Dishes
brown sugar sweet potato jelly
黑糖粉粿
Also called: 粉粿 · 粉粿冰 · fen guo
A soft, springy jelly made from sweet potato starch and brown sugar, eaten over shaved ice.
What it is
In Taiwan 粉粿 is a sweet, usually yellow, jelly made from sweet potato starch and served with brown sugar syrup. The brown sugar version is cooked with the sugar itself and comes out soft and springy.
Where it comes from
Wikipedia lists fen guo as a traditional food of both Guangdong and Taiwan, though the Guangdong foods of that name are different, including a savoury Chaozhou snack.
How it is made
At Chang Ying Seafood House the cook stir-fries cane sugar and brown sugar over a low flame for about two hours, then simmers it with water for eight hours. The jelly is made with pure sweet potato starch and is chewy and cool on the tongue.
How to eat it
It goes over shaved ice with brown sugar syrup: dessert after a seafood meal, or something cold on a hot afternoon.
In Tainan
Chang Ying Seafood House in Beimen has sold brown-sugar fen guo ice for over 20 years, and Michelin suggests a bowl to finish the meal.
Where to eat it in Tainan
Sources