In Southern Taiwan, the Sea in a Bowl

Fish noodles. That's noodles made of fish.

I (and you, hopefully) are already reaping rewards, of a sort, from EatingAsia's recently created Facebook page.

A comment, which I now seem unable to locate (there have been quite a few; we love that folks are joining the conversation -- thank you so much), included mention of Taiwanese fish noodles. Not noodles served with fish and fishballs in a piscene broth, but noodles that are actually made from fish.

It reminded me of one our tastiest finds last May-June on Taiwan, a dish we never got around to posting. We have soooo many of those --- stories from past trips that for some reason or other have never made it onto this blog. But it's never too late to publicize a find, don't you think?

 

We took a real liking to the southern Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung, not least for its many holes-in-the-wall and proper restaurants serving impeccably fresh and simply prepared seafood. Every meal we ate in and around Kaohsiung revolved around something fishy. There were a few excellent porky items thrown in for good measure, but for the better part of five days we ate seafood for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

I'm not complaining.

One morning we took a boat out to tiny Cijin Island, a popular seafood-loving daytripper destination just 5-10 minutes by boat from the city. After feasting on grilled squid and raw tomatoes with powdered sugar (both specialties of the island -- a perhaps odd-sounding combination that works) we followed a coastal path to the island's northwestern tip and ascended a small hill, where we explored an old lighthouse and battery remains that date back to the Qing dynasty.

 

All that activity stoked our appetite, of course, so once back down at sea level we nosed around for a snack or three to carry us through the 10-minute boat ride back to the mainland. We noticed, on an otherwise sleepy side street, that every table at a stall advertising hujiao shougong yu mian tang (literally: pepper handmade fish noodle soup) was filled and further, signage advising that the place had been in business for thirty years.

Making the decision to stop and sample was a no-brainer.

We ordered the zonghe yu mian tang ('composite', ie 'mixed' fish noodle soup) and ended up with bowls of light scallion, Chinese celery, and white pepper-enhanced broth packed with a variety of fish balls (and one pork ball) and noodles, dumplings, ribbons of seaweed, and a few leaves of lettuce.

 

Imagine our surprise when the noodles turned out to be made of fish. They were absolutely exquisite (have a look at the opening photo, above), almost translucent, nubby, lightly fish flavored and boasting a fantastic chewy-snappy texture. The fish dumplings or yu jiao consisted of more piscene pasta filled with chopped pork generously seasoned with toasted sesame oil. The oil was so fresh and fragrant that when I bit a dumpling in half it released a plume of sesame-scented steam.

The fish balls were excellent as well, springy but not bouncing-rubber-ballish, and as intensely flavored as the noodles.

(Interestingly, we also found noodles made from fish in Kota Kinabalu, the capital of the eastern Malaysian state of Sabah. When we returned to Kuala Lumpur after that trip more than four years ago I spied the same sort of round, thick fish noodles in a grocery store/ They were disappointing -- more binder than fish, with little piscene flavor.)

The proprietor off this stall on Cijin Island told us that fish noodles and fish pasta-wrapped dumplings were fairly common there -- and perhaps elsewhere? -- until about ten years ago. "It's a lot of work to make these kind of noodles," she said. "So we're one of the last stalls around."

Long may she and her lovely fish noodle stall thrive!

Hand-made fish noodles and fish dumplings stall, 44 Tongshan Lu (near corner of Miaocan Lu), Cijin Island, Kaohsiung, Taiwan. (07) 571-1711

Comments

[meemalee]

Oh my god - I want those soooo much!

[Pete]

What a lovely dish! Love your photos & narratives as always.
BTW, I'm currently in Kaohsiung on a 2-week assignment - my first trip here ever. Somehow, I found Kaohsiung's local foods a bit too bland for my taste! Kaohsiung cuisine tastes quite flat compared to Taipei's, don't you find that?

[Albert]

This looks fantastic, never seen this in Taipei, I might have to take a trip down there next time I am in Taiwan.

Have you had a chance to eat 燕餃 during your travel in Taiwan or China? They are little pork filled wontons with almost translucent wrappers made from pork, often served in a light broth with white pepper and chinese celery much like what you described here.

[Mr Noodles]

Although your blog is consistently excellent, being a noodle fan, these are the posts that get my attention. The mind boggles at how they manage to make these delicate noodles from fish. And as for the yu jiao dumplings, these really are stunning.

