Traditional Mooncakes

Traditional Cantonese-style baked mooncakes with a fragrant thin skin, sweet filling, and salted duck egg yolks. A Chinese treat prepared for the mid-autumn festival!

What is the Mid-Autumn festival?

The Mid-Autumn festival occurs on the 15th day of the 8th Lunar month, this year falling on the 21st of September. At this time the moon is the roundest and brightest. This festival was originally a time to celebrate the autumn full moon harvest, in a time of successful harvest families come together to celebrate and appreciate the moon, light lanterns, and eat mooncakes!

This is an important day for not only Chinese but many other South-East Asian cultures, each using the day to celebrate differently!

What are mooncakes?

Mooncakes are a traditional Chinese treat eaten during the Mid-Autumn festival. There are so many different styles of mooncakes, each coming from different areas of China. The fillings range from lotus paste, beans, custards, nuts, and meats. Yes, there are both sweet and savory kinds!

The most commonly known mooncake is the traditional Cantonese mooncake, characterized by its golden and glossy, thin, and soft crust with a delicate pattern. The most common filling for these is lotus paste, a sweet paste made from lotus seeds, and salted duck egg yolks. This combination is sweet, fragrant, slightly salty, and delicious.

Another popular kind of mooncake is snow-skin mooncakes. These aren’t baked and the skin is made from glutinous rice flour. These are often bright and colorful and filled with a variety of fillings from the classic lotus seed paste to custards and even ice cream.

Check out these snow skin mooncake recipes I have!

These mooncakes aren’t as labor intensive and have a much soft and slightly chewy texture similar to mochi!

Growing up snow-skin mooncakes were always one of my favorites… but my true favorite is the Shanghainese-style savory pork mooncakes. These have a super flaky crust and are filled with a juicy, pork filling. Growing up these were always a treat my parents would buy me during the mid-autumn festival- but now I make them for everyone to eat!

The mooncake recipe I’m sharing with you all today are traditional Cantonese-style mooncakes. While the method can be a little intimidating at first, if you use store-bought pastes for the filling it’s not too difficult and can be a fun project for this year’s moon festival!

Mooncake molds

You’ll notice that the mooncakes have an intricate pattern on the surface, these are created using a mooncake mold! There are a lot of molds easily available online, however, they come in a variety of styles and sizes.

Traditionally the molds are carved out of wood, but now they have a plastic variety with interchangeable patterns. Not only do they make it fun because you can change up the design, but it also has an easy release system so you can unmould the mooncakes without much struggle.

When it comes to sizes it depends on what size mooncake you would like to make. I use a 100g mooncake mold which is perfect for two egg yolks and a good amount of filling. However, feel free to use a small mooncake mold and create more small mooncakes with a single salted egg yolk.

Link to the one I used is here!

Making mooncakes without lye water

A lot of mooncakes will use lye water to create the skin. Lye water’s alkaline properties help the mooncakes take on a deep golden brown color. However, it can be difficult to find lye water, especially in Australia since it’s been banned.

Lye water is very strong and too much is poisonous! This recipe uses baking soda instead and the results don’t pale in comparison.

Many people bake their baking soda to increase its alkalinity, but honestly, there is no need.

Simply mix 1/2 tsp baking soda with the same amount of water and add it to the dough.

You’ll find that this does make the dough more crumbly, however, it will still form mooncakes easily!

Tips on creating perfect mooncakes

Here are a couple of tips to help you create the perfect mooncake and wow all your family and friends!

Weigh your filling and dough out

It’s important that you carefully portion the dough and skin for the mooncakes as this ensures that it fits into your mold perfectly. It also guarantees a perfect balance between filling and skin.

If you use less it can make it difficult to wrap the filling without it cracking. If there is too much skin the mooncake will have a super thick pastry.

Lightly oil your molds

It is important to oil your molds as the pastry can get stuck in the mold while you are forming the pattern. Use a pastry brush dipped in a little vegetable oil and lightly coat the inside of the mold for easy mooncake release!

Use baking soda

I use baking soda as a replacement for the traditional lye water, and it works a dream to create beautifully golden brown mooncakes

Spray your mooncakes with water

Giving your mooncakes a light spritz of water after its first bake adds some moisture back into the skin, preventing it from cracking and helps brown the pastry evenly

Use a fine brush to glaze your mooncakes

When brushing on the egg wash use a fine brush. This helps to get in between the details and remove any excess egg wash stuck between the details. If the glaze is baked in-between the delicate patterns it can cause them to blur and lose detail.

