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The pineapple bun is a popular pastry in Hong Kong, named after its criss-cross pattern resembling a pineapple. It is made with sugar, flour, butter, lard, and eggs, and can be served warm or sliced with butter inside. It can also be filled with coconut, pork, custard, or red bean paste. The pastry is cheap and can be found in many Chinese bakeries, but the buttered version is considered unhealthy due to its high calorie content.
A pineapple bun is a crunchy, soft and sweet pastry that is very popular in Hong Kong. It contains no pineapple and gets its name from the criss-cross pattern on the top of the bun, which resembles the outer surface of a pineapple. Commonly eaten for afternoon tea or breakfast, it can be found in many Chinese bakeries. Why it is the favorite food of many locals is because it is very cheap and also a delicious pastry with a mix of textures. While some bakeries might not bother making the pineapple-like checkered design on top, it can still be found almost everywhere in Hong Kong.
The Chinese call it in Cantonese as bo lo baau, where bo lo stands for pineapple and baau stands for a sandwich type of food. It is also known as a rocky bun and its main ingredients are granulated sugar, flour and butter as well as lard and eggs. Typically baked until the pineapple pattern turns golden brown, many people prefer to eat a pineapple bun when it’s still warm from the oven because its contrasting textures can be better enjoyed. Its crunchy, sugary top creates a delicious contrast to its softer, less sweet interior. The dough used to make the inner section varies from that used to make Western-style bread in its sweetness, while the dough used to make the crust is comparable to that from which sugar cookies are made.
The pastry can also be served sliced with a slab of butter inside, and this type of buttered pineapple sandwich is called bo lo yau, where yau stands for butter. This variation of the pineapple bun can be found in many Hong Kong restaurants where it is halved and served steamed hot with butter in between. Buttered pineapple bun is considered to be one of the unhealthiest snacks in Hong Kong due to the high amount of calories. It contains high amounts of fat and cholesterol and was formerly eaten before weddings where alcohol was served. Guests would eat these sandwiches to delay the side effects of consuming large amounts of alcohol.
This Cantonese pastry comes in different sizes and can be filled with different types of fillings, such as shredded coconut, pork, custard or red bean paste. While the traditional version of this sandwich has no pineapple, it can sometimes be found with a pineapple filling due to non-native bakers misinterpreting the bakery’s name. The pineapple bun is one of the cheapest items you can find at a bakery and can also be used as a sandwich-type snack when served with lunch meat.
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