“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains.”

This blog post title is credited to Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen & Seth Grahame-Smith but if I had to tailor it to my most recent experience with food I would have to say "Let it be universally acknowledged that Brett having just eaten brains may not be in want of more brains". 

The most dangerous thing you can say to a Taiwanese friend is “yeah, I would probably give that a try” in relation to some casually mentioned culinary obscurity. Sure enough the next time you arrange to meet, your friend will have with them the very item that was mentioned off-hand, eager to assist you in your exploratory journey of sampling foods and flavours that are not so uncommon in Taiwan but would make the faint of heart back home turn pale (or paler by comparison!). 

Our friends have now had the pleasure (and amusement!) of introducing us to a variety of dishes that we possibly would never have sampled were it not for their guidance, assurance, and gentle nudging.

 I’ve now had the opportunity to sample: 

- Pigs ears
- Steamed pig skin
- Stinky tofu: fried, steamed and in spring rolls (see previous post)
- Chicken butts
- Century egg
- Fried bean curd skin
- Duck blood rice cakes
- And most recently... duck’s head and BRAIN!!! 

If you’re interested in how one eats a duck’s brain it is quite simple... you take a small skewer provided by the store where the duck’s head was purchased, you skewer the duck’s brain which is easily identifiable and accessible as the duck’s head has been chopped neatly in half, you raise the brain to your mouth, insert and eat. I would compare the texture to liver and there really wasn’t much taste to it. The feel and flavour of the duck’s brain really don’t warrant being squeamish, just the fact that it is a ducks brain, that’s all. 

None of the things I’ve eaten have been unpleasant experiences and I’m glad I’ve tried everything above. No doubt there will be many more opportunities to sample foods that, as of now, I don’t even know exist. I look forward to it!

Fried bean curd skin, fried tofu, chicken butts and duck heads.

Stanley holds up the duck's head for the camera. The little brown thing hanging out on the left is its brain.

 No need to see pictures of me actually eating the brain. My expression is somewhat less appealing!

Duck blood rice cake, fried of course. Tastes fine. We've had this a few times now.

Sliced pig's ears. Not bad either. It was recommended that we try this before we were told what it was.

Century egg with tofu. A very unique taste but I don't see why people are so freaked out about it.

 

Gelatinous steamed pig skin. Pretty tasty but something you can't eat too often.

Something a little easier for westerners to palate, rice dumpling with peanuts.

The shop that sells the rice dumplings is next to Stanley's Malaysian Hot Pot restaurant. The shop has been operating for 60 years!!!

One of our favourites, beef noodle soup!

Mango on crushed ice. I tried this just yesterday... delicious!!!!

Our hike on Chaishan and the Century Egg

Sunday morning, Brett and I got up early to meet Jenny and Milton for a hike on Chaishan mountain. Interestingly, the mountain is formed from fossilized coral reef. As we walked towards the trailhead, Jenny assured me that the hike would be easy. She told me about all the elderly people who climb the mountain very early every morning carrying large jugs of water to share with fellow climbers at the top. I found it a little more challenging.

We started our hike/walk at 8:30 in the morning, but a bright Kaohsiung summer day becomes overwhelmingly hot even before then. I can safely say that my exertions on Chaishan resulted in the sweatiest day of my life. This includes the time I tried hot yoga.

My sweaty face aside, it was a perfect day. The scenery was beautiful, the monkeys were adorable, and we saw plenty of lovely butterflies, wild flowers, lizards, and brightly-coloured beetles. Thankfully, Milton and Jenny were kind enough to stop frequently to “tell us about the history of the area” ie: politely wait while I caught my breath long enough to enjoy my surroundings. I was really excited when we saw a yellow striped lizard known for doing adorable little push-ups, and I was absolutely enthralled when a large family of monkeys calmly walked past us on the path. They came within inches of our ankles and seemed very nonplussed by our presence, perhaps because we had no snacks for them to steal.

After the hike, Milton ran to get the car while Jenny showed us a Taoist temple at the base of the mountain. She showed me the proper method for acknowledging the altars as well as the order in which they must be addressed - unlike monotheist places of worship, each Taoist temple contains shrines to multiple gods and goddesses with a main altar dedicated to a particular deity. The temple we visited is dedicated to the goddess of the sea, a clear favourite in a harbour city like Kaohsiung!

Jenny and Milton then took us to a casual deli/cafeteria-style restaurant in Zuoying, a historic part of the city. While we waited for our beef noodles, Milton brought us dishes of specially cooked peanuts, pig skin (yum!), and a century egg (pi dan)! For those of you who don’t know what a century egg is, CNN actually posted an article just a few days ago about it being the “world’s most revolting food”. Despite having been way too much of a wimp to try the century egg myself, I don’t agree with that label. Century eggs are not rotten or dangerous to eat - they don’t even have a strong smell. They’re just duck eggs that have been cured and preserved in a special way that makes the egg turn green and slightly gelatinous. Milton showed us how to take a spoonful of tofu, green onions, sauce, and a piece of the egg, and eat it all in one bite! He and Jenny both really like it, so Brett gave it a try. He doesn’t know how to put into words what the egg tastes like, but says it’s a unique flavour, an acquired taste, and something he’ll need to try once more before he decides if he loves it or hates it. We’re very lucky to have Taiwanese friends who encourage us to try local delicacies! Brett now has one up on me with the century egg so I’m going to have to think of a way to gain some traveler street cred soon!

Today we went to Kenting with Milton and Jenny. Brett’s going to post something about that once he has a spare moment... For now we have to finish packing for Xiao Liuqiu!

Jenny & Milton!

Milton, Jenny and Amanda.

There were many butterflies more beautiful than this one but this poor fellow is the only one I captured on camera.

Milton, Jenny and Brett.

Monkeys!!!

Temple dedicated to the God of the Sea.

Inside the temple.

You can make a donation and have your family name written on a little glass window in one of two such pillars in the temple. This will bring you good luck.

Century egg and tofu! The century egg is covered in fish shavings and the tofu is covered in spring onions.

Here goes nothing...

I wasn't sure how I would react...

Thinking about it...

Still thinking...

Success! Not that bad really.