Glaze and bake your mooncakes several times

You can repeat the glaze and bake process as many times as needed to create the perfect golden color. Keep in mind that after your mooncakes sit for a couple of days the color will deepen

Allow your mooncakes to mature

After baking keep your mooncakes in an airtight container at room temperature. This allows the skin to absorb oils from the filling. This increases flavor, color, and glossiness to create the perfect mooncake.

Additional Tips

Brush the mooncakes with egg wash midway through baking for an even golden crust, ensuring the top does not over-bake.

Allow the mooncakes to rest for 2-3 days before eating to let the oils in the filling seep into the crust for optimal flavor and texture.

Use a damp cloth on the dough if it becomes too dry or cracks during shaping, ensuring smooth and even surfaces.

Variations

Custard Mooncakes: Replace the lotus paste with a creamy custard filling for a lighter, sweeter taste.

Savory Pork Mooncakes: Swap sweet fillings with a savory pork and herb mixture for a unique twist on the traditional mooncake.

Chocolate Mooncakes: Incorporate a rich chocolate filling instead of lotus or red bean for a modern dessert-style mooncake.

Serving Suggestions

Serve with Jasmine Tea: The subtle floral notes of jasmine tea complement the rich and sweet flavors of mooncakes.

Pair with fresh seasonal fruits: Serve mooncakes with fresh fruits like slices of Asian pear or dragon fruit for a refreshing contrast.

Cut mooncakes into small slices: Serve in thin wedges to allow guests to sample multiple flavors and prevent overindulgence.

Traditional Mooncake Recipe

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Traditional Cantonese-style baked mooncakes with a fragrant thin skin, sweet filling and salted duck egg yolks. A Chinese treat prepared for the mid-autumn festival!

• Author: Catherine Zhang
• Prep Time: 60
• Cook Time: 20
• Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
• Yield: 8 1x
• Category: Cake
• Method: Intermediate
• Cuisine: Chinese

Ingredients

Units MUS Scale 1x2x3x

Mooncake Skin

• 230g Plain flour (1 3/4 cup + 4 tsp )
• 130g Golden syrup (1/3 cup + 1 tsp)
• 50g Vegetable oil (3 tbsp 1 tsp)
• 1/2 tsp Baking soda
• 1/2 tsp Water

Filling

• 1kg Filling of your choice (red bean paste, lotus paste, chestnut paste, sesame paste, etc.) (35oz)
• 16 Salted duck egg yolks

Egg wash

• 1 Egg yolk
• 1 tsp Egg white
• 1/4 tsp Sesame oil
• 1/4 tsp Golden syrup
• 1 tsp Water

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Instructions

Mooncake Skin

1. Mix baking soda and water together in a small bowl 
2. Combine flour, golden syrup, vegetable oil and baking soda mixture together in a mixing bowl
3. Stir the mixture until a shaggy dough forms, then knead with your hands to form a dough
4. Form the dough into a rough ball and cover with cling wrap
5. Allow the dough to rest for 1 hour

Filling

1. Meanwhile prepare the filling
2. Using a scale portion out each mooncake’s filling with two egg yolks and your choice of filling- the total weight should be approximately 75g 
3. Enclose the egg yolks in the filling and roll into a ball
4. Continue with the remaining filling and form 8 portions of filling, set aside until use

Assembly + Egg wash

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/355F
2. Uncover the rested mooncake skin dough and portion into 8 x 50g portions, roll into balls
3. Place one portion between two pieces of cling wrap and roll into a circle that will enclose the filling
4. Remove the rolled dough from the cling wrap and carefully cover the portioned filling, bringing the edges together and shaping to close gaps
5. Place the mooncake ball on a baking tray lined with baking paper, smooth side up
6. Lightly oil the mooncake mould (I used a 100g mould) and use it to press the ball into a mooncake shape 
7. Remove the mould and repeat with the remaining filling
8. Bake the mooncakes for 6 minutes
9. Remove from the oven and lightly spray with water, prepare the egg wash as they cool 
10. Combine all egg wash ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together until combined
11. Using a small food-safe brush lightly brush the mooncakes with the egg wash
12. Bake for another 6 minutes
13. Remove the mooncakes from the oven and brush with another layer of egg wash
14. Increase the oven to 200C/390F and bake the mooncakes for 10 minutes, until golden brown
15. Remove from the oven and cool completely before placing in an airtight container
16. Allow the mooncakes to sit at room temperature for 2-3 days for the skin to soften and soak up oils from the filling, the colour will deepen and the skin will become glossy
17. Store at room temperature for up to a week and enjoy!

Catherine Zhang

My name is Catherine, a food blogger and dessert lover. If I look familiar you may have seen me on NETFLIX's Zumbo’s Just Desserts S2! As an Australian-Chinese pastry chef and recipe developer I share recipes and tips on desserts inspired by amazing flavours, fresh produce and of course my Asian background.

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