In pursuit of the elusive dragon cookies for the Year of the Dragon
KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 22 – It's an annual affair... my hunt for dragon cookies that I like.
Each year I would scan the places that offer Chinese New Year cookies for them.
Very often, these are not even on the shelves. It's no surprise since dragon cookies aren't show stealers like pineapple tarts, love letters or peanut cookies.
But it's different this year, probably because of the upcoming Year of the Dragon so there's more choices out there.
However, what I have noticed is that in most places, standards have drastically dropped. This could be due to the rising costs of ingredients.
Hence my search became even more fraught. Many times, I almost give up looking but I am determined to unearth dragon cookies well worth the calories.
So what's dragon cookies?
It's similar to the Malay semperit or what we call, the local version of butter cookies, since it also uses butter, sugar, flour and egg.
The difference lies in the use of milk powder that imparts a much more creamier taste.
Once the dough is made, it's piped out in the shape of a dragon. Unfortunately for commercial producers who bake this in bulk, their piping skills make it look like a wriggly snake with red eyes!
The texture should melt in the mouth with a creamy taste.
What I noticed when I was scouting for the cookies were, the colour would range from golden yellow to pale cream.
I got smarter as I searched more: I realised those with a yellow hue were made from a dough mixed with custard powder, which meant a firmer bite.
This means it would hold better when it's packed, as these fragile cookies break easily.
Eventually, it became one of my personal tests to see if a tub is even worth buying. If it looks too beautifully arranged, I know it's been given a custard booster shot.
I would instead opt for those with crumbly edges on the side.
After trying out numerous tubs of the cookies, I only managed to find three good ones.
Of these, one stood out the most. This was from Lily's Nyonya Cookies, who opened a stall in the Taman Tun Dr Ismail market.
The colour was pale cream. Even the piping skills were the best as each cookie had a proper red dot to signify the eye of the dragon.
Pop one in the mouth and it melts beautifully on the tongue. I could easily eat a tub of these dragon cookies by myself if I don't restrain myself.
A tub of the dragon cookies is RM24. They will be restocking the cookies and it will be available on January 23.
The other dragon cookie I found in Taman Megah was of a different quality.
Hastily made, some pieces had a red line versus a red dot.
They tend to be thicker too but all is forgiven when you pop it in the mouth as it crumbles easily.
As they also left it in the oven just a bit longer, it's got a slightly toasted flavour too.
What I noticed when I looked around Taman Megah was that at almost every stall or place selling cookies, there were three different types of dragon cookies.
The dragon cookies from the fruit stall opposite Hakka Legend Restaurant in Taman Megah may look less than mythical but its crumbly texture wins
One was the firmer type with a mid-yellow colour. Another was a fatter, flat version that looked like the dragon became too prosperous. The last one which I liked was one I found at a fruit stall in an alleyway, directly opposite Hakka Legend Restaurant.
They're doing a promotion here, where if you purchase more items, it's discounted. One tub is RM18, two tubs are RM35 and three tubs are RM50.
My last choice was a random find as I didn't think of Bakeri Joy in Taman Megah. A friend told me of their dragon cookie offering.
Bakeri Joy's dragon cookies are milkier with a slightly toasted flavour
Apparently rather than taking from distributors, this version is baked by a relative of the owners.
Here the cookie has very crumbly edges. It's not the prettiest since a red line is used. It's milkier than the fruit stall's version, yet it's got a very slight toasted taste.
The drawback is the price, as a tub is going for RM35.
Lily's Nyonya Cookies
Stall in Taman Tun Dr Ismail Market
Open: 7am to 2pm. Closed on Monday.
Tel:016-2778719
Fruit Stall opposite Hakka Legend Restaurant
Jalan SS24/8, Taman Megah, PJ
Bakeri Joy
4, Jalan SS24/13, Taman Megah, PJ
Open daily: 7am to 6pm
Tel:03-78055188
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