Strawberry Farm

My Godmother took me to this awesome strawberry farm up on the mountains near Taipei. I don't really know why I have a Godmother since my family is not Catholic. Anyways, it's strawberry season in Taiwan now and this little farm has a cute cafe open to the public during the weekends. You can even go in and pick your own strawberries.

Strawberry smoothie and cake made from fresh strawberries.

Lunch in Hualien, Taiwan

I had an interesting lunch with my family at my uncle's restaurant in Hualien, Taiwan. The restaurant was located on a small ranch with goats, chickens, and a wild boar. Everything was fresh but I learned that Taiwanese people LOVE garlic and vinegar.

Chicken, before and after. Plucked only a few hours before serving. Now that's fresh!

Fried gobo: sweet and crispy.

Pig skin marinated in garlic, vinegar

The most interesting dish featured bamboo tree grubs. I never thought I would be eating grubs unless I was starving in the jungle but my uncle assured that it was good. Since it's rude to reject a dish in the Chinese culture I was forced to eat at least a spoonful. Grubs are pretty much tasteless. These was sauteed with peanuts, hot peppers, and green onions. The texture reminded me of tiny fried shrimp... slightly crunchy.

Oysters and Stinky Tofu

It's been over 8 years since I have been back to Taiwan and in those 8 years I have been craving for Taiwan's great street food. My favorite dish is the "Stinky Tofu". You can smell a Stinky Tofu stand before you see it. As the name suggests, it really stinks. The smell is comparable to rotten trash but the taste is sour and savory.

The best kind of Stinky Tofu comes deep fried with fermented cabbage on top. I like mine extra sour with a tiny bit of hot sauce.

Taiwan is also known for it's oyster dishes. This is a typical oyster "pancake". The first layer is made of sweet potato flour than topped with vegetables, fried egg, oysters, and a sweet sauce.

And the best part about food in Taiwan is that you can easily get a whole meal for less than US$3. A bowl of noodles with fresh oysters or beef can cost as little as US$1.50.

Japan

I'm currently waiting for my connection to Taipei in Osaka, Japan. I love how wired this country is. They have laptop stations where you can plug in your computer with free ethernet connection. For awhile blogspot, google, and facebook were all in Japanese. I guess my one year of Japanese in high school didn't do much good.

My flight over here was exhausting. At least 1/4 of the Japanese passengers had SARS masks on. Don't worry, they don't have SARS, maybe just a cold. :)