Straight Out Street Fooding

 

I got off track there for a while, but I’m back.  I’d like to say I got too busy to do this, but I wasn’t.  Sometimes being a little creative, (And I’m emphasizing “little”), is a bit taxing.  I made a couple of videos with Elizabeth, which will be coming out soon, I went and did some birding, I went to the Tea Shop, and I’ve been writing sermons and Bible studies for the church, so that left me only about five days a week to work on this.  So, let’s just call a spade a spade, I got lazy a bit.  In my defense though, I didn’t retire so I could get another job. See, I can justify even laziness if I put my mind to it!

So, here we go! Recently, Eric and I decided to do an afternoon of “street fooding” and I thought maybe I could share that with you.  Street food is kind of a big deal.  I don’t really think of myself as a foodie, but people who do, consider Taiwan to be a “Food Destination.”  Food is very important to the locals.  There are restaurants everywhere.  The things that I gravitate to are either a restaurant in someone’s garage or food carts that are scattered all over the city.  I have to be careful about not going to those places too often, though, because it’s a lot of deep fried and bready things.  Cholesterol and Blood Sugar are important things for me to watch carefully.  I also don’t want to get fat so, there’s that!

We hit a number of street food carts in Bade District, and I wanted to share the delights we found there and some other things we didn’t do on this day:

Oyster Daddies  蚵嗲

Fresh, Hot Oyster Daddies

There is a type of deep-fried dumpling called a 蚵嗲, (pronounced as Ke diuh).  The syllable for 嗲 contains the radical meaning dad.  So, I refer to them as “Oyster Daddies”.  They are delicious.  I absolutely love to eat oysters.  I like them raw with a spicy sauce on them.  I like them cooked fried teppanyaki style.  I especially like them as deep-fried dumplings.  The cost about $50NTD (about $1.60USD.)   One of them makes an excellent snack, and two is enough for a lunch.

Tang Bao 湯包

Nice Steamed Tang Bao

Tang bao (pronounced Taung Bow) translates to Soup Dumpling.  This is a dumpling that is filled with pork and a bit of pork soup.  It is steamed in a circular bamboo steamer that stacks one on another called a小籠 (pronounced shiou long) small steamer.  So, these are often called小籠包.  It’s served with little strips of ginger which really adds to the taste.  One long, about seven dumplings costs about $70NTD or (about $2.40USD) and is enough for a light meal.

Cong Zhua Bing  蔥抓餅

Cong Zhua Bing on the Griddle

Cong Zhua Bing (pronounced tsong jwa bing) is a flaky scallion pancake.  It is made with scallions kneaded into a dough made from potato starch, then fried on the grill. There is another type called Cong You Bing  蔥油餅 (pronounced tsong yo bing).  The difference is that Cong You Bing is flat (like a thick flour tortilla), and Cong Zhua Bing is pulled apart a bit and it becomes thicker and flakier.  They can be fried on an egg and the sauce is added.  You can have your choice of regular or a little spicy.  I like a lot of sauce on mine and an egg.  The price with an egg is $45NTD ($1.50 USD).  Without an egg is $30NTD ($1.00USD) One serving is enough for a light lunch.

Zhen Zhu Nai Cha 珍珠奶茶

Oolong Tea about to become Zhen Zhu Nai Cha

In the United States zhen zhu nai cha (pronounced jen ju ni cha) is called Boba Tea.  In Taiwan Boba is slang for large breasts so it is called zhen zhu nai cha which translates as Pearl Tea.  You can have it made with any type of tea like Green Tea, Black (Red) Tea, or Oolong, and any level of sugar you want.  The pearls are made from tapioca flour and black sugar.  They’re delicious chewy little pearls.  I won’t go into a lot of detail because it is so popular in the US, but I will say that it was invented in Taiwan. The cost of one drink made with Oolong tea and Pearls is about $70NTD (about $2.40USD) at Milk Sha.  Try getting it for that price in the US.

