Taipei Street Food - Part 2

Taipei Street Food - Part 2

More Taipei Street Food that I've tried during other visits to Taipei, Taiwan, continuing from Part 1.

Sandwich Grilled Pork & Egg With Quadruple Cheese

This list includes dishes not listed in Taipei Street Food - Part 1. Cuisine is mostly South Chinese, native Taiwanese aboriginal, Japanese, and Western influenced.


.....


The Almond Pork Paper is a unique and delicious treat. This tasty snack is made with thinly sliced pork, seasoned with light soy sauce and sugar, and studded with shaved almonds, then fried. The result is an incredibly addictive snack, crisp and crunchy, with bold sweet savoury nutty flavour. Its versatility means various other ingredients can be added to enhance the flavour further; I've seen versions with black pepper, chili, garlic, seaweed flakes, and more.

Almond Pork Paper

Almond Pork Paper

Almond Pork Paper

The Bakpia, also known as Hopia, is a type of pastry that could be either savoury or sweet, depending on the filling. In Taipei, Taiwan, the crust is usually thin, flaky, and crisp, with a light buttery flavour. The Bakpia Savoury has a filling of minced pork and spring onions, while the Bakpia Sweet has a filling of mashed mung beans. It can be eaten either as an appetizer or as a dessert.

Bakpia Savoury

Bakpia Savoury

Bakpia Sweet

Bakpia Sweet

An uncommon street snack, the Black Pepper Pork Bun features a firm, crunchy pastry bun shell, stuffed with a savoury sweet mixture of juicy minced pork, tender spring onions, and spicy black pepper. The oven-baking locks in moisture, making the bun really delicious and juicy. Lends a warm, comforting feeling when you bite into it, so satisfiying.

Black Pepper Pork Bun

Black Pepper Pork Bun

The Boiled Goose Coagulated Blood has a soft, wobbly, gelatinous texture, with a strong mineral salty bitter savoury flavour. Served in large cubes, it's eaten as a side dish to accompany a meal.

Boiled Goose Coagulated Blood

The Boiled Goose Gizzard has a delicate crunch, with a light savoury sweet salty flavour. Served as a side dish to accompany a meal, sometimes, this is dressed with fresh slices of ginger.

Boiled Goose Gizzard

The Boiled Goose Intestines surprised me with its delicate sweet savoury flavour, tasting much better when dipped into a spicy chili sauce. It has a lovely bouncy crunchy texture, and is often eaten as a side dish.

Boiled Goose Intestines

Boiled Goose Intestines

Served garnished with ginger, the tender and moist slices of slightly chewy Boiled Goose Meat have a delicate salty savoury sweet flavour. Quite refreshing, the flavour is lighter than duck meat, but stronger than chicken meat. It's prepared by blanching the goose meat in boiling hot water and salt, which infuses the meat as it cooks.

Boiled Goose Meat

Boiled Goose Meat

The popular Chinese appetizer of Drunken Chicken features a steamed chicken, marinated in its own juices, along with ginger, salt, spring onions, and Shaoxing rice wine. Served chilled, it has a tender, juicy texture, with a layer of gelatin under the skin, and a sweet savoury slightly boozy flavour to the chicken meat.

Drunken Chicken

Drunken Chicken

The Horoyoi Shochu Highball Fruit Punch is a popular alcoholic fruit cocktail beverage, brewed by Suntory Holdings Limited in Osaka prefecture, Kansai region, Japan. It has a clear, light pink colour, with obvious carbonation, and aromas and tastes of white rice, pineapple, mango, and apple. The body is thin and lively, with bold fruity sweet flavours, making it a refreshing summer drink.

Horoyoi Shochu Highball Fruit Punch

The Kumquat Tea, served warm, has a zesty tangy sweet sour flavour. Nicely refreshing, it aids to cleanse the palate.

Kumquat Tea

An uncommon snack, the Macadamia Nut Stuffed Date features shelled macadamia nuts stuffed within dried dates. Has a fruity sweet nutty flavour, with a crunchy and soft texture. Fairly straightforward.

Macadamia Nut Stuffed Date

Macadamia Nut Stuffed Date

A modern Japanese Chinese fusion dessert, the Matcha Glutinous Rice Balls With Hakka Tea & Nuts features sticky, chewy green tea / matcha infused glutinous rice balls, served in a plate surrounded by green tea / matcha powder, kinako / roasted soy bean powder, and soft adzuki red beans. Garnished with crunchy chopped almonds and pistachio nuts, with a rich palm sugar syrup and Chinese Hakka rice tea on the side. Flavours of vegetal grassy earthy sweet nutty, complex but distinct.

