How and why did Asia supplant Europe at being better at pastries and bread making?

[Anonymous]

But mind you, it's only a few Asian countries that get excited about food.
Ever had Tibetan? It's as bland as English food.
I have no idea about Mongolian food but I'm not a fan of Yak.

[Anonymous]

It's because Asians love sugar. They put lots of sugar in bread and pastries and love to make sweet things. Europeans like sweets but nothing like Asians.

Milk bread anyone?

[Anonymous]

Asian pastries are not my favourites. Too dry, overly sweet, or weirdly bland.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Asian pastries are not my favourites. Too dry, overly sweet, or weirdly bland.

Agreed.

[Anonymous]

Can someone please shut this racist thread down?

[Anonymous]

The Asian supremacy bit is new around here but certainly growing. The user mix of this board certainly has changed in the last 10 years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have noticed this but I also prefer Asian baked goods in general anyways. I think Asians are just all foodies, the whole continent. Add to that a strong work ethic with attention to detail and you get a lot of good food and good copying (with a bit of Asian twist added).

Plus they have the labor. There was an article about how young French aren’t so keen to wake up at 4 am to make Baguettes anymore so a lot of the artisanal bakers are wondering who will take over their businesses.

[Anonymous]

I don't actually understand why this is a competition.

You can get amazing bread and pastries in Europe. You can get amazing bread and pastries in Asia. Yay for bread and pastries.

I also tend to feel these regions focus on different things. For instance, a bakery in Japan might perfect making croissants with some insane level of lamination, that are particularly spectacular to look at (almost look impossible) and enjoyable to eat. But I don't view that as a "better" croissant than one from my of my favorite bakeries in France, which will make croissants as they have for generations and it will look more rustic but in an appealing way and melt in my mouth and bring me great joy. They are both wonderful, but in different ways.

Also it's silly to group it as "Europe" and "Asia." I like different things about pastries in France versus Sweden or Austria, and in Japan versus Hong Kong or Korea. There are some shared techniques and histories all of those places, but different flavor profiles, focuses, etc.

I have never thought "oh all the pastries in this country are better than all the pastries in that other country, I will cease to eat pastry from that other country." Instead I just figure out how to find the best pastries in whatever city I'm visiting and celebrate the fact that I can travel and try foods from so many wonderful places. What a gift.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's because Asians love sugar. They put lots of sugar in bread and pastries and love to make sweet things. Europeans like sweets but nothing like Asians.

Milk bread anyone?

I agree that Asian sweets tend to be sweeter and not always in a preferable way. Also I think a lot of Asian pastry that is spectacular is very specific to one restaurant or bakery. But in France or Vienna you will stumble into some random bakery and still be able to find amazing bread or basic pastries. The top pastry chefs in Tokyo might be doing more creative, exciting things than the top pastry chefs in Paris, but the average croissant in Paris is still better than the average croissant in Tokyo because there's just a floor for pastry in France in terms of quality and that's not necessarily true in other places.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Asians tend to be much more focused on food - to the detriment of other areas of civic life like public cleanliness.
But back to the food, yes, there is an obsessiveness about food. Whereas parts of Northern Europe, *cough* the UK, isn't known for food. Asians really cultivate a food idea and take it further.
How many Dutch, Finnish, Swedish or Scottish restaurants are there in major cities? In NY, there is maybe one German restaurant. As well, no Irish restaurants but lots of pubs.
Does anyone get excited about heading out to a Belgian restaurant? If you are lucky, it may have some Moroccan dishes.

I get excited about heading to good Belgian restaurants! They reliably have a variety of great mussels, frites, and beer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's because Asians love sugar. They put lots of sugar in bread and pastries and love to make sweet things. Europeans like sweets but nothing like Asians.

Milk bread anyone?

I agree that Asian sweets tend to be sweeter and not always in a preferable way. Also I think a lot of Asian pastry that is spectacular is very specific to one restaurant or bakery. But in France or Vienna you will stumble into some random bakery and still be able to find amazing bread or basic pastries. The top pastry chefs in Tokyo might be doing more creative, exciting things than the top pastry chefs in Paris, but the average croissant in Paris is still better than the average croissant in Tokyo because there's just a floor for pastry in France in terms of quality and that's not necessarily true in other places.

Spoken like someone who has never been to cities like Seoul or Tokyo. They have B
boulangeries and patisseries on almost every single block there. The quality is outstanding on average, and beats much of the stuff you can find in Paris or Vienna. Japan and South Korea are often obsessed with French culture and recapitulate back at home so well now that theyre doing it better. It is well known that in France bread and croissant making is a dying art. No one wants to work hard anymore for long hours in order to sell 1 euro baguettes. Contract that to Asia where they have an inherent philosophy that if you are going to do something, do it well and be as perfectionist as possible. I mean we are talking about areas of the world where they have to cook and handle rice for 10 years before they're all to handle fish to make sushi, and we are surprised the Japanese now beat France in pastry competitions? Almost no one in the world can beat the Jaoanese when it comes to dedication to a craft and extreme attention to detail.

[Anonymous]

Yeah, this take that everything is a competition is weird.

And “best” is very subjective. People’s taste buds are different and different people like different things.

Very weird to suggest one country’s pastries as a whole are better than another’s.

[Anonymous]

The Japanese have been obsessed with French culture for decades. There are French fine jewelry designers whose only foreign outposts are in Japan and they have loyal clientele.

Japanese creatives have always strived for excellence over ease and pastry is an attractive art form due to its precision. You can’t fake it. There are several incredible Japanese- and Korean-run bakeries in Paris too. I’m dying to go to Rayonnance for a parfait

https://www.instagram.com/patisserie_yuki_lumi/?ig_mid=7DAAED28-2F0E-4760-9593-4623E4D3D162&utm_source=igweb

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Asian pastries are not my favourites. Too dry, overly sweet, or weirdly bland.

Agreed.

Tell me you’ve never been to Asia without actually saying it. You don’t know what you’re talking about (and choose to generalize about billions of people.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Asian pastries are not my favourites. Too dry, overly sweet, or weirdly bland.

Agreed.

Tell me you’ve never been to Asia without actually saying it. You don’t know what you’re talking about (and choose to generalize about billions of people.)

lol, ok. I’ve lived in China and Japan, and been to a majority of Asian countries. Also, we’re talking about pastries, not people, so no, I am not generalizing about them. Unless every single Asian is a pastry chef, unbeknownst to me. It’s ok to have a difference of opinion here.