Last Thursday, I went to a Taiwanese restaurant for the first time in my life. I had no idea what to expect. My sister was telling me that it was actually quite different from typical Chinese food. However, I remained quite skeptical, as up to that point, I associated China and Taiwan as related, intercultural areas.
I ordered a pork bowl, pork cutlet, and popcorn chicken. I definitely was expecting these foods to taste sub-par, as they come from origins other than Taiwan. However, on first taste, I realized that I was wrong.
The pork cutlet originates from Korea, and on appearance, it was readied in the same manner. Nonetheless, the taste was quite unique. Korean pork cutlet has more of the fried piece, and ends up being saltier. However, the restaurant served the cutlet with much less of the ‘fried piece’, and it was hardly fried. This meant the meat was a little softer and had a more pleasant texture. It was not as seasoned as I liked, but it was still enjoyable.
Popcorn chicken originates from the United States, and again, it looked normal and looked similar. Nevertheless, in my experience, the restaurant served it in a much better way. The dish was very spicy and burned your mouth after a few bites. However, it was still super delicious, and it had amazing seasoning.
The pork bowl was very simple, and consisted of just rice and pieces of pork. It was very soft and basically melted in your mouth, which tasted and felt amazing. The rice was layered in a light soy sauce, making it appetizing too.
Overall, my first experience with Taiwanese food was quite enjoyable. I realized that it was prepared in a much different manner than Chinese food, and apparently, it is actually quite insulting to call Taiwanese food “Chinese food”, as they also regard it differently.
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