Chinese Cheesecake?

That looks like rice cake. Several manapua shops here in Honolulu sell varieties of rice cake. The Chinese versions are very different from the Japanese mochi that I sometimes make at home.

Rice cakes are usually made from glutinous rice. You can buy that as a kind of rice flour (mochiko), which makes a dense, even-textured sweet.  I have the impression that the Chinese rice cakes aren't made from anything like mochiko, but from glutinous rice that has been boiled and then pounded. I have the impression that this requires special equipment and that it is something done by professional cooks, not at home. BUT I could be wrong. Couldn't find out much about Chinese rice cakes online.

a lemon mochi variant?  I've had mochi that tastes, looks and has the mouth feel of imitation crab :-)  A sort of rice lemon cheesecake is no problem at all.

The dough looks more like a double layer of  wonton wrapper or egg roll wrapper than phyllo- which would be much thinner. It is hard from the photo to tell how big the pastry is. If mini-then probably the wonton wrapper. If larger then the springroll. There are lots of recipes for Chinese Egg Custard Tarts. THe shiny brown top is most likely a glaze applied after baking.

Hope this helps. It looks like an idea that should be followed up on.

Jim

Just from looking at the photo it looks like fortune cookie dough, I agree it doesn't look like phyllo pastry as the sheets seem fairly thick.

Gerhard

I have been looking for a recipe for these tasty gems too!  I asked at our local Chinese what they were called... Egg tart was as close as language differences could come.  But like the picture, these used wonton for the cup, and the custard is moist, sweet with a citrus tinge.  One time we found what we thought was a wee bit of pineapple.  I don't think it's a rice thing.  It's a baked egg custard.  And yes, probably baked in a cupcake tin.  Whatever they are, they're served warm and delicious!  If anyone finds a recipe, please post!f

After digging.. bc I too loves these.. I believe it might be chinese egg CAKE baked in springroll wrappers.. google chinese egg cake.. there's a recipe.. 

I probably should have re-thought choosing my handle.  It really sounds like I'm an extra big fan of eggs..... 8-)

Anyway, the sweet that I'm looking for is the exact one that is pictured above.  Very custardy, but spongy and light as well, with those little holes all through.  The top gets slightly sticky, with the sugar baking out.  The little custard egg tarts I see online are a bright yellow, as if they're made from just the yoke.  But these are a pale yellow.  Really, the only picture I can come up with online that looks exactly like what I'm searching for, is the original one from dablues.  8-)  I will also say that these would not be sold in a shop, pre packaged in any way.  They're made fresh and served warm.  I'm getting so hungry......

I have had these at our local buffet and the minute I tasted it I knew it was the same flavor and texture as what my dad called egg pie. I have never been able to find his recipe to make for myself. Until finding them at the local buffet I had not had anything other than pie custards. They use mayo instead of butter for fat in the recipe though; I guess to save money. I have never been able to find anything but custard recipes and I know my dad did not use any milk in his pie. I dont think the buffet uses any milk either. I would love to find someone who has just an egg pie recipe NOT an egg custard recipe.

Are you in New England? I suspect this is the New England version of a traditional egg tart:  much fluffier and in a wonton wrapper instead of flaky pastry. I've seen it called egg tart or cheese tart here in Massachusetts. Maybe it's made with whipped egg whites, since it is so much fluffier than a traditional egg tart. Once in a while I'll detect a hint of pineapple in one.

Here's a picture I took of one back when I started searching for this recipe myself. Very soft and moist, but with a texture that's creamy but kinda crumbly. I'm almost 100% sure it's baked in a wonton wrapper in a muffin tin.

Hi, that looks very much like the ones we're talking about.  And the hint of pineapple is a trait that some of us have noted.  I don't think it's a New England thing, since we're in Ohio.  Yours looks a bit drier than ours, maybe.