Matcha Glutinous Rice Balls With Hakka Tea & Nuts

Matcha Glutinous Rice Balls With Hakka Tea & Nuts

The Milk Foam Barley dessert has a rich, creamy smooth texture, and a delicate milky sweet flavour. The milk foam and barley paste hides tender barley grains beneath its surface, and the toppings of chopped almonds, pistachio nuts, adzuki red beans, raisins, and pine nuts, all lend a nice alternating contrast to texture, as well as a fruity sweet nutty flavour.

Milk Foam Barley

Milk Foam Barley

The milkfish is a common farmed fish here, which means dishes such as Milkfish Congee or Milkfish Soup are common staples. While the soup usually only has deboned milkfish in a thin but sweet savoury fish soup / broth stock, the congee is more hearty, with deboned milkfish in a savoury salty sweet rice porridge congee that is semi-thick and rich. More luxurious versions include the Milkfish, Clams, Oyster Seafood Congee, or the Milkfish Belly Soup.

Milkfish Belly Soup

Milkfish Congee

Milkfish Soup

Milkfish, Clams, Oyster Seafood Congee

The Miso Braised Pig's Large Intestines (Wei Zeng Lu Da Chang) are an example of a heritage fusion dish. The slow-braised pig's intestines simmer for hours in a miso paste and light soy sauce, becoming really tender with a slight chew to texture. It has bold savoury salty flavour, and is often eaten with white rice.

Miso Braised Pig's Large Intestines (Wei Zeng Lu Da Chang)

The Pan-Fried Oysters & Garlic feature fresh, plump, juicy oysters, pan-fried in a savoury sour sweet sharp gravy of garlic, corn flour, water, light soy sauce, sugar, tomato ketchup, sour plum powder, and white vinegar. A straightforward dish whose taste stands out.

Pan-Fried Oysters & Garlic

Pan-Fried Oysters & Garlic

The Sandwich Grilled Pork & Egg features thick slices of crisp buttered toasted white bread, with a sunny side up egg, and a grilled pork loin steak / pork chop sandwiched within. The pork loin steak / pork chop has a tender, moist texture, with good savoury sweet salty flavour. Cut or bite in, and the gooey runny egg yolk bursts forth, coating the rest of the sandwich in eggy silky goodness. Lovely decadence.

Sandwich Grilled Pork & Egg

Sandwich Grilled Pork & Egg

Sandwich Grilled Pork & Egg

The Sandwich Grilled Pork & Egg With Quadruple Cheese is a more luxurious version of the standard Sandwich Grilled Pork & Egg, featuring the addition of 4 slices of cheddar cheese. This results in an incredibly enticing, gooey string of cheese, which slowly spills over the sandwich. Best shared, as it's very filling.

Sandwich Grilled Pork & Egg With Quadruple Cheese

Sandwich Grilled Pork & Egg With Quadruple Cheese

The fragrant Sesame Oil With Pig's Kidney Flower (Ma You Yao Hua) features firm, crunchy pig's kidneys, along with black fungus, kai-lan / Chinese kale / Chinese broccoli, mountain yam, goji berries / wolfberries, and ginger, in a savoury sweet nutty gravy of sesame oil. Typically eaten as a side dish, along with white rice.

Sesame Oil With Pig's Kidney Flower (Ma You Yao Hua)

Sesame Oil With Pig's Kidney Flower (Ma You Yao Hua)

The Shaved Ice Black Tea is a creative modern Taiwanese dessert, featuring a large mound of finely shaved ice, infused with black tea, giving it a rich, earthy sweet flavour. The ice is shaved so finely that it just melts away pleasantly in the mouth. Garnished with creamy milk foam and crunchy black tea crystals, with chewy topica sago pearls in a sugar syrup on the side.

Shaved Ice Black Tea

Shaved Ice Black Tea

Shaved Ice Black Tea

Part perfomance piece, the Shaved Ice Fire Blueberry & Raspberry dessert features a large mound of finely shaved ice, infused with blueberry compote, raspberry compote, and topped with custard and sugar crystals. The dessert is quickly torched right in front of you, creating a caramelised crust akin to a crème brûlée. Served with chewy glutinous rice balls on the side. Bold fruity sweet flavours here, it's a memorable dessert experience.

