Food Travelogue in Taichung!

Without a doubt, our best time in Taiwan was actually during our two days one night in Taichung, Taiwan. Not only we had fun with Alex's family from his mum's side, we also had a lot of good food. A LOT of food.

So, our foodie adventure started once we arrived at the train station. Just a walk away, there was this fancy shop, very crowded, selling local delicacies in creative packaging.

They sell desserts too, but because the queue was just too ridiculous, we went to meet the aunt and cousin at their other branch, another 5 minutes walk away~


This branch was of a different concept. Renovated from an old bank, this branch is popular for its 卤味 (braised dishes)

Alex and I only shared a drink, while savouring some braised dishes the aunt had ordered~

And apparently, when in Taichung, one must eat its 肉丸 (gigantic meat ball. I added in 'gigantic' because you will see why soon)

So, we did. Aunty Meigo took us to this eatery which was supposedly the favourite place of my mum-in-law..

 Did you see how enormous one meat ball is??? So what they do is, they deep fry the meat ball (which has soup in it!) first, then serve it with some homemade sweet chilli and garlic and soy sauce.

How one portion looks like..

and here's a better look at it~

Very juicy, and addictive. I was full after one, but turns out most people would order more than one. My mum-in-law could even finish three by herself ;)

Throughout our stay in Taiwan, we been to this franchise 春水堂 numerous times because its really good. In Taichung, we found ourselves in that franchise twice, different outlets both visits, but consistently good quality and experience.

Here are some of the yummy snacks we had during our visits.

 三沾小麻吉

 鮮三菇

 港式蘿蔔糕

 芋頭糕

 茶香蠔油鳳爪

奶油吐司

and Alex's favourite of all time

deep-fried mantou, dipped in condensed milk.

All of the items were really good. The deep fried items are not oily at all, and the braised items are very flavourful. There were a couple more dishes that we tried but due to them been eaten before getting immortalised through the lens, yup.. gone. lol

In Taichung, there is also a really famous night market ~ 凤甲夜市

and some of the loots from the night market..

 corn grilled in 'sha cha' sauce.

 A small sausage sandwiched in a bigger sausage! Wickedly yums!

and we had more salted chicken nuggets, tempura, chips, and fresh fruits..

Next morning, Aunt Angela bought us breakfast - the taiwanese way~

So so full~~~

And just when we thought we tasted all, we were treated to a luncheon at 廖妈妈 - a hakka restaurant, as our congratulatory meal with the extended family of Alex's mum. I really could not remember the names of the dishes, so just feast your eyes ;)

and just when you find yourself too full to even move or digest the wonderful meal you had, they served us complimentary desserts!

 Chewy pearl balls in syrup

and my all-time favourite..

mochi with lots and lots of peanuts!!!!

 

*burps*
That was a really good meal.

And that ends our finger-licking good trip in Taichung! Hope I managed to get your stomachs growling ;)

Taiwan!!!

Due to several complicated situations, I had to go to Taiwan, 2 weeks before my wedding. Some asked me whether I was sure about that, since that would be the most crucial time to coordinate the final details of the wedding. Well, not that we had much of a choice, and there were more pressing matters at hand... So Alex and I met up at KLIA on the 30th of November, and together we flew (our first time flying together!) to Taipei!

The MAS aircraft that we got was pretty rundown, much to our dismay. It didn't even have in-flight entertainment! Thank goodness it was only a 5 hour flight and the Nasi Lemak served was pretty good!

So...
After more than 5 years...
I was finally on the Taiwan grounds!

But of course, drama always stuck to us, no matter where we are... And guess what? Alex's luggage was detained at KLIA, back in Malaysia! To cut the story short, we had to make two trips to the airport (took a hired cab, high speed train, bus) to collect his luggage, only to find that it was held because of suspicion of bringing drugs, which happened to be our blocks of Whittaker chocolates from New Zealand @___@


That aside, I was very excited about my stay in Taiwan. Quite nervous and anxious due to some family issues, but mostly just excited to try out the many Taiwanese snacks that I have heard Alex bragged about all the time lol.

So this post aims to make you salivate! I shall spam this entry with the dishes I tried (some for the first time) and still crave for now!

#1
The standard Taiwanese snacks

 Kumara or sweet potatoes sliced, coated and deep fried to perfection, with tangy and sweet plum powder added onto! That quickly became one of my favourites, to the point of mild addiction lol.

Next, we had deep fried 甜不辣 (Alex's favourite) and deep-fried chicken fillet, marinated with honey, powdered with chilli!


#2

This was a real surprise. Who would have known that green tomatoes, dipped into a mixture of sauces and ginger can be so refreshingly addictive!


#3

Mutton soup, topped with slices of ginger - very comforting dish during the chilly weather in winter ;)


#4

Noodles fried in a sweet and tangy sauce with some fresh pieces of eel! You can taste all its freshness!


#5
During our 9-days stay in Taiwan, we had quite a lot of 便当 (taiwanese bento)..

Delicious, convenient, and a good variety to choose from!


#6

 

This easily became my favourite guilty pleasure! The creamy milky custard, hot and piping in a crispy pastry... ahhhhhhh...


#7

Glorious, glorious, stinky tofu!!!! I used to be scared of this dish, and the smell that comes with it. But I came to realise that it was because I had this dish at the wrong places.

Alex brought me to this small stall by the road that was very close to a school. It was packed with people, taking turns to savour their tofu, consuming the whole dish in mere minutes, and leaving as soon as they could to make place for the rest in line. We waited for close to 20 minutes and it was so worth the wait!


#8

 What is a trip to Taiwan, without some gooey oyster goodness, also famously called as 蛤仔煎???


#9
and I present to you... the most wicked dessert of all..

Shaved ice, with brown sugar syrup, red beans, condensed milk and a whole piece of 统一布丁! So so so good!


#10
But to me, nothing beats traditional dessert...
How about a huge piece of Mochi, prepared by a lady who has been doing this trade for over 30 years, loaded with roasted and grounded peanut and sesame seeds?

I love every bite of it!


There is still so much food that I would like to share with you all. I guess I have to continue in future entries ;)

All these pictures are making me real hungry now. Probably it's high time for me to do my womanly duties and prepare dinner hahahaha..

Till the next entry~
Ciao and God bless :)