The Food Of Taiwan: Recipes from the Beautiful Island

My wife came across this cookbook at the library while doing research on Taiwan for our son's kindergarten school project. Since my wife is originally from Taiwan, we were really excited to see this cookbook, so we read the reviews & ended up ordering it. We have since tried the following recipes:

Fried Shallots
Sweet-and-Sour Tomato-Based Sauce
Pan-Fried Leek Buns with Dried Shrimp
Oyster Omelet (O Ah Jian)
Sauteed Water Spinach with Fermented Tofu
Noodles with Minced Pork & Fermented Bean Sauce (Zha Jiang Mian)
Sweet Potato Congee
Pork Meat Sauce over Rice (Lu Rou Fan)
Basil Clams
Pineapple Tarts (Feng Li Su)

Although most of the recipes turned out decently, as other reviewers have pointed out, we found that we had to tweak several of the recipes - either the proportions were off or the recipe called for too much of one ingredient or that some important info was omitted. For example - in the Pork Meat Sauce over Rice recipe, it called for 1 cup of light soy sauce & 1/2 cup dark soy sauce. By following the recipe exactly, we were left with a soupy pork meat sauce that was dark & very salty. If we have to make it again, we would reduce the light soy sauce to 3/4 cup & omit the dark soy sauce. For the Oyster Pancake recipe, four oysters was not enough per pancake. Also, the pancake became too top-heavy with all those additional vegetables & was impossible to flip over without breaking it. The Pineapple Tart recipe was the worst - it called for a lot of butter (more so than in any other pineapple tart recipe that we've seen). The author also neglected to mention that pineapple tart needed to be made using molds - this is very important, as the mold is what shapes the pineapple tart (like how one cannot bake a pie without using a pie baking dish). If no mold is used, the tart would spread since it is very high in butter content. The one recipe that turned out decently without any tweaking was the Basil Clams.

The plus? We enjoyed the format of this book, as author Cathy Erway wrote it more like a history book/tour book combined with a cookbook. My wife enjoyed reminiscing about the Taiwan from her childhood. She even learned some Taiwan history along the way - things that either she had forgotten or didn't learn about. The photos by Pete Lee were breathtaking - they really captured the essence & uniqueness of Taiwan, from the beautiful landscape to the mouth-watering food to the people of Taiwan.

The minus? We would say a lot of the recipes need more testing and cross-referencing. Cooking is an art & it is often passed down from one generation to another, especially in a country like Taiwan, where ancestors came from various regions of China, & there are Portuguese, Dutch, Japanese, & aboriginal influences. So it is understandable that these recipes from Cathy's family may be different from other Taiwanese families' recipes. However, the basic recipes should still be similar to & not differ too much from other Taiwanese families' recipes.

The take-away message is that we enjoyed this cookbook, but for many of the recipes, before cooking, we would recommend having a back-up recipe on hand, just for comparison & to make sure that the recipe in this book isn't too different from other similar ones.

This beautifully photographed book contains plenty of history in the introduction, and is very thorough and eloquent in describing the unique ingredients and cookware used in Taiwanese cooking. It also provides an ample overview of many regions of Taiwan and styles of cooking in a cultural context. But as far as the recipes go for a cookbook, I did not think the measurements or methods were entirely precise and replicable. I tried over 25 of the recipes over about a month. Here is a sampling of the results:

- Pineapple Tarts: Tasted fine, but there was likely too much butter in the crust... 2.5 sticks for only 12 tarts. (I have another recipe for Pineapple Tarts from a separate source that uses drastically different proportions of butter and flour, to much better results.) Upon shaping the tarts, they looked promising, but after 30 minutes in the oven, all 12 tarts had melted into each other and the “crust” was near dripping off of the baking sheet.
- Meatball Mochi (Ba Wan): The filling was not flavorful enough and didn't stick together in the way it should (the main components are pork and bamboo shoots without much else). In addition, the recipe only used 2 T of the mochi mixture per meatball, resulting in an extra 3 cups of mochi mixture leftover. This could have been better proportioned to match the amount of filling, or at least a note included as to whether the mochi can be saved for later.
- Three Cup Chicken: This turned out extremely salty. The second time I made it, I used 1/4 of the written 1 cup of soy sauce, for much better results. One possible explanation could be the differences in salinity of various brands of soy sauce, even if they are labeled “light”. It would be helpful if specific brands/photos of condiments were suggested.
- Pan-Fried Leek Buns: The filling was good and I appreciate the suggestion for Chinese leek substitutions, but the recipe does not say to pan-fry the buns on both sides... yet the photo on the cover of the book, as well as my experience, told me that they should be fried on both sides.
- Pork Meat Sauce: After my Three Cup Chicken experience, I decreased the soy sauce called for in Pork Meat Sauce (prepared in a similar style with a long braising time in a soy-based sauce), and it was much more enjoyable.
- Taiwanese Pork Belly Buns (Red-Braised Pork Belly and Marinated Cucumbers recipes): For the Pork Belly recipe, I found that 2 cups of water diluted the flavor of the other ingredients in the braising liquid. Next time, I would decrease the amount of water or let the liquid reduce some over the 2 hour cooking time. Marinated cucumbers were standard.
- Some recipes (such as Braised Cabbage with Dried Shrimp and Shiitake Mushrooms, Fried Chicken Bites, or Sauteed King Oyster Mushrooms with Ginger) that had fewer components and employed minimal seasonings were much more successful, as I was able to easily adjust the seasoning to taste.