[Robyn]

Meemalee - Kinda made myself hungry writing this one up. ;-)

Hi Pete - I do sort of agree, mostly because I naturally gravitate to stronger flavored foods (and I LOVE chili) but I am a total seafood fiend and I really appreciate the light touch with fish and shellfish there in Kaohsiung. Eg the food at this place:
http://eatingasia.typepad.com/eatingasia/2009/06/we-really-didnt-know-what-to-expect-from-kaohsiung-a-city-on-taiwans-southwestern-coast-that-is-home-to-one-of-asias-larges.html
(and they do have chilies there).

But sure, after two weeks I'd be craving a bowl of spicy niuroumian!

[the lacquer spoon]

Amazing! Japan has fish noodles too though we eat a small portion as a starter or side dish. Wondering if they're all over Asia.

[Katy Biggs]

EatingAsia Facebook page is great, though left me with a dilemma where to post my comments! ;-)

Quite a large amount of the fish meat products in Taiwan are made from 旗魚Qi Yu (Sailfish/Spearfish) – the famous Fuzhou fish ball is known for one. The island Qijin(Cijin)旗津, literally means Port of Qi (Qi fish).

The noodle of this particular stall (or in the area) is made of 狗母魚 (literally Dog Mother Fish – not a particular pretty name! Don’t know the source), English commonly known as ‘Painted Lizardfish’, I think, not completely sure. The springy, chewy texture comes from the fish, no starched binder is used, so is said. Dog Mother Fish is widely and commonly used in澎湖 (island of Peng Hu, an outlying island located between Taiwan and China)- known for its chewy springy fish ball, springier than a golf ball so says the locals.

The most painstaking and laborious part of making these kind of noodles come down to the deboning – it has many! The introduce of fish deboning machine in the recent years has made Peng Hu fish workers’ life a lot easier.

Peng Hu’s fresh fish ball is said to contain no preservatives, unsuitable for frozen, and recommended to be fridge kept in bowl of cold water to be consumed within the next day.

Like Albert, I lived in Taipei and have never seen or heard of this noodle. One of your Tainan born reader mentioned about it being a local dish, though no mention of the type of the fish used.

I had had many fish/prawn dumplings and 燕餃 (pork filled wanton in Albert’s describe) in my Taipei days – though frozen and manufactured.

[Robyn]

Katy -- great and informative comment as always. One of the best things about blogging ... I often learn more from the folks who read the blog than I do during our travels.
So Katy -- milkfish is never used for fish balls in Taiwan? It was everywhere in Kaohsiung --- those ubiquitous fillets with the fat patch in the middle (yum).

laquer spoon -- interesting! Can you describe the noodles? Do they look like these and taste as I described these? Are they served in soup or dry or...? Thanks.

[the lacquer spoon]

Robyn, great to find your interest in Japanese fish noodle too, and some info I know follows:

Japanese fish noodle is called “uo-somen” (fish thin noodle/ “魚素麺” or “魚そうめん”). It’s popular in the Kansai district (West Japan), especially in Kyoto. Not often eaten in Tokyo though my family does.

Uo-somen is “boiled fish paste” in a form of thin noodle, thus it’ not exactly a member of Japanese udon/ soba noodle family which is made of flour. Its ingredient is white fish such as hamo (sea eel), tai (sea bream), cod, et al. This noodle is to eat a small portion as a starter or side.

The fish noodle is available in fish paste mongers and eaten cold with a dash of fish broth flavoured with soy. It has something to share with the Taiwanese counterpart in taste and texture; snappy, a bit sandy and not too fishy, but the colour is clear white, sometimes green mixed with green tea powder.

Photos (uo-somen):
http://ow.ly/1FWf9

In the meantime, I had a new finding today! There’s the other version of fish noodle called “sakana-udon” (fish udon noodle/ “魚うどん”) in Japan. It’s a very local food eaten in Nichinan-city, Miyazaki pref. South Japan. Made of flying fish, this noodle is served like Japanese hot soup udon in a big bowl.

It seems that sakana-udon was originally invented to cover the food shortage in the coastal area rich in fish, during the war time.

