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Is there a large palate difference? Even many Indians agree that their sweets are too sweet. That can be fixed though. For example, take gulab jamun, drain off

Is there a large palate difference? Even many Indians agree that their sweets are too sweet. That can be fixed though. For example, take gulab jamun, drain off the syrup and replace it with old monk rum. Suddenly it's an alcoholic bittersweet delight rather than a blast of sugar. And Chinese sweets don't differ that drastically from American ones - they are usually less sweet, and incorporate a few uncommon flavors and textures (red bean, green tea, glutinous rice), but they are actually surprisingly close.

dpark 11y ago
I'd say that the sweetness is not the primary difference. It's the uncommon flavors and textures specifically in combination with sweetness that are the big difference. e.g.Cardamom and sugar are not a combination that my taste buds understand. Objectively, there is no reason that sweet cardamom tastes bad to me while sweet cinnamon tastes delicious, but subjectively there is. For Chinese sweets, the ones I've had were really not that sweet at all. They were mildly sweet and just odd flavors and textures. e.g. Gummy and barely sweet was just not appealing. Others are just boring to my taste. At Chinese buffets there are often a selection of desserts that I can eat but don't care to because I don't enjoy them enough for the calories. In fairness, I have not interested a bunch of my time trying to find new ethnic sweets that I like. I have them mostly when co-workers provide them and I feel adventurous (or less frequently obligated) enough to try it.
uuuter 11y ago
You are restricting the list of Chinese sweets to those limited to Western tastes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasma https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasma etc. The things put in Chinese jellies and sweet soups are far more diverse than your list which I would not even call uncommon since you can get red bean or green tea whatever at a middle american strip mall buffet. Try a Chinese dessert shop in Chinatown. Personally, I have difficulty enjoying most of the items as dessert.
- jzwinck 11y ago
  Hasma is very expensive and reserved for special occasions. It's like saying that American desserts incorporate gold leaf and Tahitian vanilla beans. Source: I ate hasma. It was sort of like tapioca but harder to justify.
  - Chathamization 11y ago
    Eh, I think that's a bit of an exaggeration. It at least seemed to be a common item on the menu at many of the mid-range restaurants I saw in China.
  - uuuter 11y ago
    It's not that expensive. You can get hasma dishes at a dessert cafe for 15 CAD. Definitely higher end. But it was just one example to counter green tea and red bean. My point still stands.
- yummyfajitas 11y ago
  When I'm in the states I regularly get sweets from a Chinese bakery in Chinatown. I'm often the only white guy there so I think it's reasonably authentic - Chinese friends have confirmed this. There may be weirder options (any vegetarian suggestions?) out there somewhere, but they don't seem particularly common even in Chinatown. Most folks seem to order similar things to me (albeit carnivorous).
  - uuuter 11y ago
    The authenticity of said bakery may be true but one needs to go to a chinese dessert cafe or similar for a full menu of chinese traditional desserts. Various soups, congee (porridge), and jellies, and gelatin cakes. Again as someone else mentioned, it is not just the ingredients (coconut is very common) but the amounts and textures. Cashew nut soup is an example, and probably quite accessible.
    - thaumasiotes 11y ago
      Speaking as someone (an American) who has lived in Shanghai for several years, I find the authenticity of the concept "Chinese dessert cafe" pretty questionable.
      - maaku 11y ago
        I'm not sure what you mean? I literally just ate at one in Hong Kong, and last week saw several in Taipei...
        thaumasiotes 11y ago
        I'll take your word for it. I've never noticed such a thing. There's street food all over the place, sit-down restaurants are common, but dessert is vanishingly rare outside of foreign restaurants. The closest thing I've seen to a dessert cafe served waffles. :/ EDIT: I have confirmed that stores exist selling chinese sweet pastries. I'm happy to call this a win for you. (I also got a note saying Guangdong is known in China for the local prevalence of sweets, so Hong Kong would be especially likely to have such a local tradition.) One person I asked listed 纽约芝士蛋糕 ("New York style cheesecake") as an example of Chinese dessert, so there's that.
deleted 11y ago
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erichmond 11y ago
As someone who's married into a different "ethnic" family, the palate difference (at least for us) is incredibly wide on both sides. I can't really stomach most authentic Chinese food, and especially can't deal with the flavor and texture of the desserts. Likewise, my wife's family can't handle traditional midwestern dishes, nor traditional soul food well at all. That's just been my experience of course, so I'm not claiming it's indicative, but it's actually the hardest part of our marriage (which, is a good thing, I think).
mangamadaiyan 11y ago
On a tangent - try Vanilla Ice Cream with Old Monk. Yum :)
voltagex_ 11y ago
Oh no, I was just introduced to gulab jamun, and now you're telling me I can add alcohol? What's old monk rum, though? Edit: Looks like it's an Indian rum - with good reviews, completely unobtainable in Australia.
- yummyfajitas 11y ago
  In my opinion it's the finest rum in the world. A heavy drinker I know told me it isn't - it's only the finest rum under $100. (In the US I can get it at a few places for about $15 - either Indian St in Jersey City or Curry Hill in NY - and most liquor stores in India sell it for a similar price.)
  - voltagex_ 11y ago
    Ouch - look at the markup! http://bharattraders.com.au/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=66&products_id=301 http://bharattraders.com.au/index.php?main_page=product_info... May have to wait til I'm back in NA.

