A pineapple bun is a kind of sweet bun predominantly popular in Hong Kong and also common in Chinatowns worldwide. Despite the name, it does not traditionally contain pineapple; rather, the name refers to the look of the characteristic topping.
History
In June 2014, the Hong Kong Government listed the pineapple bun as a part of Hong Kong's intangible cultural heritage. Tai Tung Bakery in Yuen Long, which had been making pineapple buns for more than 70 years, was a key proponent of including the technique for making the buns on the list of 480 items of living heritage.
Composition
The top of the pineapple bun is made of a dough similar to that used to make sugar cookies, which consists of sugar, eggs, flour, and lard. It is crunchy and is quite sweet compared to the bread underneath. The bread dough underneath is the same as that used in Chinese-style Western breads, which is a softer and sweeter dough than in Western breads. It is popular at breakfast or afternoon tea. Although it is known as a "pineapple bun", the traditional version contains no pineapple. The name originated from the fact that its sugary top crust is cooked to a golden-brown color, and because its checkered top resembles the of a pineapple.
Buttered variant
Many Hong Kong restaurants, such as cha chaan tengs and dai pai dongs, offer an item called a buttered pineapple bun, which is a pineapple bun with a piece of butter stuffed inside. They are known in Cantonese as boh loh yau, in which boh loh means "pineapple", and yau refers to butter. Variants of this include using custard in place of butter. Typically, the bun would be brought hot from the oven to the diner's table, and served halved with a large slab of butter in between the halves. This item is sometimes criticised for containing too much fat and cholesterol.
Other common variants
The pineapple bun may come in miniature sizes, it may be used as a bread roll for sandwiches with luncheon meat, or it may be pre-stuffed with red bean paste, custard cream, barbecued pork, or a sweet filling of shredded coconut like that in a cocktail bun. It is possible to order a "pineapple pineapple bun", actually stuffed with pineapple, although this is very likely the product of misinterpretation of the name by non-native bakers. Japanese melonpan and Korean soboro bread are variants that use the same ingredients for a German streusel-like texture on top but without resemblance to a pineapple.
In 2005, "pineapple bun" was nominated as the name of a typhoon, but was rejected because the director of the Hong Kong Observatory stated that news reports concerning the typhoon would sound nonsensical.
Controversy
In September 2014, a police raid found that, unwittingly, several suppliers had been selling pineapple buns made with tainted oil, known as "gutter oil", from an unlicensed factory in Taiwan. This oil was recycled from kitchen waste, as well as being a by-product of leather processing and offal from slaughterhouses.
