One of the first things I usually end up eating here are oyster noodles; in Taiwanese, they are called “Oh ah me suah”. They are basically noodles made of some sort of wheat in a very thick bonito and pork stock soup topped with oysters, pork, some bamboo shoots, red vinegar and coriander (which I don’t like so the vendor didn’t put any in my bowl).

The little bun-like things in the picture are called “pepper pastries” when translated into English. Pork, seasoned with salt, tons of pepper and green onions wrapped in a pastry that’s stuck on the side of a special oven, making the outside slighlty flaky and crunchy and the inside super hot, soft and delicious. If the pastry is made especially well, a lot of juices made from the water content in the onions and meat are trapped inside, making it even more delicious and succulent.

This may sound… actually smell like the most unappetizing thing ever, but don’t let the smell distract you from this traditional Taiwanese food: stinky tofu. The tofu gets its smell by being dipped in a concoction made from the secretions of fermented vegetables. (If you’re thinking, “Ewww… fermented vegetables,” just think of Korean kimchi, which is the same thing.) The tofu gets deep fried, bringing out the stinky scent and making it crunchy. The tofu shown in the picture is a variation, in which the tofu is boiled in a very spicy soup. I’ve tried both, but a very long time ago so I don’t quite remember the exact taste, but any Taiwanese person will tell you that it’s absolutely delicious.

These look a bit creepy but are tastier and healthier than they look. What are they do you ask? Sticky rice sausages. Instead of meat, the sausage is stuffed with sticky rice. It’s pretty good since sticky rice is usually delicious; why they decided to stuff it in a sausage is beyond me.

Yes. This is a bag of fried chicken, but it’s a bag of fried chicken with spicy salt, Thai basil and garlic. Very unhealthy but absolutely delicious if it’s done right. The basil is also surprisingly very very yummy as well. Stands selling this chicken will also have a variety of meat and vegetables for you to choose to deep fry. Again, something you have once in a while or your arteries will hate you.

I know that this article is about Taiwanese food, but I had to include this in it. Mos Burger is a Japanese hamburger restaurant chain but it can be found in Taiwan and not Canada. Mos Burger’s appeal is its clean look in its restaurants, packaging and food. They seem to strive for healthy foods despite being a burger chain by selling healthy salad dressings and alternatives to fries. They also have burgers that can’t be found in any other burger place, such as their Teriyaki Rice Burger, pictured above. Instead of a bun, you get rice and the yummy beef bits in the middle. I still prefer their cheeseburger with hot peppers though.

A children’s treat that I also enjoy: fruit kebobs dipped in syrup. My favourite one? A strawberry and cherry tomato kebob. Yum.

If you’ve ever gone to the entrance of a shopping mall in Chinatown called “Dragon City”, you know that there’s an eggy and yet sweet smell to the place. If you’ve ever looked for the source of the delicious aroma, you’ll know that it’s from theses little cakes made from eggs. In Taiwan, they make these cakes into little shapes shown above. I admit, I squealed in delight when I saw these and got strange looks from passers-by. (No worries, I’m totally used to it.) Also, there are tons of variations on these egg cakes, some of them are stuffed with a variety of fillings such as red bean, taro, cream and chocolate.

To end, a little refreshing spot of tea. Except this isn’t your normal tea. This is Hakka lei tea, in other words, green tea with very finely powdered nuts, sesame seeds and a variety of other beans and the like. The result? A sweet, slightly thick green tea that’s a bit grainy but very healthy for you. However, if you’re allergic to peanuts, I don’t suggest you drink it. If you aren’t allergic to nuts and peanuts, then come try some! It’s delicious hot or cold!

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed all of this! Until next time!

 Pictures by Jess

This entry was posted on Sunday, May 10th, 2009 at 8:58 am and is filed under Food & Drink, General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.