SINGAPORE, Feb 1 — If you’re thinking of the buzz surrounding Hong Kong’s famed salted egg yolk croissant hitting our shores as simply another fad, you might want to hold that thought.

Even as foodies continue to talk up a storm on social media about its limited availability at a little cafe in Hougang, one of Singapore’s top chefs has decided to come up with his own rendition.

Chef Pang Kok Keong’s aptly dubbed Salted Yolk Lava Croissant was launched today at Antoinette’s outlet on Penhas Road. And while all 300 pieces were snapped up in the first hour, rest assured it will be available every day — as long as you get in line early enough. It’s priced at S$6.50 (RM20) and available for dine-in and takeaway.

According to Pang, the salted egg custard goes well with the croissant. He also stressed the importance of using salted duck egg yolk and not the “artificial salted egg powder”.

“The croissant needs to have a crispy and flaky crust, and (be) well-defined (with an) airy crumb (and) a good flavour, using good quality butter,” he said. Meanwhile, the custard should be smooth and creamy, “not too thick or too runny”.

“This creation was simply meant to be together,” said Pang who admitted to being a fan of salted egg yolk, with a soft spot for liu sha baos.

That said, achieving the right balance of flavours is what makes this deceptively simple pastry so difficult to make. Chef Pang’s traditional croissant is made with high quality French butter and dough; the laminated dough is shaped in a temperature-controlled environment at 12 degrees Celsius to create the crispy and flaky crust.

“A good croissant requires a sound technique, such as the laminating of butter and dough, the management of the working temperature and good base ingredients. Even if the salted egg custard itself is well-flavoured, it cannot stand on its own without a good pastry,” he explained. “Finding the right proportion of ingredients takes time and experience, in order to ensure good flavour and texture. For me, the salted egg flavour should come through and not be masked by the buttery pastry.”

Regarding the recent obsession with the pastry, Pang added that it is not that big of a surprise. “Anything (with) salted egg has been very well-received in recent years, and a salted egg croissant is not readily available here in Singapore”, he said, but added that he doesn’t expect to see too much variation in the design.

“One can find salted eggs in different forms, so I doubt much more can be done.”

And despite today’s positive response, Pang will not be increasing production, as he wants to first ensure consistency. While it is currently only available at Antoinette’s Penhas Road outlet, it will be made available at outlets in Mandarin Gallery and Sofitel from February 10. — TODAY