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Restaurants of the week

By Yu Sen-lun
STAFF REPORTER
Friday, Oct 20, 2000, Page 10

Pork hun-dun soup PHOTO: COURTESY OF JIU-RU

Jiu-ru (九如)

69 Jenai Rd. Sec. 4 (仁愛路四段69號); tel: 2751-7666. 8am to 10pm. Average meal: NT$200. English menu.

In Shanghai, people call it hun-dun; in Hong Kong, people call it won-ton (雲吞); and in Taiwan, it's called pen shih (扁食). Whatever the name, it is a meat dumpling, with origins in the southern Chinese provinces, served in soup.

The 40-year-old Jiu-ru should be the first place to think of for those hoping to eat hun-dun. Situated on Jenai road, Jiu-ru stands out from other Chinese food restaurants on this crowded strip with its original Shanghai and Chekiang style cuisine.

Chekiang style hun-dun are noted for their big size, which, if nothing else, guarantees one will be full after eating a portion. Pork and Green Vegetable Hun-dun (菜肉餛飩) -- a bowl of soup with six dumplings -- is the specialty here.

The price -- NT$100 -- is not cheap for such a dish commonly found in Taipei, but at Jiu-ru, it's worth the price. Minced pork and shredded Chinese green cabbages are nicely mixed to make up the rich stuffing. The mixing method and the seasoning for the stuffing is, according to owner Nora Wu (吳南威), a house secret.

Lao Yu Chih's specialty: Won-ton Noodles with Oyster Sauce. PHOTO: YU SEN-LUN, TAIPEI TIMES

But Wu does note that she sticks with a traditional Shanghai style, which is less greasy. "We are trying to refrain from turning to Taiwanese tastes, in which dishes have slightly sweet flavors," she says. This dedication to authenticity apparently works well for Wu, for it surely isn't the plain Jane decor that attracts streams of mainlander customers looking to stir culinary memories of home.

Spicy Red Oil Pen-shin. PHOTO: YU SEN-LUN, TAIPEI TIMES

If the hun-tun soup doesn't fill you up, try the famous Huzhou dumpling (湖州粽), a bamboo-wrapped meat dumpling, made of glutinous rice and pork seasoned with soy sauce. Or add the sesame stuffing sweet dumplings to your order and consider them dessert.

Lao Yo Chih Rice Noodles and Porridge
老友記粥麵飯館

16, Lane 232, Tunhua S. Rd., Sec. 1(敦化南路一段232巷16號); tel: 2731-9098. 11:30am to 3pm, 5to 9:30 pm. Average meal: NT$200.

Cantonese style dumplings differ in a few ways from other regional dumplings. First, they look small, but don't let that deceive you -- they pack a punch. Their taste and texture are also different from those found in other regions. According to Wong Kam-man (黃錦文), owner and chef of Lao Yo Chih, the Cantonese add eggs to the flour dough to make the skin more chewy. As for the stuffing, it's always minced pork with shrimp; otherwise, it's not original Cantonese style.

Won-ton Noodles in Oyster Sauce (蠔油雲吞撈麵) is a must at Lao Yo Chih. Six won-tons, egg noodles, and plenty of green vegetables make up a colorful and tasty dish.

The restaurant has doubled its size within six years in Taipei's most expensive neighborhood [Lien Chan (連戰) is a neighbor], which is a testament to the restaurant's popularity. It is a typical Hong Kong style diner, detected also in Wong's accent. As the name informs us, the place offers rice, noodles and porridge, as well as numerous other dishes.

Our recommendations include Cha-liang (炸兩) and Chang-fen (腸粉). The former is made of deep-fried dough covered with a rice-based skin, which is a famous Hong Kong night market dish rarely found in Taipei. The latter uses rice-made skin to wrap up shrimp, beef or barbecued pork.

Kaohsiung Wu-fu Pen-shih
高雄五福扁食

23, Lane236, Tunhua S. Rd., Sec. 1,(敦化南路一段236巷23號); tel: 27525741. 10am to 10pm. Average meal: NT$120.

Despite being the size of a bedroom, this shop has built a reputation for Taiwanese dumplings -- pen-shih (扁食) -- that has attracted a range of celebrities, from movie star Jackie Chan to politician James Soong (宋楚瑜).

It is another store rich with history. Established on Wu-fu Road in Kaohsiung 38 years ago, the diner earned its fame when it moved to Taipei 13 years ago. The owner, Lin Chin-tai (林進泰), once won the title of the fastest (hand-made) dumpling-maker in Taiwan.

Lin, of course, pays attention to more than just speed. He invented an original wrapping method to make his Shrimp Pen-shih (鮮蝦扁食), in which the skin folds the stuffing in a rectangular shape instead of a round one. This requires more time and labor, but it shows why Wu-fu has become the most popular Taiwanese-style dumpling diner.

Although Taiwanese dumplings tend to be less solid, this doesn't mean their taste is in any way watered down. According to Lin, there are six kinds of secret seasonings inside his stuffing, which smells something like sesame oil. We recommend the Shrimp Soup Pen-shih and Spicy Red Oil Pen-shih (香辣紅油扁食), which resembles a Sichuan dish. To enjoy more Taiwanese snacks, try the house's well-known Stewed Minced Pork with Rice (魯肉飯) or Octopus Salad.

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