Watch the Amazing Chinese Art of Blowing Molten Sugar Into Glass
It’s a dying craft that has us, well, blown away

By Dan Q. Dao


Published on January 28, 2017

As SAVEUR's exploration of all-things sugar—aka #thesugarfiles—gets into full swing, we're celebrating the sweetest sugar-bending skills from all over the world, from near-impossible Scottish honey harvesting to Hungarian cookie decorating. Next up on the list is the Chinese folk-meets-street art of "sugar-blowing."

An increasingly rare practice, Chinese sugar-blowing resembles glass blowing, with the artist using their mouth to inflate a ball of caramelized sugar, then sculpting and shaping a 3-D figurine out of it. According to Atlas Obscura, animals are the most popular shapes. This particular video, taken in Beijing, shows an older gentleman producing a stunningly lifelike bunny and rooster in a matter of minutes. It's awesome.

If you're now obsessed (like we are), check out this clip from Xi'an, China of a man sculpting a traditional dragon, or this one of a vendor in front of the Great Wall at Simatai creating cats and tigers.

Travel

Watch the Amazing Chinese Art of Blowing Molten Sugar Into Glass

It’s a dying craft that has us, well, blown away

By Dan Q. Dao


Published on January 28, 2017

As SAVEUR's exploration of all-things sugar—aka #thesugarfiles—gets into full swing, we're celebrating the sweetest sugar-bending skills from all over the world, from near-impossible Scottish honey harvesting to Hungarian cookie decorating. Next up on the list is the Chinese folk-meets-street art of "sugar-blowing."

An increasingly rare practice, Chinese sugar-blowing resembles glass blowing, with the artist using their mouth to inflate a ball of caramelized sugar, then sculpting and shaping a 3-D figurine out of it. According to Atlas Obscura, animals are the most popular shapes. This particular video, taken in Beijing, shows an older gentleman producing a stunningly lifelike bunny and rooster in a matter of minutes. It's awesome.

If you're now obsessed (like we are), check out this clip from Xi'an, China of a man sculpting a traditional dragon, or this one of a vendor in front of the Great Wall at Simatai creating cats and tigers.

Continue to Next Story

Want more SAVEUR?

Get our favorite recipes, stories, and more delivered to your inbox.