The latest TikTok craze involves wrestling with molten, gooey sugar and your patience. We're talking about dragon's beard candy, the ancient Chinese treat that looks like spun silk and tests your hand-eye coordination and patience. Let's see what the buzz is about.
Dragon's beard candy is a centuries-old Chinese sweet that folks are making at home, and it's having a moment on TikTok. This visually unique treat is made by slowly stretching and folding hot sugar syrup (kind of like taffy pulls) until it reaches a fine, thread-like consistency. The resulting fluffy candy, which resembles an Asian dragon's whiskers (hence the name), melts in your mouth and boasts a light, sweet flavor people are going gaga for.
Videos of people attempting (and often failing) to make this wispy wonder have racked up millions of views. It requires a light touch, and it takes forever to get the sugar to a threadlike consistency. Additionally, if rushed and the sugar strands break, you have to start all over. Also, the process of folding and refolding the candy raises the sugar thread count exponentially each turn, so the process has become a challenge, with some creators trying to get to a million strands by the end. Is it worth the sticky fingers and long prep times? Well, yeah. It's fun. There is, for sure, a certain zen to making this that tests your ability to stay consistent and patient. The result is fine, sugary goodness you can eat on its own or even wrap around honey-soaked peanuts or pistachios for a twist on a Greek baklava. Just please always be careful handling hot sugar.
Mastering this mythical mane of sweetness takes practice, a steady hand, and an even keel, but we think the result is worth the journey. So, grab some sugar and get ready to become a dragon beard sensei (or at least a sugar-coated apprentice).
TikTok Creator @averycyrus patiently making dragon's beard sugar candy.
@averycyrus 4 all my haters ♬ original sound - Avery Cyrus