Most of the egg tarts that you can see on Google are in thick pastry cups, and the filling looks nothing like this.  If you Google for Egg Tart, you'll see thousands of the pastry ones, with very yellow filling and no caramelization.  Just not the same thing.

The caramelization is important - the fine bubble structure is another. They're also the taste of the pineapple, and these are more sweet than a normal egg custard.  And they're almost buttery.....

I really don't think the bubbles come from whipping - if that were the case, the bubbles would rise to the top, and the top of the tart would be frothy, and the bottom would have no bubbles.  These have well-distributed airy bubbles.  I think there's some leavening agent being used.

At first, I called them egg custards, but our Chinese place has both - normal egg custard, served cold, and the texture is nothing like these....and they're served warm.

Check out the following links, hope they're helpful to you:

椰撻 Coconut tarts

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=%E6%A4%B0%E6%92%BB%E9%A3%9F%E8%AD%9C&tbm=vid&spf=878

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=%E6%A4%B0%E6%92%BB&spf=68

葡撻 Portuguese style egg tarts

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#tbm=vid&q=%E8%91%A1%E6%92%BB%E9%A3%9F%E8%AD%9C&spf=1191

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=%E8%91%A1%E6%92%BB%E9%A3%9F%E8%AD%9C&spf=67

 http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0811/p11s01-trgn.html

Yippee

agree with Felila that it looks like rice cake. Thanks for the great idea, want to test my new oven that I found at https://www.choice.co.nz/category/920/equipment/convection-ovens. Prefer to use only professional equipment at my kitchen. Found one great recipe of Rice Cooker Cheesecake here.

:).  With tapioca flour not the "pearls."

Had an interesting cream in a variant of a Cardinal dessert,  was a combination of bottled coffee cream and yogurt and tasted like caramel cream.

Another thought... is it possible that the wrapper was first brushed inside with a sugar syrup or lemon jam, filled and brushed with syrup on top?   

I was reading this recipe and wondering what would happen if it was made individual and baked instead.  It has been my observation that many Asian desserts emulate Viennese specialties.  Could this also be a cross cultural experience?   Keep in mind that many Asians are lactose sensitive making substitutions for milk products, coconut milk comes to mind.

Thanks for sending the links, Yippee.  I couldn't open some of them, but thanks for looking so hard.

But....there's no coconut at all.....and while there is a trace of something citrus and many people say it's pineapple, it is not pineapple like in the link. No chunks of fruit, like those.   One time I found the tiniest piece of what seemed to be a bit of pineapple. But otherwise, no chunks of anything.

Isn't it funny that we've gathered together in search of this small, elusive treat?  If I could, I would mail one to each of you!!

I live in NY state and most China buffets have something similar.  Egg custard baked in edible rice paper.  They put a piece of pineapple in the middle sometimes.  They are moist and delicious.  The buffet labels them egg custard. 

I live in Tulsa and we used to have a Chinese buffet that had these exact same tarts. I tried for a long time to find the recipe and never had any success.  I'll for following this thread going forward.  If I find anything I'll post it.

I came across this delicious item at a Chinese restaurant in Sedalia, MO and just like everyone else I can't find the recipe.  My thought was that it is close to the German Pancake but with sugar added and more flour.  May have to test those thoughts out.  If I do,  I'll post my findings.

https://www.house-foods.com/recipe/Chinese+Tofu+Egg+Tart/

 Every cook has their nemesis. Mine is Biscoff cookies- the kind some of the airlines hand out here in the USA. I cannot get a good recipe but I am getting close and I got closer by making observations.

First of all- the obvious. Can you get any more information from the restaurant where you first encountered this delicacy? Where I am from, the buffet restaurants often buy the desserts frozen from a supplier. I know that is not where you want to go but it may answer a few questions.

Are there any Chinese/Asian bakeries near you? If you travel to San Francisco, there are several. Look for comparisons.

