Taiwan, with its abundance of night markets, is a place that visitors return to time and time again for the cuisine. There is so much wonderful cuisine to be available in Taiwan, from hot pot to boba to lu rou fan to beef noodle soup, and it is all reasonably priced! Here are some must try spicy food from Taiwan.
Food from Taiwan has also influenced by its geography. Taiwanese cuisine is dominated by seafood due to its location as an island. Rice is a fundamental meal, whole chicken and pork are also popular. Soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine, fermented black beans, and pickled radish are just a few of the ingredients commonly used to flavor Taiwanese foods.
Xiaochi is one of the most essential (and tasty) parts of Taiwanese cuisine. These are a type of appetizer that is comparable to Spanish tapas and Turkish meze. Xiaochi aren’t usually produced at home, but they’re popular in Taiwanese night markets all throughout the nation.
Here’s a list of 10 Must Try Spicy Food From Taiwan-
1. Beef Noodles
Beef noodles are one of Taiwan’s most popular dishes. Noodles, broth, and meat are three basic ingredients for delicious beef noodles. Broth is particularly important since it is the lifeblood of beef noodles. With stewed sirloin and cow tendon, there are two types of beef noodles: braised and clear stewed. Street sellers and ancient stores compete to make the greatest beef noodles with the best flavor, and beef noodles have become Taiwan’s pride and joy.
2. Minced Pork Rice (Stewed Pork Rice)
The suppleness of the pork without the greasiness of a bowl of regular-looking minced pork rice will surprise your palate. From a street seller to a five-star hotel, minced pork rice is available. It was even served at a state dinner once. Minced pork rice is Taiwan’s “national rice,” according to gastronome Shu Guo-Zhi, the “father of Taiwanese snacks.” Simmered pork rice is a type of minced pork rice popular in Northern and Central Taiwan, where the pork is minced with a knife and then stewed with soy sauce. The pork is minced by machines in Southern Taiwan, and the meal is known as minced pork rice in direct translation from Chinese.
3. Intestine and Oyster Vermicelli
Taiwanese vermicelli is a popular dish. Aside from birthday vermicelli, pork knuckle vermicelli, and sesame oil vermicelli, the most well-known Taiwanese cuisine is intestine and oyster vermicelli made using red vermicelli. The dish’s major components are oysters and vermicelli. Cornstarch is used to coat the oysters. In other cases, cooked intestines are also employed. The freshness and size of the oysters determine the success of an oyster vermicelli meal. The intestinal stewing procedure, as well as the ratio over vermicelli, are critical. You may add some of the store’s distinctive chili sauce, black vinegar, chopped garlic, and coriander to a delicious bowl of the intestine and oyster vermicelli to improve the flavor!
4. Oyster Omelet
The coating of yam flour and cornstarch gives a well-cooked oyster omelet a crunchy texture. The silky and chewy texture of oyster omelets is enhanced by each store’s distinctive chili sauce. When you first bite into the omelet with refreshing veggies such as garland chrysanthemum and bok choy, the rich aroma of eggs explodes on your tongue. The crisp sweetness and natural savory flavor of the sea invade your lips as you chew on the highlight of this meal, the plump, juicy, and fresh oysters. When visiting a night market, this is a must-try snack!
5. Stinky Tofu
The distinctive fragrance of fermented tofu inspired the moniker “stinky tofu.” That incomparable flavor is what makes it a renowned local food, whether deep-fried or steamed and stewed. To balance off the greasiness of the tofu, most stinky tofu vendors in Taiwan serve it deep-fried with non-spicy Taiwanese kimchi or Sichuan kimchi as a side dish. In recent years, spicy stinky tofu has become a popular method to eat fermented tofu. Duck blood curd and pickled cabbage are served in a thick spicy soup with a distinct stinky tofu scent. The meal is known as “intzstine stinking hotpot” and is made with intestines by certain sellers.
6. Chicken Cutlet
With its reputation as the “evilest national cuisine that is most-liked,” chicken cutlet holds a distinct place among all Taiwanese snacks. Chili peppers, as well as diverse spices like five-spice, seaweed, and wasabi, are used to create a wide spectrum of tastes. Variations include grilled chicken cutlets with sweet sauce and Japanese-style cheese chicken cutlets with cheese stuffing. The cooking method might range from classic deep-frying to charcoal grilling or a cheese casserole. Giant chicken cutlets or chicken thigh cutlets are also available from some merchants. Chicken cutlets, as a whole, are portable and quite filling. They are undoubtedly Taiwan’s most popular street snack.
7. Fried or Grilled Seafood
Almost every night market in Taiwan has kiosks serving grilled or deep-fried battered fish. It’s tasty and convenient to consume, even while walking. Grilled fish is also common at Taiwanese night markets. At every night market, at least one booth seems to be grilling a variety of seafood such as abalone, scallops, sea snails, shrimp, and oysters over a barbeque. If you enjoy abalone, Taiwan is the place for you. It appears to be in plentiful supply across Taiwan, and at a reasonable price.
8. Fish Balls
Fish balls are a popular street snack in several Asian nations, including Taiwan. I conducted some research and it appears that milkfish is a common major element in Taiwanese cuisine. The fish balls are let to simmer in a sauce before being skewered and sold at various Taiwanese night markets. Fish balls are available in a variety of sauces, but my particular favorite is the hot curry.
9. Gua Bao (Cua Pao)
One of the most popular Taiwanese meals is gua bao or cua pao. It’s a sort of sandwich prepared with braised pork belly between two halves of a Chinese steamed bun, and it’s sometimes referred to as a “Taiwanese hamburger” (baozi). Pickled mustard greens, coriander, and ground peanuts are traditional toppings. Those huge chunks of pork belly are to die for! They’re so soft and tumble apart that they almost disintegrate in your tongue. If you’ve never had a Chinese steamed bun, it has a peculiar feel that’s soft and pillowy, like a dough cloud.
10. Pepper Bun
A pepper bun, also known as hu jiao bing, is a baked bun found in Taiwanese night markets. It has a crispy, flaky outer dough shell with sesame seeds on top, and it’s stuffed with spicy marinated pork and scallions. It’s baked in a cylindrical clay oven that looks a lot like an Indian tandoori oven. The buns are baked over charcoal at a high temperature until they stick to the edges of the oven and are scraped off with a blunt knife or spatula when done.
Taiwanese culinary experiences are so important that many individuals fly to Taiwan solely to eat these delectable delicacies at night markets. It’s personally one of my favorite aspects of Taiwan. Here we wrap the list of 10 Must Try Spicy Food From Taiwan.
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