Hey everyone, hope you're having an amazing day! It's Mark Wiens I'm in the food obsessed island of Taiwan You love to eat. This is a paradise and so today I'm gonna take you on an ultimate Taiwanese food tour where we are going to eat five of the absolute best of the dishes you don't want to. You actually can't miss eating when you come to. Taipei So it's going to be an ultimate day of: Taiwanese Some of the most delicious, some of the greatest, some of the most iconic and tasty Taiwanese Foods that you can possibly eat.

You're not going to want to miss any of this video and it's all coming up for you right now. We are just actually a couple blocks down from Taipei main station which is one of the busiest areas of all of Taipei and you get into this back alley and the name of this place is Leo Sandong Beef Noodles I Can already smell the aroma of the first dish that we're gonna eat. It's probably one of the most famous of all Taiwanese foods and this is going to be number one on the list to eat it. I'm talking about number one Taiwanese Beef Noodles: This is an amazing place down in alley.

It's packed right now at the lunch rush. This place is well known. It's a Heritage Restaurant It's a legendary place to eat beef noodles. This is what everyone is here for.

The big pool uncle is just explaining to us about their special beef noodles and they're the only restaurant that serves this homemade noodle that's the thickness of a chopstick. And then he was also explaining about the broth where it's all about the bones that boil in that broth for 24 hours to release all the flavors. So it's a bone broth and he said that floating on top that yellow oil with more yellow oil the better is that secure beef flavor. Uncle is truly the king of beef noodles and he's so knowledgeable.

He's just explained to us some of the secrets of beef noodle and he says he only uses Taiwanese beef because of the texture because of the flavor he knows his. Cuts He said he found us the perfect piece of beef which looks like a brisket type of cut. Like he said, it has a perfect ratio of fattiness to meat and when they assemble them they boil their noodles. they add in some broth and the slices of Cut Beef Go on.

They add in a little bit of a stock like braising sauce. It looks like more of that bone marrow beef broth goes in. It's really one of the national dishes of Taiwan something that people just absolutely love and this is an education on it. and what an absolute hero of beef noodles.

Wow that looks volcanic. This metal canister which is filled with the bones. uncle is about to change out the broth also that's just straight bones that's what's been boiling for 24 hours to create that rich broth. There's strategic slices in the bone so that all of the flavors Unleashed Oh that's impressive.

The bone just breaks like cardboard. It's been boiling for so long that amount of flavor, that's what makes the broth. the new bones going into the broth and then a bone marrow shower. What a technique! Pokes the beef chunks with a chopstick and if it sticks all the way in then he knows it's perfectly tender.

but just like Touch by feel that is experience. Wow, that was incredible. Yeah, the time has finally come. And what an education on Taiwanese beef noodles before eating it.

But two different versions. One is the braised beef and then one is just that expertise of beef that's just boiled within the bone broth. Both of them are extremely popular and one thing, they serve it with chopped up green onions. but then uncle said he wanted me to try that broth first with no green onions just to taste the purity of the broth that b flavor the first bite.

to begin this tour that is so beefy, so pure. Also boiling hot. you can taste all of the flavor that's just been Unleashed from the bones. the marrow has seeped out to make it rich and oily.

Let's move into that other broth real fast before we jump into the all the goodies and the noodles. That's so good too. Oh man, one of the things I love about food and I love about this place and uncle is just how particular he is about everything. Uh, he has a way, he has a method and I so respect him.

He's really a hero of beef noodles. Oh those noodles are superb. They're chewy and doughy and thick. Those are interesting.

Those are really tasty. and I think it's perfect with the beef noodles because they're thick enough to kind of absorb some of that broth while remaining chewy at the gym time. One of the condiments that's on the table that a lot of people use is this pickled preserved greens. People add spoons of this to their noodles and then they do have a bunch of condiments as well, including garlic and this.

You peel yourself so it stays nice and clean in its wrapper. That pickled orange is really good too. That preserved flavor, a little bit of saltiness, a little bit of that, um, complexity from the fermentation. Okay, back over to the other Bowl here and this is the different type of beef.