On to observations.:

Asian desserts often have much more sugar than European desserts, I have found. The topping on this tart looks like a torched sugar. It is so much browner than the rest of the tart. Is it separate sugar sprinkled on or part of the sugar in the coating? If you have found a recipe that is similar, try increasing the sugar.

Those are definitely wonton skins-thicker than phyllo dough. Either would be delicious.

The "crumb" looks very wet and almost translucent. I believe there is either corn starch or rice flour in the custard. Regular flour would be more opaque.

I don't see any bits of lemon zest so the lemon must come from lemon juice.

There is a fluffy, hole-y structure. That can come from egg whites being whipped into a meringue or from a leavener interacting with the lemon juice. It is not very yellow (at least on the picture) so if it didn't taste very eggy, I would guess the proportion of eggs is significant but not very high.

If it didn't taste very cheesey (like a thick New York cheesecake feel in your mouth), it may have been made with light cream rather than cream cheese. If it was a little grainy, it could have been made with ricotta.

So here is my guess from just looking at the picture and reading your observations:

Egg-separated and egg white whipped to soft peaks and folded in.

Sugar-more than you would think for a custard.

Light cream

Corn starch or sweet glutenous rice flour as thickener

Lemon juice

Small amount baking soda

I believe the consistency is more difficult to emulate than the taste. Devise a custard recipe (in grams would be very helpful for recipe development) based on a review of recipes that have these ingredients. If you can use gram measurements and develop a small scale recipe, it should be easy enough to scale up. Experimentation takes time and effort but can be very fun!

Good luck! 

https://en.christinesrecipes.com/2010/08/egg-custard-pastries-cheating-version.html

These "look" right, but they are almost too yellow in color. The ones we have at our local Chinese buffet (in Northern VA) have a slight hint of nut and vanilla/lemon, definitely look like  your pics.

https://food52.com/recipes/37274-tuscan-rice-and-custard-torta-torta-di-riso-alla-carrarina

This recipe has ingredients I feel like should definitely be IN these thin paper pastries.

I would think it needs to be more of a cake consistency rather than a custard. Might try this as my next recipe discovery. 

It’s funny that I was searching the internet for this dessert. I always eat a lot of this at a buffet close to us.  I call it asian cupcake :). It’s NOT rice cake. I thinks it’s custard (made with eggs, milk and flour) with baking powder and used egg roll wrapper then bake. I’ve been meaning to try this and see how it turns out. If u won’t try it, I will try to make it and I will let you know if it’s at least, close enough :) 

I was searching around and the filling to this looks similar to the middle of the ones at the restaurant but just substitute the puff pastry for the thin wonton wrap 

I believe this is it with some modification to it , I can tell that the one from my local China buffet glazes the top with mayo to give it a char look.  

https://en.christinesrecipes.com/2010/08/egg-custard-pastries-cheating-version.html?m=1

I have been searching for a recipe as well after having the exact same thing at a Chinese buffet I was told it’s a Japanese cheese tart but instead of making the tart crusts use double wantan wrappers I’ll add a link to the video it does have lemon juice powder sugar and vanilla in with cheeses it sounds right I’m making tomorrow hope it’s the one they’re amazing! I would like to think the buffet throws the cheapest ingredients in for max profit omitting the tart crust and going for wantan wrappers but hopefully it’s the same filling 

https://youtu.be/iCwgC1mlw0U

The end result filling consistency is different but i also think they sit longer or are premade then rebaked leaving a drier center. And I thought maybe an egg custard too but these were served warm at my buffet too next time I go I’m asking them many more questions! 

Yesterday, at our Chinese buffet, I thought I'd take a picture with an Egg Tart and Egg Custard on one plate.  But the two could not be further apart.  Classic egg custard is wet, smooth, has no bubbles, cold... It's the same as the custard pie my Mom used to make.  Tasty, for sure.  But nothing like the textures of the Egg Tart. 

