Taiwan Eats, Part II: Breakfast and Brunch
First topic of discussion: breakfast.
A working day's breakfast in Taiwan is pretty simple: coffee or tea, maybe milk (although oftentimes this is from powder rather than fresh as fresh is rather expensive in Taiwan), maybe toast from a local bakery (Japanese style bread--more buttery), maybe oatmeal or other sweet multigrain drink mixes, or maybe something more traditional (as as pictured below at my grandmother's house) such as rice and veggies/meat if you have the time and someone to cook it for you at home. Otherwise one might pick up a cheap meal on the go at a local bakery or convenience store (such as 7-Eleven), where you can get pretty much anything from lattes to stuffed rice balls to sandwiches to beer (breakfast of champions!).
More modern influences have introduced the ideas of cold cereal, bagels, waffles, and donuts (to be pictured in an upcoming post) but these are pretty pricey still and more trendy rather than common.
A busy young professional may also choose to go to one of the many chain coffee shops that have popped up nowadays: Starbucks, 85 degrees Celsius, Coffee Bean, Barista. These are generally pretty pricey (with the exception of 85 degrees), but again is more of a modern and trendy phenomenon.
But one of the cornerstones of a to-go Taiwanese breakfast is the still the breakfast shop. These little stores pepper every street and corner, and oftentimes sell more modern items such as toast and "hamburgers," but in old school types, just the staples of youtiao ("oil stick"--a fried piece of savory dough, pictured below in lower left corner just above the knife), shaobing (the bun above the youtiao, which you use to sandwich it and eat together), danbing (thin scallion pancake fried on griddle with egg), cong youbing (scallion pancake), soy milk, and tea. The picture below is a selection of these items that we picked up at a more old-school store near my parent's house. The savory rice porridge that can be seen spooned up in the upper right hand corner was picked up at a local morning market, which sells clothing and trinkets, fresh veggies, fresh meat and fish, and some quick breakfast meals like noodles and rice porridge.
Other staples that can be found at these sorts of shops include steamed buns (plain mantou or stuffed baozi) or stuffed rice balls/rolls. Michael wants me to note that all these wheat flour-based foods are not historically Taiwanese; rather, these foods are northern Chinese that were brought down to Taiwan when the Nationalist Party escaped to Taiwan during the Chinese civil war after WWII.
What about a leisurely weekend brunch? If you want to slow down the pace a little on the weekend, you may come across the scene above, of which you've already gotten a preview--a home-cooked breakfast spread such as my grandmother's. This kind of a spread would normally only occur on a weekend for most families, including my own. Dim sum is also common enough in Taiwan and people will frequent teahouses to gobble up various types of steamed dumplings. Many Japanese-European style coffee houses will offer a brunch set menu, and that's also a popular option.
Omelet with scallions and pickled daikon radish.
Fatty pork stewed in soy sauce.
A working day's breakfast in Taiwan is pretty simple: coffee or tea, maybe milk (although oftentimes this is from powder rather than fresh as fresh is rather expensive in Taiwan), maybe toast from a local bakery (Japanese style bread--more buttery), maybe oatmeal or other sweet multigrain drink mixes, or maybe something more traditional (as as pictured below at my grandmother's house) such as rice and veggies/meat if you have the time and someone to cook it for you at home. Otherwise one might pick up a cheap meal on the go at a local bakery or convenience store (such as 7-Eleven), where you can get pretty much anything from lattes to stuffed rice balls to sandwiches to beer (breakfast of champions!).
More modern influences have introduced the ideas of cold cereal, bagels, waffles, and donuts (to be pictured in an upcoming post) but these are pretty pricey still and more trendy rather than common.
A busy young professional may also choose to go to one of the many chain coffee shops that have popped up nowadays: Starbucks, 85 degrees Celsius, Coffee Bean, Barista. These are generally pretty pricey (with the exception of 85 degrees), but again is more of a modern and trendy phenomenon.
But one of the cornerstones of a to-go Taiwanese breakfast is the still the breakfast shop. These little stores pepper every street and corner, and oftentimes sell more modern items such as toast and "hamburgers," but in old school types, just the staples of youtiao ("oil stick"--a fried piece of savory dough, pictured below in lower left corner just above the knife), shaobing (the bun above the youtiao, which you use to sandwich it and eat together), danbing (thin scallion pancake fried on griddle with egg), cong youbing (scallion pancake), soy milk, and tea. The picture below is a selection of these items that we picked up at a more old-school store near my parent's house. The savory rice porridge that can be seen spooned up in the upper right hand corner was picked up at a local morning market, which sells clothing and trinkets, fresh veggies, fresh meat and fish, and some quick breakfast meals like noodles and rice porridge.
Other staples that can be found at these sorts of shops include steamed buns (plain mantou or stuffed baozi) or stuffed rice balls/rolls. Michael wants me to note that all these wheat flour-based foods are not historically Taiwanese; rather, these foods are northern Chinese that were brought down to Taiwan when the Nationalist Party escaped to Taiwan during the Chinese civil war after WWII.
What about a leisurely weekend brunch? If you want to slow down the pace a little on the weekend, you may come across the scene above, of which you've already gotten a preview--a home-cooked breakfast spread such as my grandmother's. This kind of a spread would normally only occur on a weekend for most families, including my own. Dim sum is also common enough in Taiwan and people will frequent teahouses to gobble up various types of steamed dumplings. Many Japanese-European style coffee houses will offer a brunch set menu, and that's also a popular option.
Omelet with scallions and pickled daikon radish.
Fatty pork stewed in soy sauce.
Beer - the breakfast of champions!
ReplyDeleteI envy Jessica. She had the opportunity to enjoy these treats. Kathy
ReplyDelete