Gua Bao 刈包

Braised Pork Being Added to Man Tou

Gua Bao (pronounced gwa bow) is sometimes called the Taiwanese Hamburger.  It's made with a steamed bun called man tou (pronounced mawn tow) that is cut and filled with Braised Pork, Cilantro and Peanut Powder.  Not that wimpy Peanut Powder that you can buy in the States, I’m talking about the good stuff, real Peanut Powder.  There’s a place about two blocks from my apartment that sells these bad boys.  The lady that owns the place likes me, so she makes nice fat ones for me.  They are super delicious.  Price is about $60NTD each (about $2.00USD).  One Gua Bao is about what I would have for lunch.

 我有一段時間偏題了，但我回來啦。我本可以說我太忙沒時間，但其實並不是。有時候稍微動點腦筋（我強調是“稍微”），也會讓人覺得累。我和莎白拍了幾支影片，馬上就要出來了，我去賞鳥，還在為教會準備講道和查經材料，所以我能投入在這件事上的時間其實只有大約每週五天。說句實話，我就是有點懶。不過幫自己辯護一下，我退休不是為了再去上班。你看，只要肯努力，連“懶”都有藉口！

好了，開始吧！最近我和Eric決定來個下午的“街頭美食之旅”，所以想跟你們分享一下。街頭美食可是大事一樁。我雖然不自認是個“吃貨”，但行家都說台灣是美食之都。食物對當地人非常重要，餐廳到處都是。我偏愛那種在車庫裡的餐館或散落全城的美食攤車。不過得小心別太常去，因為很多都是炸的、麵糰類的，膽固醇和血糖是我要注意的點。我也不想變胖，這也很重要！

當天我們在八德區拜訪了好幾攤街頭美食，現在來分享我們吃到的精采美食，以及那些我們這天沒吃到的：

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🦪 蚵嗲（Oyster Daddies）

有一種炸餃叫做「蚵嗲」，字面上「嗲」這個字帶有「爸」的部首，所以我戲稱它為 “Oyster Daddies”。這道小吃超好吃。我超愛吃蚵，無論是生食搭配辣醬，還是鐵板煎炸，我都愛。尤其是炸成小餃子的這款，一顆賣大約 NT$50（約 US$1.60）。一顆就是極佳的點心，吃兩顆就可以當午餐了。

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🍜 湯包（Tang Bao）

湯包就是湯汁豐富的肉包。裡頭包著肉和一些湯汁，用堆疊的圓形竹蒸籠蒸熟，這種籠子叫「小籠」，所以有時也被稱為小籠包。通常會搭配細薑絲一起吃，更添風味。一籠約七顆，售價約 NT$70（約 US$2.40），一餐剛剛好，吃得舒服又不過量。

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🥞 蔥抓餅（Cong Zhua Bing）

蔥抓餅是一款層次酥脆的蔥油餅。蔥揉進地瓜粉麵糰裡，再放在鐵板上煎。還有一種類似的叫「蔥油餅」，差別在於蔥油餅是比較扁像厚墨西哥餅，蔥抓餅則是拉開有層次、酥脆厚實版。可以加蛋和醬料，醬甜得恰到好處、蛋增加飽足感。我喜歡加滿醬和蛋。加蛋 NT$45（約 US$1.50），不加 NT$30（約 US$1.00）。一份當輕 lunch 很剛好。

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🧋 珍珠奶茶（Zhen Zhu Nai Cha）

在美國叫珍珠奶茶，俗稱 Boba Tea。不過在台灣，“Boba”在英文直譯是“大胸”，所以我們就說“珍珠奶茶”：珍珠是用木薯粉和黑糖做成的，Q彈好吃！可以選綠茶、紅茶或烏龍茶，還可以選甜度。我不多說了，因為在美國已經非常流行，但提醒一點：珍珠奶茶是起源於台灣。像 Milk Sha 的烏龍珍珠奶茶大約 NT$70（約 US$2.40），想在美國用台灣同等價位買，很難吧！

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🍔 刈包（Gua Bao）

刈包，又被稱為台灣漢堡。是以饅頭切開夾進滷豬肉、香菜和花生粉，但不是美國那種市售花生粉，而是真材實料的花生粉。離我住處兩條街有一個攤車，老闆娘挺照顧我的，會做超厚實的大刈包給我。超美味！一個約 NT$60（約 US$2.00），我通常一個就當午餐了。

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希望你喜歡這趟街頭美食分享！如果想知道更多地點、種類或季節特產，隨時告訴我。

 

Oyster Daddies Booth

 

Sign Says Oyster Cake

Steaming Up Some Tang Bao

Xiao Long Bao Cart

One Serving of Cong Zhua Bing

Cong Zhua Bing Stand

I Bought One for Eric, too!

