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| Place of origin | Taiwan |
|---|---|
| Main ingredients | egg, honey, sugar, flour |
Concave cake (Chinese:凹蛋糕;pinyin:āodàngāo, half-cooked cake) became popular in Chinese society after a Taiwanese variety show introduced it. The cake filling leaks out when sliced, similar in appearance to a volcano. The traditional recipe combinesegg,egg yolk,honey,white sugar and low-glutenflour. Filling flavors range from traditional honey to exotic flavors likecheese,matcha andchocolate.[citation needed]
Concave cake was initially considered unsuccessful due to its namesake shape. However, it caught traction in China, and the cake is now part ofpopular culture.
Concave cakes are commonly made using eggs, egg yolk, low-gluten flour, honey and a small portion of sugar.[1]
Concave cake is believed to have originated fromPortugal during theAge of Discovery. Women who worried about their husbands and family members traveling as sailors baked concave cakes as a symbol of “sunny days” and good luck.[citation needed]
Between the 15th and 17th centuries, the cake was introduced toNagasaki, a city inJapan best known for its roles in ending theSecond World War.
The original variety of this cake was honey, but as its popularity grew, different flavors such as strawberry,Earl Grey and matcha emerged.[2]
The variety showKangxi Lai Le inTaiwan is credited with sparking the concave cake trend in April 2013 when it recommended the cake.[3] Due to the show's popularity, online searches for the term "concave cakes" rose overnight. Although the cake had previously garnered attention in Japan, the show helped increase popularity of the cakes in Taiwan and China. Today, several shops in Taiwan advertise themselves as offering “authentic” concave cake.
Celebrities and television programs lauded the concave cake.Kangxi Lai Le introduced the cake on June 16, 2013. The hostDee Shu andKevin Tsai recommended and praised it, creating a trend among the Taiwanese public.[4] Taiwanese comedianNa Dou [zh] once claimed that “If someone wants to eat a half-cooked cake, they will have to wait for half a year,” to represent how difficult it was to buy one.[5] Other variety shows such asSuper Taste[6] also introduced this cake.
This trend arrived inHong Kong after Taiwan. The owner of a dessert shop decided to introduce this cake after reducing the sweetness and making the cake spongier in order to cater to local tastes.[7] Bakeries across the city sell this cake as they see the potential in other Asian countries.[8]
Some China stores were blamed for “shanzhai,” or fake cakes. In 2014, a bakery in China called Grandpa Rick was forced to shut down after it was accused of illegally claiming itself as the franchisee of a Japanese Concave Cake store called Rikuro; Grandpa Rick used its name, logo and false promotion of its history. It used egg yolks and whites out of cartons rather than fresh ones, as promoted, the company is now under investigation.[9]
