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Cowboy Cookies, but Asian

Charity Burggraaf

BY The Editors

PUBLISHED December 5, 2025

Think of a cowboy. He’s probably wearing a wide-brimmed hat, jeans, and boots, walking into a saloon and asking for a whiskey with a drawl. But no matter what you pictured him wearing or doing, you probably didn’t envision him as an Asian dude. For much of my childhood, I didn’t either. Leafing through American history textbooks at school, I never saw vivid portrayals of the diverse cultures that shaped the Old West. But I later learned that Asians, including Chinese migrants and laborers, were instrumental in building the Transcontinental Railroad. There were, in fact, Asian cowboys. Even today, you can find Asian American cowboys in the Midwest. I dedicate these cookies to the unsung heroes who played a key role in the United States’ westward expansion. According to legend, cowboy cookies sustained the cowboys of the Old West. To give the oat- and pecan-packed treats an Asian spin, I include aromatic cardamom and ground ginger to add fragrant depth. Miso replaces salt, bringing subtle umami. The choice of walnuts, a major Chinese export, is a departure from the traditional pecans. I like to imagine these big and chewy cookies might have comforted the forgotten migrants and laborers. This recipe is my small way of celebrating Chinese railroad workers and Asian cowboys. – Kat Lieu

 

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Cowboy Cookies, but Asian

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Makes about 21 large cookies 1x

Units Scale

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (120 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger (optional)
  • 1/2 cup | 1 stick (113 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup (110 g) packed brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon red miso
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 cup (170 g) semisweet or dark chocolate chips
  • 1 cup (about 100 g) broken Pocky sticks
  • 2/3 cup (75 g) toasted walnuts, chopped
  • 2/3 cup (50 to 55 g) sweetened or unsweetened coconut flakes
  • Sea salt flakes, for topping

Instructions

  1. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cardamom, and ground ginger, if using, together in a medium Set aside.
  2. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, whisk, or spatula), cream the butter, sugars, and miso together until light and Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the egg and mix until well incorporated. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed just until a cookie dough forms. Fold in the chocolate chips, broken Pocky sticks, walnuts, and coconut flakes. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or overnight.
  3. About 25 minutes before baking, adjust two racks to the upper- and lower-middle positions of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  4. Scoop about 3 tablespoons (or up to 1/4 cup) of dough per cookie and shape roughly into a ball, making about 21 balls. Place on the prepared baking sheet, spacing at least 2 inches
  5. Bake all the cookies, switching the sheets between the top to bottom racks and rotating front to back once halfway through, until the cookie edges begin to brown, 16 to 17
  6. Let the cookies set for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool Finish with a sprinkle of sea salt flakes.

– Excerpted from 108 Asian Cookies by Kat Lieu. Copyright © 2025 by Kathleen Lieu. Photographs by Charity Burggraaf. Used with permission from Voracious, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company.

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