Milksha

They Always Come Sealed!

Making Up Some Gua Bao!

My, Doesn't That Look Good!

Gua Bao Restaurant!

Come to Papa, Little Bao!

Some Food Related Links:

The Stink of Adventure

Niu Rou Mian

Hot Pot

Baozi

A Bonus Adventure:  Making Stinky Tofu in the U.S.

Photos By Eric Liu

Video  courtesy of @HiElizabenny

All Posts and Photos property of Taiwan Adventure Publication except Video.

Geriatric Transportation, Hey I'm Old!

Today, I wanted to post about our transportation methods here in Taiwan.  Of course, we have a car because we have some places that we go that are pretty far away, and I don’t want to be hanging off the back of a scooter for a long distance, besides there are three of us traveling together, usually; my wife, my care giver and I.

There’s a lot of old people here on scooters and many of them are towing a hand truck as a trailer.  They use this method mostly to haul recyclables to the recycling center.  I just have this feeling that if we were all on the scooter that I would be tied to the hand truck.  Look, I know how these things work.

The weather is getting better, so who wants to ride in the car when you can be out in the open – Feeling the wind in your face.  Besides it is much easier to get around in town, find parking spaces and look cool doing it.

Our car is a Toyota Sienta.  These aren’t available in the States.  It’s a small car, that usually seats seven people.  The back doors are sliders like a mini van, but this car is more like a micro-mini van. It’s pretty underpowered, in my opinion; an 1800 cc engine.  It doesn’t go super-fast either, but it does have the advantage of being underpriced, so there is that!  It’s not like I want to go all that fast, anyway.  It’s just basic transportation for when it’s raining, which is fairly often! After all we’re about seven miles from a rain forest, sort of!

Of course, I have my mobility scooter, that I use for birding and general tooling around.  It’s a pretty nice little rig.  It’s powered by a twenty-four-volt electrical system.  It’s also street legal; mirrors, turn signals, brake lights, hazard flashers.  It has hand throttles, the right-hand lever makes it go forward, and the left hand one goes backward.  The speed is regulated by a potentiometer; it has a turtle to depict slow and a rabbit for fast.  I almost always travel at full bunny; about twelve km/h (approximately 7.5 mph).   I told you I wasn’t really into blazing speed.  Actually, though, that’s pretty fast.  The other day I almost passed an old woman with a walker…almost.  Who knew she could run like that!

The other day, we bought Brenda a brand-new motor scooter.  It’s called the Aeon Gather Steady Hauler.    She wanted a three-wheeled scooter, because she wanted the stability provided by those extra wheels.  When we first moved to Taiwan in 2009, I bought a scooter and had it modified.  I had two outriggers attached to the back, so I could have the stability.  We both rode it, so we’re comfortable with those extra wheels.  I used to tease Brenda by calling the scooter my new pickup truck, because of the amount of stuff she would haul around.    This is another reason for the Steady Hauler.  It’s three- wheeled with the technology to lean over, like a two-wheeled scooter.  Behind the seat is a flat, cargo space.  You can attach a crate to it so you can put stuff in it.  And it has a place for a basket as well. 

It's basically, a 125cc motorcycle. It can travel at seventy-five km/h (45 mph).  The speed limit for most roads that are not freeways is fifty km/h (31 mph), so it’s fast enough.  It even has a foot brake for the rear brake, which is really cool.  That’s another mod from the original scooter.  She was worried about the hand brakes, this makes her much more comfortable!

