Look choop (luk chup) are colourful little sweets that come in all sorts of shapes, most often fruit. Some people also shape them into animals, cartoon characters, food and anything else they can imagine. Many people assume look choop is a purely Thai dessert, but where did it really come from? Let's find out.
What Is Look Choop?
Look choop is a Thai dessert made from finely ground, cooked mung bean paste, shaped into various forms, painted and dipped in agar jelly for a glossy finish. In fact, it was influenced by a Portuguese sweet called marzipan, or maçapães, made from ground almonds.
Origins in the Ayutthaya Period
Look choop emerged in the Ayutthaya period, during the reign of King Narai the Great (1656–1688). The person who introduced the marzipan tradition was Madame Doña Maria Guyomar de Pinha, known to Thais as Thao Thong Kip Ma. She used mung beans in place of almonds, creating look choop. Some sources say it was originally made not from mung bean paste but from the kernels of watermelon seeds, cracked open one by one and finely ground before cooking.
At the time, look choop were mostly made in the palace, to be eaten and given to children during special festivals. In the Rattanakosin period, Than Phu Ying Plian Phasakorawong, author of the cookbook "Mae Khrua Hua Pa", came up with shaping look choop into bite-sized vegetables and fruits. The person who added natural colours to make look choop look beautifully realistic was M.L. Toep Chumsai na Ayutthaya.
Look Choop Today
Today look choop are widely available in markets everywhere, and they come in creative new forms limited only by the maker's imagination. Unique designs help create a signature look and boost sales for sellers.