In addition, it would be much more helpful and comforting if the photographs matched what could be achieved in the average home kitchen. Many of the photographs are from street vendors or restaurants, which doesn't accurately reflect the "homemade" or "Americanized" version of the recipe as written. I would have also benefited from photos of the process for more specialized methods such as how to shape a bun properly.

This book is an excellent survey of Taiwanese cuisine – but be cautious if using it as a cookbook and only regard the recipes as a base or inspiration for your own cooking, as the recipes are lacking in thorough testing, specificity in less common ingredients, and precision in measurements. Use your cooking common sense and taste for seasoning as you go. There are a few recipes that are winners, but not enough to warrant a place for this book on my cookbook shelf.

I first learned of Cathy Erway's "The Food Of Taiwan: Recipes from the Beautiful Island" shortly after I found out that I would be in Taiwan for several months for business, so I was excited to delve into this unfamiliar (for me) cuisine. I received my review copy shortly before landing in Taiwan, and took the book with me on a 7,000-mile journey so could use it as a guide as I cooked (and ate) my way around Taiwan.

Erway’s book gorgeously captures the essence and nuance of Taiwanese cuisine. Along the way, the recipes are interspersed with history lessons on various aspects of Taiwanese food, food production, and tea culture. An island the size of Massachusetts, Taiwan features a rich cuisine influenced by Chinese regional cuisine as well as Japanese, Dutch, and Portuguese cuisines, and is well known for its tea culture and night markets. The book opens with the basics of the Taiwanese pantry, sauces and condiments that provide the foundation for later recipes.
One of the great pleasures of visiting or living in Taiwan is the huge variety of appetizers and street snacks, including pork belly buns (gua bao), daikon radish pastries (luo bo si bing), tea eggs, potstickers, oyster omelets, and coffin cake. Night markets have their own repertoire of fan favorites such as fried chicken, pork knuckle, fried sweet potato balls, and grilled corn, all of which are chronicled here.

Like Chinese cuisine, vegetables hold a starring role and the popularity of organic farming is on the rise in Taiwan. Due to the influence of Buddhism, a large number of Taiwanese are vegetarians, and Taiwanese cuisine features many vegetarian-friendly dishes such as steamed eggplant with garlic and chilies, sautéed mushrooms with ginger, sautéed water spinach, and my personal favorite, the crisp dragon beard fern, which is sold at an organic grocery around the corner from me. Dragon beard fern is a wild green popularized by Taiwan's Aboriginal communities; the greens are blanched then served with a soy-based liquid.

Having been vegetarian for more than 10 years and having lived in different Buddhist countries in Asia, I am fairly well-versed in the art of tofu and its many preparations, but I loved Cathy’s recipe for pan-fried tofu with date sauce (gan mei dou fu). Another favorite of mine is stinky tofu; it was one of the first foods I wanted to try in Taiwan, and it didn't disappoint. There is an overview of stinky tofu production and lore on pages 121-124. The stinky tofu cart holds the same mesmerizing appeal that ice cream trucks do for children in the United States, and the pungent odor has the power to stop grown adults in their tracks with anticipation.

For those who eat meat, dishes like three cup chicken (san bei ji) and numerous beef, pork and chicken dishes are highlighted, along with preparations for pan-fried fish with peanuts and cilantro, and squid, oysters, clams and shrimp dishes, all of which appear abundantly on local menus. Iconic Taiwanese dishes such as beef noodle soup (niu rou mian), Danzai noodle soup, and pineapple tarts are discussed in detail; you’ll even find a recipe for bubble tea.

Gorgeous photography by Pete Lee brings Taiwan’s markets and kitchens to vibrant life. Most appealingly, the recipes in “The Food of Taiwan” are readily approachable by American home cooks and use ingredients that should be widely available at most American supermarkets.
“The Food of Taiwan” is a long-overdue paen to Taiwan’s vibrant food and tea culture, which up until now has not been widely written about in the United States. Erway is a wonderful guide; as a Taiwanese-American, she experienced Taiwanese food first through the lens of her immigrant parents in the United States, and later as an exchange student living in Taiwan, when the dishes of her childhood suddenly took on a clarity and depth that was missing.