今天我想分享一下我們在台灣的交通方式。當然，我們有一輛車，因為我們有時需要去一些很遠的地方，而我可不想長時間掛在機車後面，況且我們通常是三個人一起出門：我太太、我的看護和我。

這裡有很多老人家騎機車，很多人還拖著一台手推車當作拖車。他們大多是用這種方式把回收物載到回收中心。我總覺得如果我們三個都坐在一台機車上的話，我就會被綁在那台手推車上。你知道的，我很清楚這種事會怎麼發展。

天氣變好了，誰還想坐車呢？當然是想在戶外感受風吹在臉上的感覺。而且在市區裡騎機車更方便，好停車，還比較酷。

我們的車是 Toyota Sienta，這種車在美國沒有。這是一款小車，通常可以坐七個人。它的後門是滑門，就像小型麵包車，不過這台更像是超迷你麵包車。依我看，它的馬力很小，只有1800cc。速度也不快，不過價格便宜，這也算是一個優點吧！反正我也不追求什麼高速。這就是在下雨的時候用的基本交通工具，而這裡下雨還挺常見的！畢竟我們離熱帶雨林大概只有七英里，差不多吧！

當然，我也有一台代步電動車，我用來賞鳥和到處跑跑。這是一台挺不錯的小車，使用24伏的電力系統。它也可以在路上行駛，有後視鏡、方向燈、煞車燈、警示燈。操控是用手把油門，右手控制前進，左手控制後退。速度由電位器調整，有烏龜表示慢，有兔子表示快。我幾乎都是用全兔速，大約每小時12公里（約7.5英里）。我不是那種追求高速的人。不過老實說，這其實已經算快了。前幾天我差點超過一位推助行器的老太太……差點啦。誰知道她跑得那麼快！

前幾天，我們幫 Brenda 買了一台全新的機車。它叫做 Aeon Gather Steady Hauler。她想要一台三輪機車，因為那樣比較穩。我們2009年剛搬來台灣的時候，我買了一台機車並加裝了兩個側輪來增加穩定性。我們兩個一起騎，所以對這種加裝輪子也很熟悉。我以前常開玩笑說那台是我的小貨車，因為她總是載很多東西。這也是她現在選 Steady Hauler 的原因之一。這台三輪車有可以像雙輪機車一樣傾斜的技術。座位後面是平坦的載貨區，可以裝一個箱子，也可以加裝籃子放東西。

基本上，它是一台125cc的摩托車，最高時速可達75公里（約45英里）。台灣大部分不是高速公路的道路速限是50公里（約31英里），所以速度已經夠了。它甚至還有後輪腳煞，真的很酷！這是從以前那台機車改良來的功能之一。她以前不太放心用手煞，這個設計讓她騎起來安心多了！

The Micro-miniVan

The Mini-Tesla

The Control Center

Notice that the speed control is at "Full Bunny," baby!

The Gather Steady Hauler...oh, and Elizabeth

The cargo Holder.  This is where you attach my hand truck.

Another rack/basket attaches here!

Foot Brake, most scooters don't have these!

The original modified scooter!  Notice it also has a foot brake; very custom on this bad boy!

Bonus! Extra Video

The Slow and Delirious!

Never mind my hair, here.  It was windy, okay?  Besides, when you're going that fast it gets messed up.  

別在意我的頭髮啦，今天風很大好嗎？而且，騎那麼快，頭髮當然會亂啊。

Also, the cartoon is by ChatGPT.  For some reason it couldn't grasp the concept of a hand truck trailer.  Artificial semi-intelligence!

還有，這張卡通圖是由 ChatGPT 畫的。不知道為什麼，它就是無法理解手推車拖車這個概念。人工半智能啊！

Photos by Crisel Joy Bringula.

All Posts and Photos property of Taiwan Adventure Publications!

Mobility Scooter Birding

 Everything came together this week.  I haven’t really been able to do any real birding since I’ve been here, but this week the weather, camera and mobility options all worked out so that I could go. So, I went!

