What to Eat in Taiwan (Taipei)

Grilled Seasoned Corn

We all know, Taiwan is the land of food, food & FOOD!! Conquering the food journey in Taiwan was tough as there were simply too much to try in such a short period of time. We did have our fair share of yummy goodness during our week stay so here is the bunch of food we managed to stuff into our tummy!

Warning, this not your average overhyped food post! We love immersing in the different cultures so we tend to try eat like a local. Also, I will be blogging about our itinerary and Alpaca Cafe journey in another post so stay tuned! ;)

Yong He Eating House - 永和豆浆

One of the most famous soy bean franchise, this is a must-go place to fill your tummies right before you start your day. You will literally see 永和豆浆 at almost every street and they are always packed to the brim with people getting their breakfast fix.

Our breakfast for 3! We may have overestimated ourselves and ordered way too much but we could not resist the temptation of everything! The youtiaos (fried dough fritters) are the best! Crispy, light & fragrant, one was definitely not enough for me. Eat it when it is piping hot.

As for the soy bean milk, they have the traditional sweet ones (white) and a salty version (the bowl with black sauce on top). I am not a fan of the salty version as they kinda coagulate into this strange crushed tofu texture... not my cup of tea but it was worth a try. The sweet soy bean milk is delicious, you can literally taste the freshness in it.

We also ordered a bunch of random small bites like youtiao wrapped with egg, bun with fried egg, fried onion egg & steamed pork buns. Yeah, we had an egg craze... Even though we ordered a bomb, the total bill came up to only 300TWD which is around SGD12! Score!!!

Fried Quail Eggs

As basic as it sounds, this is one of the most delectable small bites ever! Piping hot tiny quail eggs that are fried on the spot upon ordering, you even get to choose your own seasoning and add it yourself! This store is one of the best compared to all the others that I have tried. It is just right behind Uniqlo at Ximending.

Sweet Potato Balls

Right beside the stall that sells quail eggs at XMD, you have this awesome sweet potato balls that are crispy on the outside & airy on the inside! One of the best that I have tried as well. Do remember to add the sour plum powder seasoning, it makes everything better.

Smelly Tofu (臭豆腐)

Oh my god.... where can I sign up to sell my life to the 臭豆腐 gods?! All of us came to agreement that this was our favourite delicacy from Taiwan. It does smell like fermented stuffs but if you can take the stench of vinegar or sauerkraut then this is nothing! This stall by the entrance of Wufenpu sells one of the tastiest smelly tofu we have had throughout our trip. The skin is deep fried till it is crispy and fragrant, it comes with a generous amount of sauce and preserved vegetables to go along. Delicious!!! (Still have cravings for it until now... help!)

Fried Onion Pancake (葱油瓶)

I would like to call this a Chinese take on onion prata. HAHA! Not too sure if it is the flour in Taiwan but everything seems to be kinda starchy & chewy. I prefer the fried onion pancakes in Singapore as they are crispy and thin. This one feels more like a fried cake... taste pretty good but not a fan of the texture. It is a little too heavy for me. 🙈

Beef Cubes

Everyone that talks about Taiwan raves about this! Beef cubes that are cooked on a grill using actual flames! Looks pretty cool huh? Majority of the stalls selling these beef cubes tend to have a line of people trying to get their hands on it. The high temperature of the flames is said to give the beef a crispy outer texture whilst keeping the meat on the inside soft and juicy.

We, being typical Singaporeans, queued for the stall at Raohe Night Market with the longest queue and within a short wait of 10 minutes, the highly prized beef cubes were in our hands! Muahaha! We chose the pink himalayan salt seasoning as recommended by the stall owner.

Verdict? To me, it was not worth the hype. Please do not kill me. These beef cubes were so chewy, it feels like a never-ending chewing episode. There is a reason why I have botox on my jaw, not gonna waste it on chewing these beef cubes that will NEVER break down. 😑 Also, as they were cooked in a rush, the skin feels hard and not crispy. I have had better beef although they cost a lot more than this... but I would rather eat something delicious than waste time on this. Booooo! (Ps: it gets worst once it has cooled down. Eat it while it is hot!)

Peanut Ice Cream

Was so intrigued by this! Spot that giant block on the right? It is peanut! For every order, they will add a fresh lot of peanut shavings that is shaved on the spot. You can choose to add parsley (?!?!) to your ice cream. We did though, cuz' my friends like parsley but I was like wtf the entire time. Haha! Quite an interesting experience, the ice cream reminds me of the ice cream uncle selling $1 ice cream cones on a push-cart in the past. We had ours at Raohe as well but you can find this in most night markets. 

Smelly Tofu Fries

A hipster take on the traditional 臭豆腐, this can also be found at Raohe Night Market. If the stench of the smelly tofu bugs you, you can try this instead. The smell is much more muted here and it can easily be covered up with their mustard sauce. 

Cheese Pancake

Keep some space in your tummy when you are at Raohe because this Cheese Pancake is a must-try! The crust is super thin and crispy and the generous amount of cheese is an A+! If you love cheese pizza, this is your jam! Definitely one of my favourite little bites from Taipei. 

Deep Fried Chicken Cutlet (炸鸡排)

They say that when you are in Taipei, you must eat their famous deep fried chicken cutlet. Yup, this definitely did not disappoint! A giant piece of chicken cutlet deep fried to perfection, it is not too oily and the meat is tender and soft. We chose the sour plum seasoning again as it just makes everything deep fried taste 100x better! Love it!

Roast Pork Rice (烧肉饭)

The roast pork rice is Taipei is the bomb!! Roasted to perfection, the meat is tender yet fragrant. The skin is crispy and I love how the ends of the meat is not as salty as the ones we have in Singapore. This plate of roast pork rice definitely took me by surprise. We were lucky to stumble upon this shop that has been opened for 20 years near the place we stayed at. It is located near Da'an MRT Station Exit 4, right turn. Look for a small street with a Subway store and just walk down. You will see the store bustling with people. :)

Castella Cake

Found at Shilin Night Market, this Castella Cake is famous for a reason! We did not know about it but we were lured in by the aroma of freshly baked Castella Cake. The flavours actually remind me of the traditional 鸡蛋糕 but with a twist as they do have two variations, cheese and chocolate. It is really affordable and the serving is huge! Each portion is hot stamped with their logo. 

Just look at how fluffy this cake is! We bought the cheese one as it simply looked too delicious when it first came out of the oven. Would highly recommend eating it hot though, it tastes much better and the cake is a lot lighter. Head there early to avoid the queue and take a seat just opposite the store to savour the freshly baked Castella Cake. Ps: They have cute bakers too ;) 

That is all for now! Hope you did not salivate too much after reading this post because I certainly did! Took way too many breaks trying to stuff my mouth with food whilst typing this out. HAHA. Honestly do not understand how food bloggers do it? How can they resist the temptation to snack when they are typing out their blog posts?! Jokes aside, hope this post was helpful for you. If you are heading to Taiwan anytime soon, have a safe trip and eat your heart out! 

xx
​Winter