These melt-in-your-mouth crunchy pork floss cookies are my go-to cookies when I need a fast and quick snack that tastes delicious. These no-fail meat floss cookies are quick and easy to make and are ready to enjoy in 30 minutes!
What Are Pork Floss Cookies?
Chinese pork floss cookies, also known as meat floss cookies or meat floss biscuits is a delicious sweet and savory petite-looking cookie that contains pork floss. These cookies are crunchy yet crumbly at the same time and there’s even a bit of chewiness to it due to the pork floss.
While pork floss is the most popular choice for making these cookies, you may also come across chicken floss cookies using chicken floss and even fish floss as well.
In addition to different meat flosses being used, you may also find seaweed being added to these cookies as well. In fact, some pork floss brands out there mix in seaweed together with the pork floss.
Furthermore, I just learned recently that apparently these cookies are often eaten during Chinese New Year (CNY) and are considered one of the many varieties of CNY cookies like Chinese peanut cookies that are served during this holiday, however, I’ve never seen them being eaten in my family though 🤷♂️ I guess my family isn’t too big on baked goods 😅
Where to Buy Pork Floss?
Pork floss is readily available at most Asian grocery stores. They usually come in either small or large plastic containers. If you can’t find any pork floss, you can make your own. Pork floss isn’t very difficult to make, but will require some elbow grease though. Sometime in the future, I will post up my pork floss recipe when I have a bit more time so that everyone has the opportunity to make these cookies, but in the meantime, just head to your local Asian grocery store and pick up some pork floss if you can.
Ingredients
Dough:
- 220g of Cake & pastry flour
- 60g of Pork floss
- 60g of White granulated sugar
- 50ml of Milk
- 120g of unsalted butter
Egg wash:
- 1 egg yolk
Sesame seeds to garnish on top of cookies
Ingredient Notes
Pork floss: You can use either the regular dried and chewy variety or the soft and crispy pork floss. It really doesn’t matter. Use which one you prefer or is cheaper!
Cake/pastry flour: You’ll want to use cake/pastry flour as this produces a softer cake-like texture for your cookies.
White granulated sugar: Use white granulated sugar. Do not use brown sugar unless you want your cookies to taste of molasses!
Substitutions and Variations
- Pork Floss: You can substitute the pork floss with chicken floss or fish floss or any other floss that is out there, except dental floss!
- Cow’s milk: You can substitute it with a plant-based milk like almond milk or oat milk. I haven’t personally tested this with oat milk though as the grocery store chains near my house charge an arm and leg for it.
- Dried Roasted Seaweed: You can opt to add in some seaweed if you’d like. Many brands of pork floss also sell a seaweed version of their pork floss mixed together with the seaweed. Likewise, you can chop up some seaweed and mix it in with the pork floss. I excluded the seaweed from my cookies because I don’t like that fishy type of smell in my cookies.
How to Make Chinese Pork Floss Cookies
Here’s how to make this Chinese pork floss cookie recipe at home:
- Pre-heat your oven to 350°F (180°C).
- Start by creaming your butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl.
- Once everything is mixed together, slowly add in your milk in stages. Add a little milk, mix everything well together then add in more milk and repeat the process until you no longer see any liquid.
- Then add in your flour that has been sieved.
- Add in your pork floss now and mix everything well together until you no longer see any white flour spots but do not overmix it as it will make your cookies tough.
- Now divide the dough into balls weighing about 20 grams each and place them onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper about 1-2 inches apart from each cookie.
- Now press down onto the center of the cookie dough balls with your thumb about halfway so that there is an indentation in the middle.
- Break and mix the egg yolk and then brush it on top of the cookies to apply an egg wash.
- Finally, sprinkle some sesame seeds on top of the cookies to garnish it.
- Bake the cookies in a preheated oven at 350°F (180°C) for about 25-26 minutes or until the cookies are golden brown.
- Remove the cookies from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking tray for 5-10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to allow them to cool down.
Tips
- Add in your milk in stages when combining and mixing with the dough. This will make it easier to combine it with the dough instead of everything being overly wet and separating, requiring you to whisk for long periods of time.
