Remove the black salted charcoal from the salted egg and wash thoroughly.
Separate the egg yolk from the white.
Remove excess egg white that is left on the yolk with a kitchen towel.
Arrange the yolks on an oiled plate and steam for 2 minutes. Cool and set aside.
Prepare the pastry
Sieve the flour into a bowl.
Make a well in the centre and add the syrup, oil and alkaline water.Use a spatula to fold the flour into the center until well incorporated.
Cover the bowl with cling wrap for 2-3 hours and leave at room temperature.
Prepare the filling
Add the melon seeds to the lotus seed paste and mix well.
The weight of 1 egg yolk and lotus paste together should be 130g (this is dependent on the volume of your mooncake mould).
Roll the lotus paste into a ball and use your thumb to make an indent in the center big enough for the egg yolk.
Place the egg yolk in the hole and cover it with remaining lotus paste, ensuring that it stays in the middle as much as possible. Roll it into a ball and set aside.
Assemble the mooncake
Weigh out 50g of the pastry after it has set. (The combined weight of the pastry and filling should fit exactly into your mould.)
Roll the pastry into a ball. Flatten it into a circle with your palms. Wrap the pastry around the filling ball, ensuring that there are no cracks in the skin.
One the filling is enclosed, roll into a ball and dust with Hong Kong flour and set aside.
Generously dust the mooncake mould with flour and tap out any excess.
Push the ball into the mould until all the spaces are filled, pressing from outside towards the center.
Tap the mould on the table, once on each side to loosen and dislodge the mooncake.
Bake the mooncake
Place the mooncakes on a baking tray and spray some water on them to ensure no cracking during the baking process. Bake in a preheated oven at 160 degrees for 15 minutes.
Remove from the oven and cool. Mix and sieve the eggs and brush the egg wash over the mooncakes before putting them back in the oven for another 10 minutes until golden brown.
Remove and let them cool completely before storing in a container. It is best eaten a few days after baking.
Video
Notes
MARKETING TIPS
Get the duck eggs from the wet market instead of supermarkets. The ones with the black soil are the freshest and will produce a bigger and more vibrant egg yolk.
It is best if you follow our recipe to make your own lotus seed paste, if not, we recommend that you get it from Sun Lik Trading.
COOKING TIPS
Do not over-steam the egg yolks as they will be dry and disintegrate easily during the assembly process.
Golden syrup sweetens the pastry and gives it the beautiful golden colour.
Alkaline water neutralises the acid in the golden syrup which helps to prevent the sugars from crystallising and forming a crispy pastry. It browns the mooncake and keeps it soft.
The peanut oil will add a savoury depth of flavour to the mooncake.
To prevent the skin from cracking during the baking process, spray some water over the mooncakes before baking.
Do not brush the raw mooncake with egg wash as it will destroy the imprint, thus doing it after the 1st round of baking will be better. However, remember to let the mooncake cool down before doing so if not the residual heat will cook the egg. Brush it uniformly and get into all the crevices so the mooncake will brown evenly.
STORING TIPS
When done, cool completely and place it in a container for at least 1-2 days for the oil to surface. The mooncake will take on a glossy appearance, and it will taste better.
Do not throw away the unused egg whites, use them in fried rice or steamed eggs!