Dishes
Milkfish thick soup
虱目魚羹
Also called: 浮水虱目魚羹 · 浮水魚羹 · 魚焿
A Tainan market snack of soft milkfish paste pieces in a starch-thickened broth.
Photo: bryan... from Taipei, Taiwan, CC BY-SA 2.0
Photo: 中岑 范姜 from 台北, 台灣, CC BY-SA 2.0What it is
Geng (羹, often written 焿 on Taiwanese shop signs) is a soup thickened with starch. In milkfish geng, the solid part is milkfish paste formed into soft pieces. The 浮水 in some names means 'floating'.
How it is made
Milkfish is worked into a paste, cooked in broth in small pieces, and the soup is thickened with starch.
How to eat it
In Tainan this is the usual partner for wa gui (savoury rice pudding). Have it plain or with noodles added.
In Tainan
The city's tourism site says Tainan wa gui sellers insist on milkfish for their soup, since otherwise the broth isn't sweet. Hsiao Nan Wa Gui, founded in 1952, and Yi Wei Pin in Yongle Market both serve it.
Where to eat it in Tainan
一味品Yi Wei Pin
Yongle Market stall famous for dark Tainan-style wa gui (savoury rice pudding) and milkfish thick soup.
台南小南碗粿Hsiao Nan Wa Gui
Wa gui rice pudding with savoury fillings, plus milkfish fish-paste soup.
Sources