Eating Through 'Taiwan Travelogue': A Look at the 12 Signature Dishes From the Book

Taiwanese author Yang Shuang-zi's novel 'Taiwan Travelogue' won the prestigious International Booker Prize in the UK on the 19th, a historic first for both Taiwanese literature and a work in the Chinese language.

'Taiwan Travelogue' is told from the first-person perspective of a fictional Japanese writer, Aoyama Chizuko, recounting her travels in Taiwan and her relationship with her translator, Wang Chien-ho. The two women, raised in different cultures, coincidentally embark on a culinary journey along Taiwan's longitudinal railway. Food plays a crucial role in the narrative, with many plot developments and character descriptions tied to traditional Taiwanese cuisine. These dishes also serve as the chapter titles. Below are 12 important dishes featured in the book.

(Warning: Spoilers may follow.)

**Melon Seeds (Guazi)**
Melon seeds are a common snack in Taiwan, often enjoyed while drinking tea and chatting. In the book, when protagonist Aoyama Chizuko first visits Taichung and makes her first purchase from a vendor at a market, the vendor gives her melon seeds to 'pass the time on her journey.' Unsure how to eat them, Chizuko has her first encounter with the other protagonist, translator Wang Chien-ho, who teaches her to crack the shell with her teeth to get to the kernel. Chizuko praises them as an 'interesting food.'

**Mi Shai Mu**
Mi Shai Mu is a noodle-like food made from ground rice paste. Its name comes from the production process, where Indica rice is soaked and ground into a paste, which is then passed through a sieve (shāi), causing the paste to drip like raindrops into boiling water to form noodles. As the Taiwanese pronunciation of 'shāi' is similar to 'tái,' it is often written as 'Mi Tai Mu.' The book mentions that besides being a dessert, Mi Shai Mu 'can showcase local characteristics because it has no fixed recipe.' The savory version can include braised minced pork, fried shallots, and braised egg, while 'the sweet soup version can be eaten hot or cold, and as a dessert with shaved ice, it is very popular in the summer.'

**Jute Leaf Soup (Ma Yi Tang)**
The 'Yi' in Ma Yi refers to the tender leaves of the jute plant. Jute cultivation in Taiwan is mainly concentrated in the Taichung area, making Ma Yi Tang a local specialty. An old saying describes a Dragon Boat Festival custom: 'Eat zongzi with Ma Yi, wear wooden clogs and stomp on pangolins.' Ma Yi Tang is a thick, slightly viscous green soup made by peeling, then stir-frying or boiling the leaves and tender stems, served with sweet potato and whitebait. It has a slightly bitter taste and is known to be cooling and to cut through grease. As Ma Yi Tang is a product born from the common people's efforts to use every part of the jute plant, the book uses it to reveal Wang Chien-ho's complex family background as the daughter of a concubine.

**Sashimi**
As a representative dish of modern Japan, sashimi appears multiple times in the book. Although not described in detail, it is repeatedly compared with the local Taiwanese 'Rou Sao' (braised minced pork), bringing up the idea that 'the islanders' Rou Sao and the mainlanders' sashimi represent the difference between filth and cleanliness,' highlighting the existence of discrimination between Taiwanese and Japanese people. The protagonist Chizuko responds, 'Both Rou Sao and sashimi are delicious. Both the changshan and the kimono are beautiful. To me, the essence of all things in the world is what is most important.'

**Braised Minced Pork (Rou Sao)**
Rou Sao is a food made by stir-frying minced pork belly with ingredients like scallions and mushrooms, then stewing it in soy sauce. It is often served over noodles or rice. The public often discusses Rou Sao Rice and Braised Pork Rice (Lu Rou Fan) together. 'Taiwan Travelogue' also mentions their similar flavors, both being pork stewed in soy sauce or a similar sauce. The most obvious difference is their shape: Lu Rou is made with pork belly cut into chunks and stewed until flavorful, while Rou Sao is made from minced pork. Another difference is the price; Lu Rou Fan was popular among laborers but couldn't be enjoyed frequently due to its higher price, whereas Rou Sao was cheaper and more accessible.

**Winter Melon Tea (Dong Gua Cha)**
Winter melon and sugar are slow-cooked into a paste, which cools and sets into a winter melon brick. The brick is boiled with water and then cooled or refrigerated to become 'winter melon tea,' a refreshing summer drink. It is a traditional Taiwanese beverage for quenching thirst, alongside herbal tea, plum juice, and lotus root soup. In the book, Chizuko is served iced winter melon tea in a glass at the Tainan Railway Hotel and fondly remembers its sweet taste in later chapters.

**Curry**
Curry originated in India, but the name 'curry' was a general term used by British colonizers for heavily spiced Indian dishes, not a single dish. After Japan opened its borders, this style of cooking was introduced and adapted, eventually becoming 'yōshoku'—neither Western nor Japanese cuisine. The book uses curry's Western lineage to highlight Wang Chien-ho's knowledge of foreign languages and international affairs, piquing Chizuko's curiosity about her upbringing. The ability of curry to blend seamlessly with local cuisines leads Chizuko to praise a Spanish mackerel curry made by Wang Chien-ho as a true 'Taiwanese curry.'

**Sukiyaki**
Legend has it that the name of this traditional Japanese dish originally meant 'plow-grill' (sukiyaki), from farmers cooking game on their plows out of necessity. It started as individual pots and later evolved into a communal meal around a single pot. The method also changed: scallions and onions are lightly fried, a sauce of soy sauce, mirin, sugar, and sake is added, and then the ingredients are cooked in it. Traditional sukiyaki is beef-based, but to accommodate the Taiwanese custom of not eating beef, the two protagonists in the book eat pork sukiyaki. Influenced by a childhood memory, sukiyaki is 'a dish to be eaten with someone you like' for Chizuko; the two also have a deep conversation while sharing the meal.

**'Leftover' Soup (Cai Wei Tang)**
Cai Wei Tang is a dish that encapsulates Taiwan's traditional banquet (bando) culture. As there are always leftover dishes after a feast, resourceful chefs mix them together to create this dish, which appears to be leftovers but is actually a delicacy combining various flavors. It is similar in nature to a lighter version of 'Buddha Jumps Over the Wall.' In the book, after winning a game against Chef A-pen, Wang Chien-ho demands that he make Cai Wei Tang, which means the chef must first prepare a full banquet. At the end of this feast, Wang Chien-ho formally resigns, and Cai Wei Tang becomes the last meal the two share.

**'Tucked' Noodles (Dou Mian)**
Dou Mian is a traditional New Year's dish of the Quanzhou people. Ingredients can be taken from New Year's leftovers or supplemented with squid, dried shiitake mushrooms, and dried shrimp. To make it, ingredients are added to a sweet potato starch slurry and constantly stirred with a spatula, using the stickiness to 'tuck' (dōu) the ingredients together into a translucent, gelatinous mass. The proportions and method vary by family. Dou Mian has a soft and chewy texture and carries auspicious meanings of unity and reunion. Notably, Dou Mian does not actually appear in the book; it is a dish Wang Chien-ho mentions intending to make but never does. It becomes a clue for Chizuko in deducing Wang Chien-ho's background.

**Salty Cake (Xian Dan Gao)**
A salty cake is like a sandwich, with a braised minced pork filling between two layers of cake. It was invented during the Japanese colonial period and was considered an innovative dessert that blended traditional and Western flavors. It is said to have originated from 'Xue Hua' in Fengyuan, Taichung.