They were especially good, btw.  They were making them very lean for a while - not nearly enough filling, making them chewy and almost tough.  But these were luscious and wonderful.  The earth can now continue to spin on its axis.... 8-)

I have had these amazingly moist sweet treats at Fortune Palace Asian Buffet in Sedalia Mo. I saw someone else had had them there as well. They call them Egg Puffs. I am researching these addictive pastries also. I came across your search also. I am know looking into Mushi Pan recipes. They are a steamed egg cake that comes in many different variations. I will post again if I find the right recipe. The ones I have read so far are not as moist and sweet as what I’ve had at the Buffett.

Is it possible the eggs are from geese and not chickens?  Goose eggs are richer, handle like they already have cream blended into them.

I’ve been looking for this recipie as well! I just read through most of the comments on this post and saw that you dismissed the idea that there is coconut in it, hear me out- my Chinese buffet (in TN) calls them coconut cakes. I’ve always thought this was super weird because they taste nothing like coconut so I’m guessing it has to do with coconut milk or something? That’s the only useful info I have right now but I shall post back if I manage to find a recipie. 

vary lemon for your own tastes    Brush on topping instead and continue baking until golden brown?

may have to fiddle with the finished look... perhaps hand held torch for caramel?

https://shop.countdown.co.nz/shop/recipe/898?name=lemon-cheesecake-tarts

mayonaise is beaten eggs...try beating the eggs 1) first the whites then drop in the yolks or 2) together about ten minutes to bring up the volume. 

Maybe you can share some of your trial details.  

1 lb sweet rice flour (green package glutinous rice flour - use Chinese brand not Japanese mochiko; grind is different)

4 large eggs 

3 c milk

2.5 c sugar granulated

1 tsp coconut extract

1/2 stick melted butter (1/4 c) cooled

3 tbsp finely shredded coconut

mix all ingred together ; beat 2 min med speed

Spray a rectangular pan with PAM , end with around 1.5 inch depth;

pour mixture in and bake until golden and sides pull away from edge- Around 1 hr.

cool before cutting.

you can use muffin tins too

even if this is not the recipe for the cake above, you will thoroughly enjoy this baked good

have you tried a white mayonnaise cake?   

https://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/prt/0,166,144171-244198,00.html?

Ask them the name of the company that supplies them. Many of the Chinese buffets I've gone to use a restaurant supplier for their desserts and baked goods. If you can find the supplier you may have better luck at least finding the ingredients. Ask if you can order a box of unbaked tarts for a party. Ask for an ingredient list for allergy reasons. In some communities, the restaurant is required to have a list of ingredients just for that reason.

Take one to a few bakers and ask their opinions. They should be able to tell the base ingredients. The pictures are good but it is very hard to tell from pictures if it is an aerated custard, cheesecake or moist cake. Oriental sweets are generally very sweet. Just by looking at the picture, it almost looks like it could be a custard made with sweetened condensed milk.  Could it be sweetened condensed milk, lemon juice, a little starch(corn starch or flour) and baking powder? Kind of like a fluffy Magic Lemon pie filling. Does it have any egg taste? Also, it looks like it was torched to brown the topping of sugar. 

A Mexican friend works at a Chinese restaurant that serves this dessert.  I've only tried them once, but I thought that they were delicious too.  The restaurant isn't close to where I live and I haven't been able to find any local Chinese restaurants that serve them.  

My friend has just sent me pictures and amounts of the ingredients.  I'm not that much of a baker (anymore) and the recipe that he has sent me is for the restaurant, so you will have to figure out how to downsize the recipe.  

I will post what he provided in the next couple of days.

My friend sent me the recipe in pictures and in Spanish/English.  I've combined the two and put them in collage pictures, but I don't know how to attach them here.  Can someone help me with this?

Thanks.

Sorry, I just realized that long ago, when I sent this photo up, I forgot to say what is pictured....  On the left is a normal egg custard dessert, which our Chinese Buffet makes as well.  The same kind of sweet egg custard that my Mom used to make her custard pies.  The taste brings back lots of memories.