More of that brisket that's been raised that's been cooked down without the spices. I'll add some of the greens again to this one. Foreign. The cinnamon in there.

Wow. Do you take a bite of noodles, nibble on the garlic, mix it all together in your mouth full. Get the full potency of that garlic to cleanse your mouth up, boost the aromatics. Oh I Love raw garlic.

All right. So good. So what it says on the directions is you're actually not supposed to add this to your noodles, but you're supposed to take literally one bean you eat and two or three times. one, two, three.

and then you get the beef chew another three times one. oh and then follow with broth. All of that is mixing your mouth at once. you've got that burst of umami from the fermented.

Bean a little bit of chili in there, mostly for flavoring with mixes with that beef mixes with that broth all together in your mouth. as a Harmony you cannot make a bad choice between the two. I mean maybe you should just try them both the bridged one and the fresh one. but I'm I'm kind of really loving that fresh one because it focuses more on the purity of the beef.

And then we also got some of the side dishes. This is some of the tofu I'll introduce you, you have a varieties of tofu, some of the kelp different side dishes you can eat along with your beef noodles kind of in between budget maybe cleanse the palate and another very condiment side is their pickled cabbage. Oh that's really good. Not salty, just a bit sour and very crisp.

That is very refreshing. Oh one of the greatest beef noodle experiences you can have. I Mean it's like a tiny little shop, but you really feel the energy and the action and the friendliness here of beef noodles. Foreign.

We've had an amazing, delicious bowl of Taiwanese beef noodles which is one of the most popular, well-known Taiwanese dishes across the world. but right here in Taiwan for Taiwanese people, there's another dish that might even be more popular. I'd say it's the number one comfort food of Taiwan and we're gonna eat it next. And I am talking about a dish called Lu Profan which is braised pork belly in an incredible sauce over rice with a bunch of different side dishes.

We are at one of the best places in all of Taipei this place is called I Am so excited this is gonna be so good. Some serious Taiwanese Food action. All of the bubbling pots of the braised pork belly. That's the star of the show, why everyone is here.

The Aromas smells so good. You smell the stariness, you smell the cinnamon, the clove, the bay leaves in there, all those different herbs and spices that go into the cooking. It's just hot, soupy thick. This dish luro fan.

It also has a unique story of how it was developed and why it's so common in Taiwanese food. But let's order first. let's see how they make it and we'll talk more about that. As we're eating and everything is already cooked, everything's ready to go, ready to be eaten.

Everything's been braising in its own juices for hours, maybe even overnight, so it goes really fast. They just scoop it over your rice. We got a table right here in the front amidst all of the action and again, the main thing that you have to come here for is the lure of fun. But then we also got some beautiful side dishes.

You got to have some of the hyping hot soups, one with bitter melon, one with mushroom, and then we also got a fish. We got a milk fish head and then some of the common side vegetables like cabbage, bamboo shoots. But let's just start with that star of the show. Oh, you didn't even look at that egg.

it's sweating. Look at the meaty chunks just covering that. Rice You could just tell how tender how gooey and melt in your mouth they will be. I've never been so excited to eat real fun in my whole life.

that completely dissolves in your mouth. It's so soft it's actually like melted butter. Oh man, and the flavor. The braising spices, the star onions, the cinnamon in there.

It's not overpowering, but it's just so soothing. But I think it's that texture and like I was mentioning before. One of the great things about Lugaral Fun is Taiwan and Taiwanese have always been so Innovative and so creative and making use of every single part of an animal that they cook and eat. and Ludo Fun is such a great example of a dish that takes just a little bit of meat and they braise it down with spices until literally it melts into this sauce which can then be scooped over rice and flavor an entire bowl of rice with just one scoop.

Oh it's so stunningly tasty and just the dripping of the lard and the the pig juices just go all the way down to the bottom of your bowl. My favorite partner! Not even the little lumps of pork, but the dripping, the sauce, the melted pig fat and oil at the bottom of your eye that just coats every single grain of your rice. that is so tasty. One of the classic sides is bamboo shoots and this looks like there's a little bit of the Pickled or preserved Greens in there as well.