dpark 11y ago

I'd say that the sweetness is not the primary difference. It's the uncommon flavors and textures specifically in combination with sweetness that are the big difference. e.g.Cardamom and sugar are not a combination that my taste buds understand. Objectively, there is no reason that sweet cardamom tastes bad to me while sweet cinnamon tastes delicious, but subjectively there is. For Chinese sweets, the ones I've had were really not that sweet at all. They were mildly sweet and just odd flavors and textures. e.g. Gummy and barely sweet was just not appealing. Others are just boring to my taste. At Chinese buffets there are often a selection of desserts that I can eat but don't care to because I don't enjoy them enough for the calories. In fairness, I have not interested a bunch of my time trying to find new ethnic sweets that I like. I have them mostly when co-workers provide them and I feel adventurous (or less frequently obligated) enough to try it.

uuuter 11y ago

You are restricting the list of Chinese sweets to those limited to Western tastes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasma https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasma etc. The things put in Chinese jellies and sweet soups are far more diverse than your list which I would not even call uncommon since you can get red bean or green tea whatever at a middle american strip mall buffet. Try a Chinese dessert shop in Chinatown. Personally, I have difficulty enjoying most of the items as dessert.

jzwinck 11y ago
Hasma is very expensive and reserved for special occasions. It's like saying that American desserts incorporate gold leaf and Tahitian vanilla beans. Source: I ate hasma. It was sort of like tapioca but harder to justify.
- Chathamization 11y ago
  Eh, I think that's a bit of an exaggeration. It at least seemed to be a common item on the menu at many of the mid-range restaurants I saw in China.
- uuuter 11y ago
  It's not that expensive. You can get hasma dishes at a dessert cafe for 15 CAD. Definitely higher end. But it was just one example to counter green tea and red bean. My point still stands.
yummyfajitas 11y ago
When I'm in the states I regularly get sweets from a Chinese bakery in Chinatown. I'm often the only white guy there so I think it's reasonably authentic - Chinese friends have confirmed this. There may be weirder options (any vegetarian suggestions?) out there somewhere, but they don't seem particularly common even in Chinatown. Most folks seem to order similar things to me (albeit carnivorous).
- uuuter 11y ago
  The authenticity of said bakery may be true but one needs to go to a chinese dessert cafe or similar for a full menu of chinese traditional desserts. Various soups, congee (porridge), and jellies, and gelatin cakes. Again as someone else mentioned, it is not just the ingredients (coconut is very common) but the amounts and textures. Cashew nut soup is an example, and probably quite accessible.
  - thaumasiotes 11y ago
    Speaking as someone (an American) who has lived in Shanghai for several years, I find the authenticity of the concept "Chinese dessert cafe" pretty questionable.
    - maaku 11y ago
      I'm not sure what you mean? I literally just ate at one in Hong Kong, and last week saw several in Taipei...
      - thaumasiotes 11y ago
        I'll take your word for it. I've never noticed such a thing. There's street food all over the place, sit-down restaurants are common, but dessert is vanishingly rare outside of foreign restaurants. The closest thing I've seen to a dessert cafe served waffles. :/ EDIT: I have confirmed that stores exist selling chinese sweet pastries. I'm happy to call this a win for you. (I also got a note saying Guangdong is known in China for the local prevalence of sweets, so Hong Kong would be especially likely to have such a local tradition.) One person I asked listed 纽约芝士蛋糕 ("New York style cheesecake") as an example of Chinese dessert, so there's that.

deleted 11y ago

[deleted]

erichmond 11y ago

As someone who's married into a different "ethnic" family, the palate difference (at least for us) is incredibly wide on both sides. I can't really stomach most authentic Chinese food, and especially can't deal with the flavor and texture of the desserts. Likewise, my wife's family can't handle traditional midwestern dishes, nor traditional soul food well at all. That's just been my experience of course, so I'm not claiming it's indicative, but it's actually the hardest part of our marriage (which, is a good thing, I think).

mangamadaiyan 11y ago

On a tangent - try Vanilla Ice Cream with Old Monk. Yum :)

voltagex_ 11y ago

Oh no, I was just introduced to gulab jamun, and now you're telling me I can add alcohol? What's old monk rum, though? Edit: Looks like it's an Indian rum - with good reviews, completely unobtainable in Australia.

yummyfajitas 11y ago
In my opinion it's the finest rum in the world. A heavy drinker I know told me it isn't - it's only the finest rum under $100. (In the US I can get it at a few places for about $15 - either Indian St in Jersey City or Curry Hill in NY - and most liquor stores in India sell it for a similar price.)
- voltagex_ 11y ago
  Ouch - look at the markup! http://bharattraders.com.au/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=66&products_id=301 http://bharattraders.com.au/index.php?main_page=product_info... May have to wait til I'm back in NA.