But the one on the right is the item that we are searching for.  Totally different in every way, other than egg and sugar are involved in there somewhere.  A bit more savory, with a texture nothing like the smooth density of regular egg custard.   The search goes on.

I'm sorry but I don't know how many this recipe makes.  I am also not sure if it is Wonton Wrappers that are used or if it is something else.  I also don't know what temperature they are cooked at or for how long.  I'm sorry.

If someone can't figure those parts out, I can try to see if I can get my Mexican friend to ask the Chinese cooks for that information.

Please let me know if anyone has any success with what I've provided.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed!!!  ???

So...

Maybe divide everything by 10?

1 big can of condensed milk, half- to two-thirds of a cup of pineapple juice, 5 eggs, 1 tsp baking powder, 3 cups mayonnaise... ?

One third of a "thing" of flour?

One third of a "different thing" of sugar?

Or are the two "things" the same size?

My guess regarding the type of flour: I think it would be very odd in the US (no matter what nationality an individual might be) to keep a big bin that's simply marked "flour", and have it contain anything other than white all-purpose flour.

Also: I might just be wrong, but it appears to me that if someone guesses wrong about the amount of flour in this recipe it won't completely fail, just have a poor texture. And sugar can obviously be adjusted "until it tastes right", so no harm in not knowing the precise amount, just more taste tests required. ?

Wow, this recipe is so close to Chinese mayo shrimp recipe, but assemble differently.  

I couldn’t taste any hint of pineapple,  maybe my local China buffet uses honey instead of pineapple juice like how they make mayo shrimp 

One cup of mayo is made from 1/2 cup oil and one egg yolk plus spices sugar, salt, mustard,hot water and vinegar.    Mayo weights are fun, my 50% mayo weighs 490g but is 500ml.  So there is a 2% loss in weight when converting ml to grams.  So if one of the mayo gallons is converted to liters and then divided by 5, a further decrease by 2% should give the mayo weight for the reduced recipe.  Ha!   But that still seems like a lot of mayo... I get 757ml or 742g Mayonnaise 

My mayo is 1.9% salt.  That figures to 14g in the mayo plus 1g in the condensed milk...   Tip: Over salting can be tastewise reduced with dairy products like milk, cream, sour cream, etc. we have condensed milk in the recipe but 15g (three teaspoons or one tablespoon) seems like a lot.   Maybe I make my own mayo and drop some of the salt if 742g mayo is used. First to line up the recipe and reduce further for a taste test to see. Let's go on...

According to the 3Tbs baking powder amount (1/2 to 1 tsp per cup flour) the flour can be anywhere from 9 to 18 cups of flour.  The pictures look like twice as much volume flour when compared to sugar.  

If that is a pint container, 3/4 pint sugar (1.5 c) to 1 1/2 pints flour ( 3c)   Volume to grams....

Sugar is 200g per cup  so 200g x 1.5 = 300g     300g x 3 containers = 900g.   Divide by 10 brings sugar down to 90g.    (Total recipe sugar is 308g.)

I run with one cup of flour is 125g sometimes 130g but that looks like some heavy scooping, so maybe 135g per cup is closer (or maybe more)

135g x 3 = 405g    405g x 3containers =  1215g    Divide by 10 brings flour down to approx. 120g 

A little back check... 1215g / 125g per cup =  9.7 cups.  So the baking powder seems to check out with the lowest flour amount.

I picked up a can of sweetened condensed milk, it's a little over a cup   Weight is 397g  or 305 ml.  So that sounds reasonable and no leftovers! There is 0.25% salt (1g) and 55% is sugar (218g) included!  Heavy little can. Doesn't the picture show 396g after the 14 oz.?