Um, I Love the texture of bamboo shoots. This one has a little bit of Greens in there which give it a salty and acidic flavor to it. Additionally, they have some soups here. this one is pork ribs.

Oh, there's even some clams in here and then bitter melon. Let me try that broth. especially. Oh wow! I Love the bitter melon.

Some of the flavor has absorbed has just been released into that broth. It's clean, it's clear, and then you've got that bitter finish. Another side here that's famous is the milk. Fish Head Milkfish is a fish that you can find pretty much in this region of the world.

In the Philippines in Taiwan milk fish. it's a delicious fish. I'm not totally sure how It's been cooked, but there's kind of an oily looks like it's braised. Also, you do have to be careful of the bones with the milkfish.

Yeah, you always got to be careful with the feathery bones of a milkfish. but I love milk here. It has this really lean texture to it and kind of Milky when you eat it and then that sauce is just kind of very light. Actually, you can really just taste the flavor of the milkish.

It's really good. Okay, let's break into this egg. You can see it actually in that pot. it's bridged within that same Park You can feel how kind of like leathery that egg has become.

It's totally changed textures. Wow. I think I might just have to bite the whole egg. Oh yeah, so much flavor and the yolk on the inside remains so crumbly and Rich and with every bite, you just got to keep on going in for that.

Rice It's so addictive. It really is like taking the simple humble bowl of rice and just like giving enough flavor overdose of melted Pig sauce. The next soup we have ribs plus shiitake mushrooms. Wow that shiitake mushroom just overwhelms your mouth.

That's so good, especially if you love mushrooms. And we got the Cabbage the braised cabbage. Just a simple flavor but again yeah just so juicy. Oily melts in your mouth.

And then we got another fish here, a little tilapia which again looks like it's steamed. Simple preparation, not a lot of seasoning or spice, but that's really the attraction of it. Very simple, just like straight steamed, but just a little bit of a oily sauce. The last thing that we have is the British tofu and another classic of Taiwanese Cuisine.

Look at that texture, it's jiggly foreign hardened soy milk. It's just so milky and spongy and soft. This whole combo one of the great lunches of Taiwan and I mean just the amount of people here every single day throughout the afternoon is just the reason why. it's one of the greatest places and one of the top dishes of Taiwanese Food So we've eaten two.

Foods we've got three more to go. foreign Next dish is one of my favorite and also I think one of the most popular and beloved salty Savory snacks that you can eat. and number three the Taiwanese scallion pancake in Mandarin It's song and this is one of the greatest dolls to eat it from. We are here.

We're gonna see the process. It smells so good and they've just taken the scallion pancake to the next level. So the process of the scallion pancake begins with a dough loaded studded with scallions. They make all the dough by hand at home.

Before they come here, they wrap it into individual sized portions. When they get here to the stall then they have a press. They press it out into a little round flatbread shape like a roti almost shape. Then that goes on to the hot griddle and they just slow cook it until it turns gooey on the inside, but it gets really crispy and brown golden on the outside.

It's just flying on that hot griddle, clinking and the clanking. One of the things that makes it so good is I mean the whole process. but when he really like slaps it together with those trowels, the double trowel system to flake it up to get the textures going. From there you have a couple of choices.

You could just get the standard version or you could get it with an egg or you could get the fully loaded deluxe version. We're gonna get one of each. Let's try that signature the normal one first. Oh, hold that texture.

Oh, it's so hot and fresh. Actually, we should just pull it all out. The texture is just almost like a roti. Oh, and they put a little bit of chili sauce in here and a little bit of that soy sauce paste mixture all wrapped within a perfect handheld, slightly oily, crispy, doughy pancake.

Oh that's hot. Um, no, it's so tasty. Oh man, that is the perfect dough of gooeyness, flakinish and crispiness all at the same time. With the richness of the egg on the center, the saltiness of the soy sauce paste, and a little bit of chili in there, that's so good.