I have certain areas that I usually go.  I often go to Eco-parks, there are two near me.  One is the Bade Pond Eco- Park and the other is called Taoyuan 1-4 Ecological Park.  They both have certain advantages.  Bade Pond has a large lake with habitats for turtles, wading birds and passerines.  Taoyuan 1-4 has a large lake called Sihao Lake next to it where Egrets and Herons abound.  There are other places as well.  I like to head into the rice fields where you find wading birds, as well as birds that feed on the rice grains as it grows.  The nice thing is that there are creeks that weave through there to supply the rice fields. In addition to birds, there are plenty of turtles and fish, mostly Tilapia.  These roads are really quiet and not well traveled so they’re good places to sight birds.  In addition to Eco-parks and rice fields, the Taoyuan/Bade districts are filled with city parks, and you can find a lot of birds that aren’t uncomfortable in urban areas.  In my opinion, Taiwan does an excellent job of preserving areas where wildlife can flourish.

Taiwan is rich with eco-diversity.  There are thirty endemic species, that are found nowhere else in the world.  The endemic Mikado Pheasant (Symaticus mikado) is featured on Taiwan’s $1,000 bill.  There are also a lot of migratory birds that winter in Taiwan, like the Black-faced Spoonbill (Platalea minor).  There are also a number of invasive species like Common and Java mynahs, that seem to be taking over in urban areas.

I’ve been talking a lot about birding near my home, in easily accessible areas.  I rarely, if ever get out to the mountain and forest areas, or to southern Taiwan to see the areas set aside for spoonbills and other somewhat rare birds.  I don’t drive and have to stay on roads on my mobility scooter in order to do any of this, but I do it mainly for photograph opportunities, so it’s fine with me.  I can go out and enjoy the quiet and get away by myself, for a little while. 

Actually, I love living in an urban area, where there are a lot of people and things happening, but I also like to get away to the quiet natural areas.  I live in an area that has the best of both worlds. Yesterday, I was at the traditional market that was crowded and noisy and busy, and then a little later in the rice fields, where I didn’t see any other people and it was quiet and peaceful, the perfect reset for the day.

I am a lot of things, but a professional wildlife photographer isn’t one of them.  I’m always delighted if I can get six or seven decent shots out of fifty or sixty photos.  I’m better than I used to be, though.  By the time I got focused the birds would be long gone.  Now, I can actually get pictures of them, so that’s an improvement.

Currently, I use a Canon T7i camera body with a Tamron 18 – 400 mm lens.  It works, it’s not great but adequate.  I also have a Tamron 100 – 600 mm lens, but it’s a little too heavy for me to handle, so I’m looking to mount a tripod on the front of my mobility scooter so I can use it.  The problem with the 400 mm lens is that I have to get kind of close to get a really good shot, and the skittish birds, like egrets will fly off if I get too close.  The 600 mm lens will be more useful in this application, so that’s the direction I’m trying to go.  Both lenses have advantages.  The 18 - 400 mm lens is good for wide angle shots and landscape photos.  The other is better for wildlife.

The ultimate setup, I think is a Nikon z type (mirrorless) camera body and Nikkor 100 – 600 mm lens.  This is smaller and lighter, but the Nikkor lens is much better than the Tamron 100 – 600 mm lens.  The problem with both lenses is that the aperture is limited to about 3.5 to 6, so light becomes a bit of a problem.  The best thing is a lens with a 2.8 aperture but those are about $10,000 to $15,000 USD and I don't have $15,000 worth of photographic skill.

 這週一切都順利成行。自從來到這裡之後，我其實一直沒有真正去賞鳥，但這週天氣、相機和行動方式全都配合得很好，讓我終於可以出門。所以，我就去了！

我有幾個常去的地點。我常常會去生態公園，附近有兩個。一個是八德埤塘生態公園，另一個叫做桃園一到四號生態公園。這兩個地方各有優勢。八德埤塘有一個大湖，棲息著烏龜、涉禽和雀形目鳥類；而桃園一到四號旁邊有一座名叫四號湖的大湖，常常可以看到白鷺和鷺鷥。還有其他地方我也喜歡，例如稻田地區，常能看到涉禽和那些在稻穗成熟時會啄食的鳥類。那裡的好處是有許多灌溉用的小溪流穿梭其間，供應稻田水源。除了鳥以外，還有很多烏龜和魚，主要是吳郭魚。這些道路很安靜，人車稀少，因此很適合觀鳥。