Eggs... dividing by 10 gives 5 eggs.  Convert 5 eggs to grams... gotta do some digging. I'm getting old but there is a discussion here about the weights and sizes and such.  Let's go with 60 g each x 5 = 300g egg

Whats next?  Pineapple juice.... 4.6 fl oz   Well without converting I'd guess that is just over half an 8 fl.oz. cup. If one cup is 240ml (g) then 120 plus a little ...136g. 

Baking powder; single active (thanks Debra Wink) can be anywhere from half to one teaspoon per cup of flour. The 3/4 tsp looks pretty accurate.   If you have full acting baking powder might want to drop down to a half teaspoon. Sift into the flour several times and give a good stirring.

Open to discussions, corrections, this and that...

If I divide everything by 5 

The recipe looks like this and easily makes one dozen ... about right for a 12er muffin pan

148g   mayo

  18g   sugar

  24g   Flour.  

  79g   Sweetened condensed milk

  60g.  Egg. one

  27g.   Pineapple juice

  less than 1/4 tsp baking powder.  A pinch?   

Beware! Most condensed milk comes in small cans. You want 14 oz (415 ml), which is considerably bigger than a standard soup can.

waiting for the oven to heat up to 160°C. Upper and lower heating elements, middle of the oven.

March 21

recipe so far...

148g   mayo

  18g   sugar

  24g   Flour.  

  79g   Sweetened condensed milk

  60g.  Egg. one

  27g.   Pineapple juice

  less than 1/4 tsp baking powder.  

Mixed and sifted tapioca starch with a knife point of baking powder and the sugar to prevent lumps later when adding, set aside.  Cracked an egg, scrambled it with a small whisk and set aside.  Simply combined mayo and milk and tasted it.  Not bad!  Added the egg and whisked together, then added the dry ingredients and whisked them in.  Still tasting and the tastebuds are still giving the "ok."  

Greased my muffin pan and 9.5 cm (3 3/4") wontons (for frying) into the pans shaping them with the help of a quirrel.   This one egg small batch easily makes a dozen.  

IMG_1879.JPG

IMG_1882.JPG

they fell.  I left them in the oven until I thought the wrappers brown enough.  The tops of the mayo custard was not yet brown.  I think next time I need to brush off the loose starch on the wrappers before shaping them.  Maybe move them up a shelf in the oven or brush a glaze on them that will help browning and add a shine.

IMG_1886.JPG

IMG_1888.JPG

IMG_1890.JPG

Gosh I hope this comes close.  They were 23 minutes in the oven.  A few tweaks in the "look" department needed. Second and third also showing raised bottoms inside, I think moving up a shelf may help during baking. The custard is like soft bubbly set gel, not cake, I get that now.  The taste buds are thinking the balance of salt and sweet makes this work. I think if less sugar goes into the recipe then less salt as well (like less salt in homemade mayo.)

I think the starch was the appropriate choice. I believe flour might be too...heavy. The crumb on the original post looks translucent. Flour would be more opaque, I believe. Try increasing the starch a bit?  Thickening may provide a little more resistance to forming the large baker's attic?

Needs either sugar sprinkled on top to brown or a torch to the surface.

Poss. brush the wontons with oil? The original picture is not fried-at least by its appearance.

I concur with the idea of moving up a bit. It may help the top brown and the bottom from heating too quickly.

http://allrecipes.com.au/recipe/27767/deep-fried-milk.aspx

I found this ingredient by searching for Chinese deep fried custard.  It also uses condense milk, but no mayo.  

This method involves bringing those ingredients to a simmer first and then freeze it up after. Quite interesting 

I'm having fun reading the posts on this dessert.  I really hope that my friend and I were able to help with the recipe that he provided. 

I do better at take out, so I'll just have to settle for driving a couple of hours to have this dessert.  ?

Please keep on posting the progress that yinz are making in perfecting this dessert!!!  ???

