Wasai--- Chewing your tea

Taiwan is famous for many things. Foreigners often laud Taiwan for its incredibly delicious cuisines. Food, no doubt is a cornerstone of life in Taiwan. All you have to do is flip through the channels to figure that out. It is common knowledge that 50% of basic cable channels in Taipei are dedicated to either news, cooking, or food related shows. One famous member of the Taiwanese pallet often gets left out of the stories foreigners often tell of their magical eating experiences in Taiwan, and I’m not talking about stinky tofu. I am referring to my favorite drink of all time, bubble milk tea (also known as pearl milk tea or tapioca milk tea.)

For those of you unfortunate enough to have tried this delicious concoction, it is sweet black tea, mixed with condensed milk, and waiting at the bottom are a handful of starch balls that look shockingly similar to frog’s eggs. The final little addition makes this delightful little beverage intimidating and/or unpleasant for many foreigners. “I don’t want to chew my tea,” many say. That’s exactly what I used to say too, my first 7 or 9 months in Taiwan, but I finally tried it, I mean really tried it. It takes getting used to, but once you do you’ll never go back to milk tea without it. For one, it slows you down, keeps you from drinking a sweet drink too fast. Also, it makes a drink into a little snack. So, if you have classes until 9pm, and you haven’t eaten since 11, it’s a nice little snack to carry you over until you can finally get some dinner.

The reason for starch balls in tea, or jellies, or coconut meat, or any of the other chewies “QQ” as the locals call it) that you find in your drinks in Taiwan is because of the Taiwanese love for texture in food. Texture is as much a part of the dish as its taste in Taiwan. In the US, we judge dishes on how well they taste, smell, maybe even look, but never on texture. We don’t want any strange textures in our food. Not the Taiwanese, they welcome new textures to their foods. Hence the obsession with shark fin, and other exotic sea foods like jelly fish and sea cucumber even though they don’t have any taste. So, don’t be surprised when you are offered a strange looking something and your host exclaims, “Good texture!”

Submitted to Wasai Taiwan by: Jason Brunken (Taipei)

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Wasai--- Buying fish

After living in Taiwan for a couple of years, I was invited to go to Yalio for the weekend. It was a lovely time; we saw the sights and swam in the ocean for the first time. In the evening, we sat around, drank copious quantities of beer, and even sat in on a few rounds of mahjong. In the morning, our friend, who is also a very good Chinese cook, decided that we should go to the harbor and see what fresh fish the fishermen were selling. When we got there, I noticed a nice big sea bass still swimming around in a small wash bucket. I asked the price, and since it was very reasonable, I decided to purchase this particular fish. Then, the fisherman asked me if I would like him to clean the fish for me. Since cleaning a fish is messy work, I said sure.Well, he grabbed the fish, raked all the scales off its body, cut open the belly and removed the innards, and then ripped out the gills. After a quick rinse, he put it into a plastic bag. But the fish was still alive and kicking, flicking around in the bag, gasping for air that it could not breathe. I felt very sorry for this poor fish that was dying as I walked down the street.

Then my friend noticed some fresh octopus. So we decided to purchase one to add to our brunch menu. The vendor opened the mesh bag that held one of these live octopi and proceeded to grab it around what would be considered its neck. Then with his thumb and two forefingers, the fisherman flicked his wrist and turned the octopus head inside out! Then he ripped the insides out of its head. Again, a quick rinse and into a plastic bag, wriggling and writhing as I walked back to the house to start making lunch.

Unfortunately, the two living-dead that I was carrying made me lose my appetite. Go figure.

Submitted to Wasai Taiwan by: P. Tyler (Taipei)

Wasai---Ice water

Coming to Taiwan is a chance to experience new foods, and so I’ve found myself going to restaurants and eateries of all sorts as much and as often as I can find someone to go with me. Sitting down at one restaurant, after having walked around in a Taiwan summer and feeling the heat, out of habit I absentmindedly asked the waitress to bring me a glass of water with ice please while I browsed the menu wondering what to get. So it was with a bit of shock to hear that in fact, the restaurant didn’t have ice water. After all, what kind of restaurant doesn’t have ice water? Certainly none in America, not even the smallest hot dog stand lacks at the very least a cooler with drinks packed in ice. Yet in all my experience in Taiwan the only times I’ve encountered drinks with ice are in iced juice drinks or teas, and never ever have I run into ice water in Taiwan, not in houses or restaurants.


Submitted to Wasai Taiwan by: Bernard Kung (Hsinchu)

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Wasai---Ice Cream Truck?

Originally getting used to living in Taiwan was easy as pie. Many things were similar to things in the States. Whenever I had problems someone always was more than willing to give me a hand, and often could even speak a little English. But despite all the help I was given, I can still occasionally make silly mistakes, which let everyone know how new I am to this country. For example, one day I was out for a walk with a friend when I heard a familiar sound coming from down the street. I immediately recognize it, or at least I thought I did. I heard a truck coming, and it was playing music loudly. We have trucks that drive around towns playing music in the United States too, and they sell ice cream on hot days. Well, that particular day was very hot, and I immediately went to get a bite to eat, only to come face to face with a big yellow garbage truck.



In the United States we also have garbage trucks in our cities. But they usually come on a schedule, the same times, maybe once or twice a week. Each house or business can bring their trash cans out and leave them on the side of the street, and when the garbage man comes by, he takes care of their garbage for them. I had never seen a truck before that plays music, and collects your trash. My friends though it was funny to see me make such a mistake. I was disappointed that I couldn’t get some of the ice cream that I had wanted so much. Then again, shopping is so convenient in Taiwan; I just had to cross the street to the Seven-Eleven to fill my craving.

Submitted to Wasai Taiwan by: Ryan Barber (Hsinchu)

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Wasai---Open Air Market in Taiwan

The way open air markets differ from US to Taiwan has been one of aspects of taiwan i have failed to embrace. In america I enjoy making food, going to the market, buying food, making food and best of all eating the food. In taiwan, when i end up going to open air markets vendors I already feel very out of place with the crowds of older women giving me funny looks. Regardless, to find the price of something, instead of being asked nicely if I need help I am expected to yell at the vendor about how much the price of something is, all the while josteling with fellow shoppers. In america , yelling at a vendor would be considered somewhat rude and I do it with a lot hesitation often resulting in me getting ignored. Another interesting aspect of taiwan markets is the lack of refrigeration, especially at the makeshift butcher shops. In america meat is usually prepared in a very clean room and with clean high tech instruments and then immediately refrigerated. Watching butchers in taiwan hang raw meat out for viewing is unsettling, in fact I cant bring myself to buy meat like that. Though i realize that most meat in Taiwan is probably prepared like that, it seems too unsanitary to me, and just pretend that meat isn't prepared like such.

Submitted to Wasai Taiwan by: Bobby Chang (Hsinchu)

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