除了生態公園和稻田之外，桃園和八德地區也充滿了市區公園，你可以在這些不怕人的鳥類身上發現許多驚喜。就我看來，台灣在保育野生動物的棲息環境方面做得非常出色。

台灣擁有豐富的生態多樣性，有三十種特有種，是世界上其他地方找不到的。其中特有的帝雉（Symaticus mikado）還被印在台灣的1000元鈔票上。此外，還有許多候鳥會在台灣過冬，例如黑面琵鷺（Platalea minor）。當然，也有一些入侵種，例如家八哥和爪哇八哥，在都市地區似乎越來越多。

我談了很多在家附近賞鳥的經驗，這些地點都相對容易抵達。我很少，甚至幾乎沒去過山區、森林地帶，或是台灣南部那些保留給黑面琵鷺和其他稀有鳥類的地方。我不會開車，只能依賴我的電動代步車走在路上，不過我主要是為了拍照，因此這樣對我來說也很好。我可以出門，享受安靜的時光，短暫地遠離塵囂。

其實，我很喜歡住在都市裡，有很多人、很多活動。但我也喜歡到安靜的自然地點走走。我住的這個地方兩者兼具。昨天，我去了熱鬧吵雜的傳統市場，不久之後又來到稻田，四周一片寧靜、空無一人，是一天中完美的重啟時刻。

我雖然會做很多事，但專業野生動物攝影師絕對不是其中之一。每次拍五六十張照片，能有六七張還不錯的我就很高興了。不過我已經比以前厲害了。以前當我對好焦時，鳥早就飛走了。現在我真的能拍到牠們，算是一種進步。

目前，我使用 Canon T7i 相機機身，搭配 Tamron 18 – 400 mm 鏡頭。這組設備還算可以，不算頂尖但堪用。我也有一支 Tamron 100 – 600 mm 鏡頭，不過對我來說有點太重了，所以我正在考慮把三腳架安裝在代步車的前方，好讓我可以使用這顆鏡頭。使用 400 mm 鏡頭的問題是，我需要靠得比較近才能拍出好照片，但像白鷺這樣警覺性高的鳥，只要我一接近就飛走了。600 mm 鏡頭在這方面會更實用，所以我朝這方向努力。兩支鏡頭各有優勢。18 - 400 mm 鏡頭適合拍廣角風景照，而另一支更適合拍野生動物。

我心目中的理想設備是一台 Nikon Z 系列（無反）機身，搭配 Nikkor 100 – 600 mm 鏡頭。這組設備體積小、重量輕，而且 Nikkor 的鏡頭比 Tamron 的這支好很多。兩支鏡頭的問題在於最大光圈大約只有 3.5 到 6，對光線的要求比較高。最理想的是光圈 2.8 的鏡頭，但那類鏡頭大約要一萬到一萬五千美元，而我的攝影技術還遠遠不值那個價。

My Ride!

A good clean Pigeon Shot (Columba domestica) 

Lots of people race Pigeons here.  I don't usually photograph them, but this was big one!

Little Egret (Egretta garzetta)

Little Egret (Egretta garzetta) in breeding plumage.

Common Sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos)

It's not all birds.  Chinese Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans)

Chinese Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans)

Mikado Pheasant on $1,000 Bill

All Posts and Photos property of Taiwan Adventure Publications

Photos:  Chris Banducci (c) 2025

Shopping at the Traditional Market

I think I’ve said this before, but the traditional market is one of my favorite places to go.  This is where we buy our fresh pork and all of our vegetables.  I wanted to take a break from talking about restaurants and talk about when we eat at home.   Eric, my son-in-law or Elizabeth cook almost every night.  Most of our meals consist of a protein, lots of vegetables and since this is Asia of course we eat rice. 

I’m kind of fussy about my blood sugar, so I tend not to eat much rice, potatoes or bread.  I break down occasionally and eat baozi (steamed buns filled with pork or cabbage) or Guabao (phonetically gwa bou), called the “Taiwanese Hamburger” consisting of a steamed bun sliced open and stuffed with braised pork, cilantro and peanut powder.