Dablues, did you use the recipe we have in grams??  What temp did you bake it at?  For how long??  Itching to try it.  Not using wontons yet - will use cupcake papers first.  Maybe in coffee cups.  My big oven is on the blink, so will use a toaster oven, any my cupcake tins won't fit.   8-o  This could be interesting.   BTW, our Chinese only uses one wonton.  (reminds me of the old song, "One Meatball")  (oh, there I go again)

I really feel that the browning on top is a natural thing, not a torch thing.  The color is not that dark.  A spot of broiler might not hurt tho...

Ooh, this is so exciting!   

I’m pretty sure they didn’t freeze the whole entire ingredient from a bucket,  from the previous recipe that  I found which is called “fried milk”. They simmer the mixture.   In this case,  they probably simmer the whole mixture and then pour it into a wonton mold inside a muffin tray  and freeze it up for deep fry or baking.  

This isn’t a 5 stars restaurant that serve this desert to us, it is a buffet.  They have to be fast and efficient

Freezing and frying isn’t as bad as most people think,  I know Chinese chefs who use this method to keep their fried eggrolls, dumpling, and crabrangoon remain crispy after hours of being cooked.  

Ok, will try to freeze some of the batter.  It could very well freeze into an Icecream type mass to be scooped out with a small icecream spoon and placed into the middle of the wrapper, shaped, placed in tin, then baked.  That would give the tops a chance to brown before the centers are baked and possibly keep the lower part of the wonton wrappers light in color.  Just an idea.  Someone else can play with frying them.  Sesame seeds?

Even at 160°C  (325° F) the bake was too warm.  "Lower the temp" was suggested to me by a professional baker."  

I didn't get the chance for a second bake to test a lower temp but it makes sense.

I posted a picture of this Chinese dessert on FB asking friends if they knew of any local Chinese Buffets around that had this dessert.  Someone commented saying that a Chinese Buffet 6 miles from my house had it on their buffet.  I went last week and checked it out and it definitely looked the same as the picture and what I remembered from the time many months ago that I first had it.

I don't know if it was because I already knew what the ingredients were or not, but the mayonnaise taste was overwhelming to me.  I don't remember tasting the mayonnaise before.  But it was so long ago that I don't totally remember.  I guess the next time that I'm at my friend's Chinese Buffet I will have to try it again.  Hopefully it won't be too long before I go or I will forget what this one tasted like.  ?

dablues,

I didn't make them.  I had them at a local Chinese Buffet.  I've eaten there before (which I'll probably never do again, maybe other than to get a couple of their Egg Custard desserts, because a lot of the food wasn't even that hot), but I never tried the Egg Custard desserts, that's what the label said they were.

I asked the owner of my favorite Chinese Buffet if he had ever heard of this dessert.  He said that he hadn't, but that if I brought him the recipe he would see if they could make them.  I didn't have the ingredients with me when I stopped in for lunch earlier this week, but I told him what the ingredients were.  He said that they had everything on the list.  I'm going to drop off the printout of the pictures that I posted here. He did ask me what temperature to bake them at and for how long. I told him that someone had posted the oven temperature, but that it was in celsius but that I only know fahrenheit. ?

Oh, wow. I, too, was looking for a long recipe for these delicious sweets. But unfortunately, I could not do it. When I was in China, I asked the sellers, but they just waved me off and didn't talk. What's up?)

I've been trying to figure these out for the last 5 or 6 years myself! Every once in a while I do a new search and last night around 1 am stumbled on this thread needless to say I couldn't go to sleep until I read it all lol.

  I first had these at a buffet just east of Tampa Fla.  We only got to go there 2 or 3 times before they closed and I haven't found them anywhere else since so I was never able to really figure them out. 

At first I thought it was a pineapple cake in phillo, the pineapple was the first thing I could identify but the rest was a mystery.

  I wouldn't have guessed mayo was an ingredient but it didnt surprise me either it would explain how moist they are and the color and almost stickiness of the top without being overly sweet.   

Thank you all for being so dedicated to figuring this little gem out I can not wait to make some!!!