This is something you have to try in. Taiwan It's pretty thick too. It's hearty. I Mean this is a snack I mean especially if you get the fully loaded one.

That's a light meal right there. No, it's a fully loaded one. It might be a dangerous move to take it fully out of the paper bag because it's so fully loaded, we don't want to lose anything. but I think they actually engineered it quite well in that everything is kind of stuck together.

Oh, there's corn in it too. Everything's kind of stuck together. Wait for this. opening the reveal.

Oh look at that. Oh, it's just steaming and piping hot though. it's a literal omelette. There's ham, there's bacon, there's cheese singles, cheese it's just melted in, plus honey mustard.

plus this soy sauce paste all wrapped within that same scallion pancake. Not quite sure whether I think the best way is to go in. Taco Style Foreign pancake warming me all the way to my stomach with happiness and flavor. This particular stall is called Shongji for their scallion pancakes it was featured in The Michelin Guide.

One of the top quality and it really lives up to its name. It really is outstanding and they're so nice. We're gonna continue with this top five. Taiwanese Foods tour.

We have two more to go! Oh and it's arrived and I Love the name of this shop. It's called Guys House of Unique Stink and we are here to eat none other than the legendary Taiwanese Stinky Tofu. It's a huge part of Taiwanese culture so you'll find it all over. I Mean it's one of the national pastimes of food when it comes to Taiwan But this place right here.

They really specialize in high quality stinky tofu and they have a lot of unique dishes and just you'll see all these posters around the walls dedicated to stinky tofu. The health benefits, the greatness. you cannot leave Taiwan without trying it. Wow! so the first one we got is Raw Stinky Tofu.

Oh that's gonna be the full flavor option. I Think there's a number of different ways that you can ferment tofu. This one is vegetarian based so it's a brine of fermenting vegetables that makes the firm head into tofu. Oh you can see it turned into a Cheesy kind of stickiness almost.

Oh wow yeah that definitely has a an aroma to it. Wow, that's screw it up. Blue cheese Creamy. whoa with this aftertaste.

Oh that is a pro level stinky Tofu right there. Oh man that is so complex. Wow. The next version.

These are like full fried little bricks of stinky tofu. Maybe a little dip as opposed to other versions of thinkitofu that I've had so far. This is like the most dense, so creamy, so thick and hearty. Um okay, that's much less intense and it is more spongy.

That one just kind of melts in your mouth, crispy on the outside. The raw one is definitely a pro level stinky tofu eater. This one is a much milder, really good. Hmm.

fried one is spectacular, and it does kind of have that kind of cottage cheesy texture to it. By far, this is the most creamy version of shinky tofu that I've had as well. And then finally, we have one more dish to try. But first try with a little piece of the pickled cabbage.

Oh, it's kind of sweet, that kind of cleanses the palette. Wow. This is a stinky tofu paste that's been fermented for two years and typically it's almost like a sauce. You can eat it with rice.

You can eat it as a side dish, but for two years, fermented. Wow. That's unlike anything I put in my mouth. You can definitely taste some decay in that flavor.

You can feel like fumes coming out of your mouth and going up your nose with that a little bit. and then on top of that, it has this bitterness that's so incredibly complex that is unique. Oh man. wow, that is absolutely a flavor I'll never forget Three different versions of Shinji Tofu: All of them are totally different in flavor and just like complexity.

But definitely give Stinky Tofu a try. It's something with living bacteria. It's a huge part of Taiwanese culture, so that completes Taiwanese Food: Stinky Tofu is number four. We have one more place to go to for dinner tonight.

we're on our way there next. This brings us to our final destination on this ultimate Taiwanese street food tour. It's been an incredible journey. This place is extremely popular again.

