Rise of the Onigiri Croissant: The New Pastry Craze Overtakes the Crookie

East Meets West: Introducing the Savory Fusion of Japanese and French Cuisine

Boston Brand Media brings you the onigiri croissant, a fusion of Japanese rice ball and French pastry, is the latest pastry craze, surpassing the popularity of the crookie. This innovative treat combines unique flavors and textures, capturing the attention of food enthusiasts and setting a new trend in the culinary world.

A new croissant trend is taking the culinary world by storm, surpassing past favorites like the Cronut and the cruffin. Introducing the onioissant, or onigiri croissant, a savory hybrid that blends the traditional Japanese onigiri with the classic French croissant.

The onigiri croissant made its debut at Le Levain Bakery in Singapore, where triangle-shaped croissants filled with unique combinations such as Sicilian pistachio cream, scallion sour cream, and Lao Gan Ma chili crisp are wrapped in a thin slice of nori. This innovative pastry has quickly spread globally, finding a home at Chez Christophe in Vancouver, where it features a creamy tuna and mayonnaise filling, as well as in bakeries in Seoul and Sydney.

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In the United States, the onioissant has arrived at Cafe W Bakery & Desserts in Flushing, Queens. Known for its fusion of Asian and French culinary influences, the bakery has seamlessly integrated the onioissant into its diverse menu, which includes fruit-flavored mousse cakes, ciabatta sandwiches with red bean paste, matcha tiramisu, and corn cheese croissants. The onioissant is poised to become the next big hit among pastry enthusiasts, offering a delightful new way to enjoy croissants with a unique twist.

As New Yorkers, we are always mindful of how diverse cultures blend together, and we always strive to live up to that diversity with new attempts and new experiences for our patrons’ palate,” says Cafe W CEO John Lee. Noting the absence of onigiri pastries in New York, the bakery decided to innovate by using their croissant dough to create a new onigiri-shaped triangle pastry filled with Japanese-inspired ingredients.

“The R&D process for the onigiri croissant was both exciting and challenging,” Lee explains. “It took a lot of experimentation and fine-tuning. We had to perfect the dough to keep it flaky and buttery while achieving the triangular shape of an onigiri. Balancing the filling and flavor to complement our buttery croissant was another major task.”

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The bakery team dedicated countless hours to testing various techniques and recipes, ensuring that the classic croissant’s texture and flavor remained intact in this new form. “We’re really proud of the final product that blends the best of both worlds,” Lee adds.

Currently, Cafe W offers two savory fillings for its onigiri croissant: mayo and pollack roe, and chive bacon cream cheese. The team is actively experimenting with more flavors and plans to introduce additional options soon.

“The Mayo and Pollack Roe is a regular filling for the original onigiri with rice, so it really stands out as a twist of Asian and French traditions,” Lee says. “For the Chive Bacon Cream Cheese…we’re New Yorkers, we can’t help it.”

Since the pastry went viral this May, new customers have flocked in to try it — with many already becoming regulars. One customer drove hours from Maryland just to try it and added a few extra to her order to bring home for friends. Within minutes of finishing her own, she added a few more onigiri croissants to her order.

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Boston Brand Media also found Cafe W Bakery & Desserts, which opened in May 2024, bakes bread, pastries, and desserts from scratch every morning. “We still have a long way to go, but we will continue to develop new products,” Lee says. “The response to the onioissant has been overwhelmingly positive. We’re thrilled to see such enthusiasm. The feedback has been incredibly encouraging and motivates us to keep pushing the boundaries of creativity in our bakery.”

For questions or comments write to writers@bostonbrandmedia.com

Source: Food and Wine‍