Photos (sakana udon):
http://ow.ly/1FWfj
(chopped spring onion and yuzu citrus on top)

Hope it helps! Spoon x

[Katy Biggs]

I am sure it is, fish balls in Taiwan are made from a wide range of fishes and milkfish is a popular choice. Just meant when I was living there, I often saw on the packages or signs in the wet market claiming the ‘real’ ‘best’ Fuzhou fish balls made from Qi fish – that was a long time ago and I am sure nowadays you get all sorts despite the ‘tradition’.

Apparently, 狗母魚 (Gou Mu) is a Hokkien pronunciation of the fish and it is commonly known as snakefish. Tainan is known for exquisite fish cuisines made form milkfish and snakefish. There are stores do noodles made of other fish with starchy binder, but here is a popular one of snakefish if you want to try on your next trip.

台南卓家汕頭魚麵 (Mr Zhuo Fish Noodle) – 50 years old store.
台南市中西區民生路一段158號 (Tainan city, Zhong Xi District, Min Sheng Road, Sec 1, No. 158). 10:00-21:00

[Wen]

Fascinating! Haven't crossed path with fish noodles before -- looks fabbo! And why why why did I not come across u-somen in Kansai in the last 2 weeks. (Damn wish I read this earlier now!)

I recently learnt how to make fishballs from scratch (still need to write the post!), with no binding agents. I can attest that getting proper springiness using just fish requires helluva lotta arm muscle... probably why the real deal fish-only noodle won't be easily found.

[Katy Biggs]

I think I’d appreciate ‘Uo-somen’ eaten in small portion – they aren’t cheap!

laquer spoon’s mentioning of flying fish (飛魚) reminded me of something and after a quick search, found that flying fish noodle (飛魚麵) is a local specialty for all these places in Taiwan: 蘭嶼 (Orchard Island), 台東 (Taidong), 花蓮 (Hualian)小琉球 (little Okinawa, Pingdong County),綠島 (Green Island) – particularly well known for the first three.

These fish noodles come in all sort of forms – hand-made noodle in broth, deep fried fish nuggets or deep fried - dried fish in noodle soup…And recently developed dried noodle sold in packages.

Here is a photo of the hand-made noodle in soup.
http://mypaper.pchome.com.tw/jehwen/post/1294005660

[Katy Biggs]

Meant hand-made noodle made of flying fish of course.

[Hsuan]

I second Katy's recs in Tainan - having eaten at the latter a few years back, the taste still lingers when I think about it. They do a 'dry' version, in which a sauce akin to soba soy sauce but with a tang of something citrusy. Glad to hear that you have such fond eating memories of Taiwan.

[Katy Biggs]

Wen - that is also one of the major difficulties why hand-made fish noodle vendors (without binding agent) find it hard to sustain their business. And perhaps why most these noodles found are made with some form of starchy agents). The process is both time-consuming and painstakingly laborious - to get the proper springiness and chewiness requires precision to the timing of the adding of water and rhythmic beating of the meat. Not a trade that appeals much to the younger generation I am afraid!

[Katy]

Robyn - The origin of the name ‘狗母魚’ (Gyow Moo Yu/fish) comes from 狗母蛇 (Gyow Moo She/snake) - slang for Lizard and an animal symbolically inferior in Chinese folklore culture. It derives from a saying “生一条真龙，赢过生狗母蛇一筐” (literally, “one dragon is better than a bucketful of lizards”) - ie quality wins over quantity.

I also pondered about the advertising of the stall ‘pepper handmade fish noodle soup’– the dish contains pepper seasoning, but it is not a major ingredient. Hujiao (pepper) pronounced in Hokkein ‘Ho Jio’ sounded extremely close phonetically to Fuzhou ‘Ho Chio’. To make sure I wasn’t fabricating, I checked and found that the Taiwanese Hujiao Bing (your mince pork pie) has a counterpart in Fuzhou called ‘Rou Shi Bing’ (literally mince pork pie) that contains similar ingredients, same shape, size, baked and served in the same way. ‘Hujiao’ Bing is a name Taiwanese use and is known to be, from some sources, derived from ‘Fuzhou’ because of their phonetic similarity.

I therefore surmise that when you see a snack in Taiwan with the name Hujiao, not only does it contain pepper, but it may also have a strong Fuzhou influence.

[julia]

Taiwan does have great food!
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