If everything works out, I'll be traveling next Tuesday to meet up with my friend who supplied me with the recipe that I posted awhile ago.  He's moving, so I have no idea when or if I will ever get the chance to see him again.  I'm hoping to (planning on) stopping at the restaurant where I first tasted this wonderful dessert.

If anyone has figured out the recipe for one batch, I would love it if someone could post it.

I've gotten my Aunt Grace's Broccoli Salad perfected . . . I think I'm ready to move on to the next challenge!!!  

Have an awesome day everyone!!!  ?

BTW . . . I live about 25 miles from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  I'm not sure where everyone else is from, but I'm curious!!!

A young waiter at the Chinese restaurant told me today that what we thought were Chinese “egg tart or egg puff” are actually Portuguese egg tarts. https://pin.it/dlcgmi4qddal3l This is a link to the basic recipe. There are different variations but the one used in Chinese buffets are the basic he said. I am going to make them tomorrow. I will post my findings.

Hello, I’ve been searching for this recipe for YEARS, and I am so glad to have stumbled upon this thread!  I’m glad there was some headway made, and I wonder if anyone came up with a converted full recipe to use?  I am a strict, to the letter, recipe follower, because I have zero baking/chemistry/cooking intuition or knowledge, so following a recipe is a must for me or I’ll produce the worst meal you’ve ever had.  If anyone can help, I would be so grateful!

Laurie

I just came across this page today when I was looking up recipes for the egg tart you are talking about that is served at some Chinese buffet restaurants.   I was at a local buffet today that used to serve these but stopped this year.  They are my favorite thing to eat there.   I mentioned them to our waitress and asked if they would start serving them again.   She didn't know but said she would get me the recipe from their cook.   She came back to our table a few minutes later and gave me a list of ingredients (but not the measures or method).  The only ingredients listed are:  milk, sugar, egg, and pineapple juice.   No flour,  cornstarch,  Eaglebrand,  mayo or other ingredients.   She mentioned that they can't get the pastry now because it takes too long to get from overseas because of covid and shipping issues.   She didn't say what the pastry was and I asked her if it was like super thin wonton wrappers and she said yes.   I tend to think it's phyllo cups but what is in the Chinese restaurants looks like there are only two sheets which makes me wonder if it's super thin wonton sheets or thick phyllo.    I am going to try this and experiment with ingredients.   I will also visit our local oriental grocery store and see if the guy that works there can help me.   

I just came across this page today when I was looking up recipes for the egg tart you are talking about that is served at some Chinese buffet restaurants.   I was at a local buffet today that used to serve these but stopped this year.  They are my favorite thing to eat there.   I mentioned them to our waitress and asked if they would start serving them again.   She didn't know but said she would get me the recipe from their cook.   She came back to our table a few minutes later and gave me a list of ingredients (but not the measures or method).  The only ingredients listed are:  milk, sugar, egg, and pineapple juice.   No flour,  cornstarch,  Eaglebrand,  mayo or other ingredients.   She mentioned that they can't get the pastry now because it takes too long to get from overseas because of covid and shipping issues.   She didn't say what the pastry was and I asked her if it was like super thin wonton wrappers and she said yes.   I tend to think it's phyllo cups but what is in the Chinese restaurants looks like there are only two sheets which makes me wonder if it's super thin wonton sheets or thick phyllo.    I am going to try this and experiment with ingredients.   I will also visit our local oriental grocery store and see if the guy that works there can help me.   

I was recently at a Chinese restaurant that served the Chinese Egg Tarts that are the topic of this thread.

I asked the manager about them.  She told me that they don't use mayonnaise in theirs.   She also told me that they use spring roll wrappers as the edible cupcake wrappers.

PS:  I went to this restaurant today, only to find out that because the owner of the building raised the rent to $20,000 a month, that they closed the restaurant.  😭😭😭

Im not sure that this is "Cheescake"