“The Food of Taiwan” is an excellent (and approachable) introduction to this versatile, delicious cuisine and I look forward to cooking my way through it as I travel around Taiwan!

(Review copy courtesy of the publisher)

Imagine a sushi chef calls his food not sushi, but shou-su, just because he
is not Japanese. Well, one does not need to be Japanese to be a sushi chef.
Nevertheless, if he does not even bother to learn the proper naming of the
food, do you think he learns the proper making of it?

Same problem with this recipe book. Of course, some Taiwanese food has
Chinese origin. Most do not, though. For those Taiwanese Taiwanese food,
they have Taiwanese names. The author invariantly call them with Chinese
names. For example, Môa-iû-ke was called Ma Yo Ji in this book. All wrong.
Have you done your research, Author?

Something worse. Do you see it wrong if a sushi chef put on his menu "Raw
tuna meat over rice (Maguro)?" Of course it is wrong. Maguro is maguro. You
can then explain it with a fine print of "tuna." The author, on top of
naming dishes in Chinese names, she put the Chinese name only as the fine
print. The titles are just the description of the food, not the name. For
example, Wine-stewed Chicken with sesame oil (Ma Yo Ji).

In short, the book made every effort to convey the Taiwanese food culture,
but failed terribly by not respecting the culture.

Overall, if you've never had Taiwanese food, it's a great book. It's a perfect introduction to Taiwanese cuisine. However, I was looking /hoping for something a little more comprehensive. The photos aren't always of the dish she made herself, but rather from streetside vendors. The few recipes I've tried were tasty, but nothing compared to what I could make from recipes that were passed down from my grandmother. A good introduction, but not suitable for people looking for advanced and deliciously authentic Taiwanese food.

I want to like this cookbook. I really do. I love Taiwanese cooking and consider myself an excellent cook. I just do not think these recipes were tested. I have tried four and totally disappointed. It will not go into my cookbook collection!

I really appreciate that someone has finally made an attempt to compile recipes of all the amazing dishes in Taiwan, but I can only give it two stars for the effort. Overall, the recipes in the book fail disastrously in execution. The taste, flavors, and texture all fall terribly short of the original dishes.

I have tried several recipes from this book and not one of them come even close to the original dishes I've had when I lived in Taiwan for 12 years. I have noticed that most of the reviewers that gave this book five stars are folks who have not lived in Taiwan long enough to know what authentic Taiwanese cuisine tastes like. I wished the author herself spent more time in Taiwan to really hone these recipes, because they really do a poor job of showcasing the incredible, unique flavor profile of Taiwanese food.

I really wanted to like this book. In fact I've been searching endlessly for a good Taiwanese cookbook and even went to the author's book-signing event so I could be one of the first to buy it. But this book just doesn't cut it. I suppose that since there's not an existing Taiwanese cookbook that is better, this is probably the best option out there right now. Just know that what you'll be making from these recipes are not anything like the authentic dishes of Taiwan.

Finally! Not only is this book a long overdue English language cookbook on the cuisine of Taiwan, this amazingly well-done book is one of the best cookbooks I've ever picked up. The recipes are all mouth-watering, easy to follow and the results are delicious! Being half-Taiwanese myself, I love how well the book navigates the complex issues surrounding Taiwanese identity. I own hundreds of books on food and cooking and this book is in my top five.

Wow! This takes me back. As first generation and half Taiwanese myself, I was looking for a cookbook to help me make the dishes I grew up with (my mom is not the best at explaining recipes). This book does all that and more. It has a little bit of history, culture, and lots of beautiful photos. Really looking forward to making the pineapple cakes, meatball mochi and finally clear measurements for making all the sauces! The only thing I wish it had are recipes for the hot peanut drink (bedian? Made with peanuts, almonds, sugar and glutinous rice flour) and oxtail soup.

Cathy Erway is a serious scholar of Taiwanese cuisine, and this book is a rich, satisfying tribute to her Taiwanese heritage as well as a really engaging picture of modern-day Taiwan. I had the pleasure of hearing her speak about the book last night and learned that this is a living, breathing cuisine that evolves and incorporates new influences all the time, but maintains a strong foundation in its historical past. I sat down and read through the introduction, history, and pantry sections, which are clearly and beautifully written. I'm dying to try so many recipes, but the three I've made were excellent: Spanish Mackerel Noodle Soup, Dry Tofu with Edamame, and Taiwanese Burrito. Subtle new textures and flavors. Excited to dig further into this wonderful book!