- [Iz] Night markets.
They're everywhere.
Night markets are perhaps the best expression
of Taiwan's local food culture.
Chinese is in its origin, but totally unique to this place.
In this city alone, there are 30 such markets.
Each brimming with a certain energy.
Locals perusing the hundreds of stalls for whatever
they're craving that night.
And you don't have to choose just one stall.
Choose five or ten!
Wander, sample, mingle.
Wow, that is a long line!
I hope it's worth it.
We landed in Taiwan last night and let me tell you, there
is nothing I love more than 14 hours on a
plane with a three-year-old.
We're gonna go to one of the city's oldest night markets
tonight which I've been told is a can't-miss
food opportunity, but before that we are going to explore
the city starting with some scallion pancakes.
So first of all, scallion pancakes are savory.
They're pan fried dough that are served with
a bunch of different sauces and toppings like
ham, cheese, egg, basil.
They first flatten the dough, throw it onto the skillet,
and then they start to smack it around with their
spatula to puff it up to create a light and fluffy
almost pastry-like texture.
So good!
These look amazing!
It's almost between like a pastry and naan.
Henry's too hungry.
This is real trouble with kids.
For you, mister man. - Oh my gosh.
- The scallion pancakes are a must-try.
They're almost like a breakfast sandwich
meets a croissant meets chapati.
- [Johnny] Meets heaven!
- Meets heaven.
I mean it's so good.
- We have about four hours 'til nightfall,
so we're gonna go explore the city.
If you're in Taiwan you have to wander
through the Longshan Temple.
Showered with ornamental design and symbolism, the
temple is bustling with both tourists and locals alike.
We're here at the night market and it is so busy.
There's so much to see!
There are two things that I know that I want to try.
One is stinky tofu.
I'm not really sure that I want to try it, but I was
told that I should so I am going to.
Okay? Okay.
The other is the pork pepper bun.
This was mentioned in the Taipei Eater Guide
as one of the top foods to try.
The queues are super, super long so
that has to mean something.
I'm really, really excited to eat it finally.
This is unlike anything I've ever seen.
It is super, super busy.
There's so many options.
We have to be strategic.
- Quail eggs.
- Give me those!
I actually have never had a quail egg.
This is a first.
Cheers!
Wow, that is really good.
Really creamy inside.
It's just undercooked enough, the yolk,
and then it has that crispy outer and the really
flavorful seasoning and sauce.
Yum!
This is the moment we've all been waiting for.
The stinky tofu.
The smell is extreme.
There's flavors that like, if you grow up to,
they're acquired tastes, like cheese and fermented foods,
and stinky tofu I think is one of those.
I don't hate it.
It's actually really good if I don't think about the smell,
but if I start to think about the smell as I'm eating it,
the struggle is very real.
The texture is really good.
It's crispy on the outside and really like, chewy
on the inside and it has this pickled cabbage which
goes really nicely with it.
It's not my favorite, only because I have to keep my mind
very focused on not thinking about the smell, but I'm
very surprised by how much I do like it.
I wouldn't have expected that.
This is pure organized chaos.
It is so chaotic, but like, there's this energy that is
just so fun.
- It's amazing.
Here we have what I think are some of the most beautiful
buns I've ever seen.
That preparation was insane.
- Here goes it!
That is so good.
So we've made it through almost all of the market and
I have to say like the overwhelming-ness of so many
good options is just part of the experience.
We're gonna finish off with the pork pepper bun which
I've been waiting all day to try.
I read about it in the Eater Guide and I think I've
just been dreaming about it since and I'm pretty sure
I'm gonna be dreaming about it after.
The pork pepper bun is made with minced pork,
green onions, black pepper, and what they
say is their secret blend of spices.
It's then wrapped in dough, thrown into a tandoor-style
oven, and cooked until golden brown.
- [Cashier] Hello!
- Hi! Three.
- Thank you. - Thank you.
Oh I'm so excited!
Really good!
Really peppery.
The meat has like a sweet-salty and then the crust is
like crispy, but then really nice and chewy on the inside.
You can see how it's like nice and charred on the bottom.
It has that good crunch, but then also the
chewiness of like a bun.
That is incredibly flavorful and really delicious.
I am 100% sold on the night market thing.
I wish we had them at home, but I guess it just means that
I'm gonna have to come back.
Make sure to tune into next week's episode where we
explore one of Taiwan's most loved,
most common dishes: beef noodle.