There's a line going out the door waiting to order and we came here to eat another. Taiwanese food that you can't leave Taiwan without eating. Let me see if I can pronounce the name of this restaurant. This is a hugely popular place and actually this is a bonus because we're doing top five dishes.

we're doing two main dishes and two things that are extremely popular. and I think everybody that comes here gets both of them. Both the dumplings and a mess of different Breeze things all the way from pork to beef to organs to eggs to potatoes and kelp and bean curd is all in this pile. and the Taiwanese name for it is Luway.

One of the main attractions is all the Taiwanese braised pork carts and eggs and tofu skin and he has literal motor hands. She just non-stop chops. Oh that is some insane chopping skills. She just slices through, puts it onto a plate, and adds on some squeezes on some sauces and some oils.

Oh man, that looks so good and she's so incredibly fast. Smells like some oils and some sauces. We'll start with this as the dumplings are still on their way. Everything on this plate and he had recommended to they're all like the Specialties green onions on top.

There's tripe in here. This will just kind of dig in for whatever you get and you're pretty happy there's beef and pork in here as well. This is one of the coolest looking plates ever. Just so much going on.

it's just messy and yet organized all at the same time. Oh that is just so good. Hmm. all the dumplings.

Oh cheers here. Or the hot fresh dumplings. That's so good though. Oh that's some of the best.

Taiwanese Breeze Flavors I've had. You taste the sesame oil I Think on top and the soy sauce. the star anise. The hint of like cinnamon in the back of your throat, but it's not overpowering.

that's so good. All they're getting ready to put in a fresh batch of dumplings. He drops in a whole tray of fresh dumplings. They go into the boiling water, they're gonna boil for about five minutes.

They'll come out piping hot and directly to orders to your table to your mallet. For the dumplings, let's prepare some chili oil. Oh yes, maybe a bit of vinegar in there. a little bit of soy sauce.

Hot fresh. Taiwanese Dumplings Dip in that chili oil. Oh wallet. there are a few things in life that are as satisfying as a dumpling that just explodes with meat juices in your mouth.

And at first you think the wrapper is kind of thick, but it's so smooth And so delicate and so silky and it just goes down so easily. for all. the dumpling is delicious. Then we got that pickled and cucumbers with chili too.

Excellent. Smashed cucumber, really crisp, really refreshing. the chili oil so good. What a combination! I Gotta have one more dumpling while they're really hot and fresh before moving back into the magical pork.

Parts One more thing, we should take a half bite. just kind of see what's on the inside, but they're so soupy and so juicy. Minced pork on the inside, a little bit of green onions or scallions in there and then that's just a good ratio of meat to Fat giving them so juicy. One of their signature braised items is that that tofu bean curd as well.

That's something I really like as well. Oh, there's bamboo shoots down here too. This is the Bean Curd skin. Oh I Love the texture, the layers of it is really soft.

Everything is just infused with all those braising spices and sauce and soy sauce. Way over here. Auntie Recommended the bamboo shoots as well. so should we diced them up.

And what's amazing is I think all of it is served cold. It's almost like a salad. the way they serve this braised plate. We've got that steamy, hot, piping hot dumplings and they've got all the braised dishes.

Truly magical. We still have more I Think over here. Not only is there pork, there's beef on the plate. This looks like it's perfect for dipping in the chili oil.

So tender and their texture of it. It's like a mushroom has broken down and the fat has just completely rendered into the meat itself. Oh my goodness. I don't know Uzi with a really nice texture I think we've tried most of the selection.

they're all really good. They all have that same braised flavor and everything is just tender. What a satisfying way to wrap up this ultimate Taiwanese Street Food tour I Want to say a huge thank you also to my friend Tina from Taipei Eats for helping me arrange this whole tour and put this together I Want to say a big thank you to you also for watching this video. Please remember to give it a thumbs up if you enjoyed it.

Leave a comment below I'd love to hear from you and if you're not already subscribed, make sure you subscribe now for lots more food and travel videos and stay tuned and keep watching this entire series. from Taiwan where we're eating, there's going to be more food videos that you're not going to want to miss. so thanks again for watching and I will see you on the next video. Good night from Taipei I'll see you on the next video.