I first tried bing tang hu lou back on National Day, but it was nightfall, and too dark to photograph it. Since then, I've had it a handful of times, condeming it's ridiculous sugary sweetness each time.
What is bing tang hu lou? It's a Chinese "dessert", sold out of carts, stands, and tiny storefronts as street food. The standard version consists of about six or seven crab apples that have been skewered on a stick, coated with a light sugar syrup that has crystallized just on the edges, and wrapped in an edible thin sheet of rice paper, which minimizes the drippy syrup mess.
Though bing tang hu lou is ridiculously sweet, I love it nonetheless. As a "dish", it offers some amazing contrasts -- first the contrast between the sour crab apples and the sickly sweet syrup, then the dichotomy between the crunchy hardness of the sugary edges with the juicy, tender meat of the apple flesh. Yum.
I was particularly impressed with the numerous other combinations that have been adapted to bing tang hu lou's impale-dip-wrap formula.
I was struck by Nanjing's offerings, which included strawberries (seasonal right now), pineapples, cherry tomatoes, mandarin orange slices, kiwis, starfruit slices, bananas, and melon balls. Some skewers had been doused in crushed nuts, and others in golden raisins.
I chose an old favorite -- alternating crab apples and chocolate pieces (this version also featured a pecan with the chocolate). I would have sampled more, but after eating just one of these babies, your teeth feel like they could rot right out of your head.
Anyone else have favorites?
Posted by Astrid at January 3, 2005 07:30 AM