- Sieve your flour prior to adding it to your cookie dough mixture. You don’t want large chunks of flour in your cookies, do you?
- Do not overmix your cookie dough as this will make the cookies taste tough. Just mix it enough that there are no longer any white flour spots visible anymore then stop!
- You don’t need to put these cookies in the fridge to prevent them from spreading out. They will hardly spread out while baking.
Common Mistakes Beginners Make
- Adding in all of the milk at once into the dough instead of in stages. This causes the dough to become overly wet and requires more time to whisk everything together.
- Overmixing the cookie dough, leading to tough-tasting cookies. Do not overmix the dough!
Storage Tips
The cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 7 days at room temperature.
Making the Cookies Ahead of Time and Freezing Them
The cookie dough can be frozen in an airtight bag (ziplock) or container for up to 1 month if you don’t want to bake all of the cookies at once or if you plan to bake the cookies for a later time. You can either divide them into balls ahead of time or just freeze the dough and then shape them into balls later when you are ready to use the dough.
When you are ready to bake the cookies, let them thaw at room temperature until soft then proceed with the instructions above.
What to Do with Leftover Pork Floss?
If you’re like me, and you like to save some money then no doubt you’d probably pick up a large container or bag of pork floss to save some money. Being Asian, my parents made sure to drill these money-saving tips into my head 🤣
Now the problem arises after you’re done baking your pork floss cookies but you still have a tonne of pork floss leftover with no immediate plans to make more meat loss cookies. What do you do in this case?
Luckily for you, there are a tonne of pork floss recipe ideas that you can make using pork floss. An example is my Chinese pork floss buns. There’s also Vietnamese sticky rice (Xôi mặn thập cẩm) with Chinese sausages, pork floss (known as chà bông in Vietnamese), Vietnamese ham (Chả lụa), quail eggs, and a whole slew of other goodies added in. Meat floss scallion bread rolls is another popular bread roll that utilizes pork floss. Don’t worry, in due time I’ll have more of these recipes posted on my site for you to enjoy 😁
Frequently Asked Questions (F.A.Q.S)
Can I Use All-Purpose Flour Instead of Cake/Pastry Flour?
It will work, however, your cookies may have a slightly more tougher texture and may not produce a more cookie-like texture.
Can I Use Chicken/Fish Floss Instead of Pork Floss?
Yes, you can substitute the pork floss for chicken/fish floss if you can’t eat pork or you prefer chicken/fish floss instead.
Can I Use Salted Butter Instead of Unsalted Butter?
No! The cookies will come out too salty as the pork floss already is seasoned and has sodium in it.
Can I Bake These Cookies Straight Out of the Freezer Without Thawing?
Anything is possible, but the question is…Is your thumb strong enough to press down on frozen cookie dough to leave an indentation? 🧐
Other Recipes You’ll Love
Pork Floss Cookies
Ingredients
Dough
- 220 g Cake & pastry flour
- 60 g Pork floss
- 60 g White granulated sugar
- 50 ml Milk 1%, 2%, Whole, etc
- 120 g Unsalted butter
Egg Wash
- 1 Egg Yolk
Garnish
- 1 Tbsp Sesame seeds
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 350°F (180°C)
- Start by creaming your butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl.
- Once everything is mixed together, slowly add in your milk in stages. Add a little milk, mix everything well together then add in more milk and repeat the process until you no longer see any liquid.
- Then add in your flour that has been sieved.
- Add in your pork floss now and mix everything well together until you no longer see any white flour spots but do not overmix it as it will make your cookies tough.
- Now divide the dough into balls weighing about 20 grams each and place them onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper about 1 inch apart from each cookie.
- Now press down onto the center of the cookie dough balls with your thumb about halfway so that there is indentation in the middle.
- Break and mix the egg yolk and then brush it on top of the cookies to apply an egg wash.
- Finally, sprinkle some sesame seeds on top of the cookies to garnish it.
- Bake the cookies in a preheated oven at 350°F (180°C) for about 25-26 minutes or until the cookies are golden brown.
- Remove the cookies from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking tray for 5-10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to allow them to cool down.
Leave a Reply