This is part 3 of a 3-part series on my 48 hour trip to Taichung, Taiwan, my mom's hometown.
The people of Taiwan are night owls, and I think Taiwan has THE LIVELIEST night culture out of any place around (including Hong Kong). Eating that “midnight snack” is such a part of Taiwanese culture, and the streets are full of people out at night (and they aren’t going to bars; just going out to eat!).
Our hotel was just a few minute walk from the night market, and I loved being able to just step out for a bite, even at 11PM.
Minglun Egg Pancake 明倫蛋餅
Made to order, this is a classic Taiwanese breakfast item consisting of a thin pancake cooked with an egg and possibly other fillings. I like the simple one with just egg and scallions, together with their special sauce. I guess you could sort of say it’s like a savory crepe, wrapped up to hold like a burrito.
Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken “Yan su Ji” 鹽酥雞
There’s something about the spices that they use for Taiwanese popcorn chicken that I just find so addictive. Of course this night market had it, as well as other deep fried foods made using a similar flavor, e.g,, mixed mushrooms 鹽酥菇(YUM!) and pork. I really liked the mushroom option.
Stinky Tofu 二山水泉臭豆腐
I had very fond memories of trying the stinky tofu here during my last visit to Taichung. The classic is the best, deep fried until golden crisply. Even tofu block has a hole in the middle which holds a special flavorful sauce and TONS of minced garlic. It is so flavorful, so, so good.
We also tried the Sichuang “numbing” (Mala) version, which was boiled (instead of deep fried), and had a much stronger, “stinkier” flavor, standing up well to the mala spice. Some members in our group refused to eat the boiled stinky tofu (which usually tends to be much stinkier - not for beginners!). I tried both and thought they were both good, though I prefer the deep fried super garlicky version.
Bitter Melon Juice 苦瓜汁
Taiwan is such a bountiful place for produce. The outdoor markets are second to none, and there are fruit juice/smoothie stands EVERYWHERE. And they are really cheap (consider what you get!). I had a white bitter melon + pineapple + lemon juice, which was great for reducing the “heat” of eating so many friend foods. (Chinese medicine concept). My sister got a watermelon juice (a super generous portion of fresh juice for only about USD$1.25), $2.50 if you add boba (which she did). I commented under my breath that such a drink would cost $8-12 in Boston. I also got a blended papaya milk (one of my favorites!) which was so refreshing.
Sweet Potato Puffs 地瓜球
These deep fried chewy yet crispy doughnut-like spheres are made from sweet potato flour. They sort of remind me of mochi (but not exactly). It’s quite tasty - dense and chewy on the side, a bit crispy on the outside. My uncle said usually there’s a long line, but because we were there on a “school night”, the line wasn’t bad.
Scallion Pancakes蔥油餅
This was one of the most popular stands in the market (technically right outside the market), and there were lines there even at 11PM. You can get a whole pancake (it’s HUGE, like a pizza), half a pancake, or just a single person’s portion (which is already pretty good). In the market itself there was another stand selling DEEP fried scallion pancakes served with egg. It looked good, but I was too full to try it.
Taiwanese Grilled Corn
I have a confession to make: I don’t think I’ve ever had Taiwanese grilled corn at the night market, even though I’ve made it NUMEROUS times at home. Up until last time, I had only had my mom’s version, which (by the way) is delicious (recipe on the blog). This time, I finally bought one on the street and enjoyed it in my room. It was very tasty, a bit sweeter and “crunchier” than the version my mom makes, but still very satisfying,
Handmade mochi balls
It was mesmerizing to watch the guy continually wrap mochi balls around a peanut filing before dusting it in peanut powder. I guess night markets are not good for those with allergies!
Snacks
Snacks in Taiwanese are so creative, I love it. Can you believe some of these unusual snacks, such as dragon fruit flavored Kuai Kuai, Doraemon shaped cakes, and pork sung roll cake??
I guess sweet & savory must taste good together.
Bryan LOVES cilantro, so I had to get these (available only in Taiwan) cilantro flavored snacks.
Wheel Pies （”車輪餅“ ”紅豆餅“ ）
These wheel pies originally came from Japan and traditionally is made with red bean. In fact, my mom told me that they used to call these “red bean cakes” 紅豆餅 in Chinese. But now, since newer “modern” creative versions can be filled with all sorts of stuff, at least this shop calls it a “Wheel cake.”
I had just gotten off the plane at Taichung International Airport and I was feeling a bit hungry. Intrigued by this stand called 馬祖新村 Mazu New Village, I decided to get something. I didn’t feel like something sweet, so I ordered the Sichuan “Mala” spicy preserved radish 菜餔, which was really delicious! It was slightly spicy, which I loved. Overall I enjoyed this savory filling, especially paired with the *slightly* sweet pancake-like exterior.
Just for fun, here's a video of our visit there two years ago. I didn't make a video this time, this photos!
