Hard dough pastry

Hard dough pastry

　　Hard dough pastry was a type of noodle-based snack commonly served at night among Beijing’s street foods in the past. However, due to changes in people’s living habits, rising living standards, and the decline of mobile street vendors, this snack has gradually disappeared.

　　Hard dough pastry is made using fermented dough, typically fermented to about 50% proof, then mixed with an alkaline agent and additional dry flour to make the dough firmer. The dough is then kneaded evenly, rolled into long strips, and divided into small pieces weighing about 75 grams each. A 20-gram filling of brown sugar is wrapped inside, then the dough is flattened. A crisscross pattern is created on the surface using a decorative rolling pin, and several small air holes are poked through with a bamboo needle before the pastries are arranged on a baking tray and baked. One important aspect is the preparation of the brown sugar filling — for example, 1.5 kilograms of brown sugar can be mixed with 300 grams of dry flour, 100 grams of osmanthus flowers, and 50 grams of oil, then kneaded by hand until well blended.

　　The characteristic of hard dough pastry is that it is chewy and sweet. In the past, it was sold exclusively at night by street vendors whose calls could be heard from afar. As noted in the “Food Miscellaneous Songs”: “Pastry peddlers chant with cunning tones along the street, their echoing voices piercing bright-lit windows. Indeed, the hard dough pastry resonates through the quiet night, startling a pair of lovebirds from their shared dream.”