Shaved Ice Fire Blueberry & Raspberry

Shaved Ice Fire Blueberry & Raspberry

The Shaved Ice Lemon Citron is a creative modern Taiwanese dessert, featuring a large mound of finely shaved ice, infused with lemon juice, studded with charcoal foam and sugar coated lemon slices. This gives it a contrasting zesty tangy sour sweet flavour, which is lively and refreshing. Served with chewy topica sago pearls, and crunchy sea coconut strips, in a sugar syrup on the side.

Shaved Ice Lemon Citron

Shaved Ice Lemon Citron

The Shaved Ice Mixed Fruits is a straightforward dessert, commonly eaten on warm days. It has a base of finely shaved ice, garnished with a variety of seasonal fruits, such as mango, kiwi fruit, and watermelon, completed with a scoop of rich, creamy vanilla ice cream. Best shared, it's refreshing and thirst-quenching.

Shaved Ice Mixed Fruits

Shaved Ice Mixed Fruits

The Spring Onion Pancake is a savoury Chinese pancake, also known as Cong You Bing or Scallion Pancake. The flatbread is made from unleavened dough using all-purpose flour, folded with oil and minced spring onions / scallions, then fried. The Taiwanese variation on this Chinese dish is the addition of egg on one side, giving it a more fluffy chewy texture, along with an eggy sweet savoury flavour.

Spring Onion Pancake

Spring Onion Pancake

The Steamed Custard Pudding is a common Taiwanese dessert. This warm, wobbly soft dessert is made with full cream milk, sugar, water, eggs, gelatine, and vanilla extract. It has a lovely floral sweet flavour, and is often eaten during breakfast.

Steamed Custard Pudding

The Stir-Fried Beef With Pickled Chili Peppers (Nuo Mi Jiao Chao Niu Rou) features tender slices of beef, savoury meaty sweet in flavour, stir-fried along with pickled chili peppers. The vegetables lend a contrasting sharp sour spicy kick, yet doesn't overwhelm, instead layering nicely in taste. Rather addictive.

Stir-Fried Beef With Pickled Chili Peppers (Nuo Mi Jiao Chao Niu Rou)

Stir-Fried Beef With Pickled Chili Peppers (Nuo Mi Jiao Chao Niu Rou)

Locals love the Taiwanese Fried Chicken Popcorn, more so than its larger cousin. Seems they like the crisp, crunchy texture, which is super satisfiying. The chunks of chicken here are slightly meaty, so you do get some of the chicken meat, with its sweet savoury flavour, and the layer of spices over it. Personally, I find it annoying to have bits of bone or cartilage in some of the pieces.

Taiwanese Fried Chicken Popcorn

Taiwanese Fried Chicken Popcorn

Unusually enough, straightforward Tea as a beverage is mostly served in sit-down restaurants. Typically, the more common variety here is black tea, and sometimes, red tea.

Tea

The street snack of Torched Beef Cubes features cubed beef chunks, grilled till medium rare, then torched and sprinkled with seasoning, usually, black pepper or chili powder. The beef is juicy and tender, bold with savoury meaty sweet flavour, followed by the kick of spice.

Torched Beef Cubes

The Yam Taro Cake With Almonds is an uncommon dessert, featuring a smooth, pudding-like yam taro paste, shaped into a cake. The earthy sweet flavour is complemented by the nutty flavour of the crunchy almonds. Typically served in restaurants here.

Yam Taro Cake With Almonds

So named because the dish can consist of whatever the Chef finds in the kitchen, the Yilan Stir-Fried Plate (Yilan Xiao Chao) is a plate of random stir-fried meat and vegetables. This particular version has smoky savoury tender duck, savoury sweet tender pork loin meat, vegetal sweet crunchy spring onions, bell peppers / capsicum, and ginger. A little sliced chili lends a good touch of fiery heat.

Yilan Stir-Fried Plate (Yilan Xiao Chao)

Yilan Stir-Fried Plate (Yilan Xiao Chao)

The Yilan Deep-Fried Battered Chicken Fat (Yilan Gao Zha) is utterly decadent. Cubes of wobbly soft chicken fat, coated in a light, thin, crisp batter, are deep-fried, and served with sour plums on the side. It has a fatty gelatinous savoury salty flavour. Madness, but tasty.

Yilan Deep-Fried Battered Chicken Fat (Yilan Gao Zha)

Yilan Deep-Fried Battered Chicken Fat (Yilan Gao Zha)

.....