: 01-01 School of the Arts, 1 Zubir Said Drive; tel: 6835-7898; open: 11am to 10,30pm (Monday to Thursday), 11am to 11pm (Friday and Saturday); 11am to 10pm (Sunday); go to www.kokomama.sg

Price: $6.50

Score

Pastry: 3/5

Flavour of custard: 1.5/5

Texture of custard: 3.7/5

Total: 8.2/15

 

Mr Wong says: "I don't like the custard as it tastes like curry and is very salty, but it is creamy and oozes out beautifully."

 

Ms Tan says: "The pastry has a good crunch and is buttery, the custard is properly emulsified and has a great consistency. But it tastes nothing like salted egg."

 

 

 

4. BLACK & INK

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Where: 168 Changi Road; tel: 9620-1022; open: 10am to 7pm (Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday), 10am to 9pm (Friday and Saturday), closed on Monday and Tuesday; go to www.facebook.com/blackandink

Price: $5.50, only 20 croissants available daily

Score

Pastry: 2/5

Flavour of custard: 2.2/5

Texture of custard: 2.2/5

Total: 6.4/15

 

Ms Tan says: "The croissant looks good until you eat it. It feels like a cop-out to slice it in half and spoon in the custard. You don't get the surprise of an oozy filling."

 

Mr Wong says: "The croissant is dry and not buttery and it seems the recipe is tweaked to suit the heaviness of the filling."

 

 

 

5. FLAVOUR FLINGS

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Where: Block 121 Hougang Avenue 1, 01-1348; tel: 6286-0051; open" 11am to 4pm and 5.30 to 7pm (Monday, Wednesday to Friday); 9am to 4pm and 5.30 to 7pm (Saturday); 9am to 4pm and 5.30pm to 9pm (Sunday); closed on Tuesday

Price: $7.50, available from 5.30pm, takeaway only; available for dine-in from April 1

Score

Pastry: 2.2/5

Flavour of custard: 2/5

Texture of custard: 1.7/5

Total: 5.9/15

 

Chef Shen says: "The inside of the pastry is papery, but the flavour of the custard is quite balanced."

 

Mr Wong says: "The pastry is too chewy and the filling tastes like a very thick custard with no particular flavour."

 

 

 

6. BRIDGE CAFE

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Where: 31 Seah Street; tel: 6333-4453; open: 3 to 11pm (Tuesday to Thursday), 3pm to 1am (Friday), 11am to 1am (Saturday), 11am to 5pm (Sunday), closed on Monday; go to www.dineatbridge.com.sg

Price: $5.90, sold from 3 to 6pm on weekdays and from 11am on weekends

Score

Pastry: 1.5/5

Flavour of custard: 1.7/5

Texture of custard: 2.2/5

Total: 5.4/15

 

Chef Shen says: "The pastry tastes like a choux pastry, bu it is good that I can feel the grease from the butter when I am tearing the pastry. The custard is not distinctive - it is neither sweet nor salty."

 

Ms Tan says: "The filling has a vague milkiness, but no salted egg yolk flavour."

 

 

 

Happy - is what we should be, always.

 

Notice: I DO NOT use the Chat Function in this Forum - this has always been written in my profile (and I don't read it too).

{it is unfortunate that this new Chat Function does not allow users to turn/switch off in mobile phone}

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 4/13/2016 at 11:23 PM, Cube3 said:

Breadtalk has been launching tiny versions at $1 each...like maybe 50ct coin size, not bad but really tiny - just one bite!

 

oily, custard salted egg yolk filling, airy. its just not good.

Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall..

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On 4/28/2016 at 0:00 PM, Cube3 said:

 

Yallah, why should salted egg confectionary be so ex, when ingredients are so cheap? Boycott! :doh:

 

hahahah later everything also boycott, u nothing to eat alr. hahahaha

Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall..

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Guest jolim143

Just tried the one from Starbucks. Good size and quite generous with filling. Good value for money as well since 3-6pm got the set of croissant + coffee/tea at $6.90. Only issue is that the lava wasn't flowing despite re-heating it twice. heh

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On 5/13/2016 at 3:59 PM, jolim143 said:

Just tried the one from Starbucks. Good size and quite generous with filling. Good value for money as well since 3-6pm got the set of croissant + coffee/tea at $6.90. Only issue is that the lava wasn't flowing despite re-heating it twice. heh

 

dried custard croissant. the filling does not flow out, doesnt lift up to its name. FAIL!

 

check out the reviews on their own facebook page https://www.facebook.com/StarbucksSingapore/

Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall..

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Guest jbby

cheh, I've been eating 金沙包in JB for years. My fav.

It's filled with gooey salted egg yolk. very cheap some more.

Now then the croissants copy this.

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