When a dessert involves actual liquid nitrogen, it really should be no surprise at all that you can, you know, sustain serious cryogenic burns.
But when the hype train chugs forth, it doesn’t stop that easily. After making viral rounds on social media, the Dragon’s Breath dessert finally made landfall here recently, and people are going bonkers for them.
In case you don’t know what it is, it’s a novelty treat comprising of cereal puffs — or biscuits and cookies — coated in liquid nitrogen. The hype lies in the fact that you breathe out vapour after noshing on the dessert.
Fun to play with, of course, but folks often forget that liquid nitrogen can be a dangerous chemical. The odourless, colourless cryogen (read: it’s really cold) is commonly used by gourmet chefs of the molecular gastronomy order to enhance the dining experience — so you know it can safely be used in food and drink preparation. Leave it in inexperienced hands, however, and it could be unsafe. Liquid nitrogen must be fully evaporated from the meal or drink before serving.
TODAY reports that at least two retailers selling Dragon’s Breath are putting up advisories for customers on how to consume them, as well as taking steps to ensure their staff take proper precautions when serving the dessert.
Popular Dragon’s Breath purveyors Coyoro and Tio Smoke have been taking such steps to ensure the utmost safety — especially after some customers in Malaysia complained about sustaining burns from the dessert. Both local stores assured that no actual liquid nitrogen is left in the dessert when served to customers.
Good on the two responsible retailers, of course. But! Since it’s such a hyped-up meal, you can bet that there’ll be many, many others who’ll also want to jump on the bandwagon (re: the bubble tea fad of the 2000s), and eventually some careless person will slip up and hurt a customer. The lesson here: don’t be a halfwit and always ensure that there aren’t any actual liquid nitrogen in your bowl of Dragon’s Breath.