I read an interesting article recently that said if rice is cooked and then refrigerated overnight it doesn’t spike blood sugar as much as when it is cooked and served immediately.  Diabetes is a difficult thing to reduce with just diet.  There are so many different things that internet people say causes diabetes, and have some product to sell, guaranteed to make your blood sugar normalize in a week.  I’m not a diabetic but I’m careful to keep my blood sugar as low as possible, without the use of drugs.

Meanwhile, back at the point, because we cook at home we need to buy vegetables regularly.  We only eat fresh vegetables.  The best place for that is the traditional market.  Most vegetables are locally grown, fresh and organic.  The meat is the same way.  A pig is brought into the market, butchered and sold that day.  Fish are alive in water and killed and cleaned right in front of you.  Chickens and eggs are easily found, fresh and inexpensive.   Beef is usually only available at supermarkets or Costco. It's almost always imported from Australia or New Zealand, because there’s not a lot of room for cattle ranches in Taiwan. 

The government is very careful to make sure certain things that are put into meat in the US are not to be sold in Taiwan.  Therefore, pork and some other meats are not imported from the US.  Food is much healthier here because of the freshness and the lack of chemistry. 

Take a quick trip through the market with me and look at prices.

我想我以前說過這件事，但傳統市場是我最喜歡去的地方之一。我們就是在這裡買新鮮的豬肉和各種蔬菜。
我想稍微跳開餐廳的話題，聊聊我們在家吃飯的時候。

我的女婿 Eric 或是 Elizabeth 幾乎每天晚上都會下廚。我們的餐點通常包含一種蛋白質、大量蔬菜，當然，既然這裡是亞洲，我們一定會吃米飯。
我對血糖比較講究，所以通常不太吃米飯、馬鈴薯或麵包。不過偶爾我還是會破戒，吃個包子（裡面包豬肉或高麗菜的蒸包）或刈包（音近“ㄍㄨㄚˋ ㄅㄛ”，被稱為“台灣漢堡”，是將割開的白色刈包夾入滷豬肉、香菜和花生粉）。

最近我讀到一篇有趣的文章，說如果米飯煮好後放進冰箱冷藏一晚，對血糖的影響會比剛煮好時來得小。糖尿病光靠飲食很難控制。網路上有太多人說各種東西會導致糖尿病，然後推銷他們的產品，保證能在一週內讓血糖恢復正常。我不是糖尿病患者，但我還是很注意控制血糖，盡量不用藥物來維持健康。

話說回來，因為我們在家煮飯，所以需要定期購買蔬菜。我們只吃新鮮的蔬菜，而傳統市場是最好的選擇。大部分的蔬菜都是本地種植的，新鮮又有機。肉類也是一樣的，一頭豬被送到市場當天就現場屠宰並販售。魚類則是活水養殖，當場現殺現處理。雞肉和雞蛋都很容易買到，既新鮮又便宜。

牛肉通常只能在超市或 Costco 找到，因為台灣的牛肉幾乎都是從澳洲或紐西蘭進口的，畢竟台灣的土地不大，沒有太多空間可以養牛。政府對於進口肉品的規範非常嚴格，像美國肉品中含有的某些添加物，在台灣是禁止販售的。因此，台灣不進口美國豬肉等部分肉類。由於這裡的食材新鮮、添加物少，飲食相對來說更健康。

跟我一起快速逛一圈市場，看看價格吧！

 

A cornucopia of fresh vegetables 

Cauliflower 1 head for $1.00 USD and Broccoli 2 for $1.50 USD

Peppers 60 cents each, Spinach 75 cents for 1 Jin (600 grams or 1 1/3 lbs) Scallions 33 cents/bunch

White Cabbage $1.00 USD each, Cabbage $45 cents/600 grams (1 1/3 lbs)

Eggs sold by weight; $1.00 USD per 600 grams, 50 eggs about $4.54 USD (Prices fluctuate)

A Busy Fruit and Vegetable Stand

Shopping at the Traditional Market

Photos by Eric Liu

All Photos and posts property of Taiwan Adventure Publications