After so many main courses and snacks, it is time for some desserts. Although I am not a fan of sweet stuff, I do not mind trying them once in awhile. Tofu Pudding / dou hua (豆花), especially cold ones is one of my favourite desserts. There are other names for it - soybean pudding / bean jelly / tau huay. Apparently, Tainan was the birthplace of Tofu Pudding and the popularity of the dessert spread to the other cities. One of the recommended eateries for this dessert is Hsiu Ann Peddler Tofu Pudding.
Thus, I went to search for this eatery one hot afternoon. I followed the address given by one of the bloggers which was at Zhong Shan Road and did a Google Map search. The result stated that it was permanently closed. Not wanting to repeat my mistake with Liu Mama Rice Ball, I tried searching based on the name of the shop instead. The map indicated that it was located along Gouhua Street.
It was not that difficult to spot the eatery. It was about 2 plus in the afternoon so there were not many customers. I went straight to the counter and looked through the menu. You can find the menu at the counter by the way. Take one, look for a seat and decide what you want before placing an order.
The red indications on the side of some items are based on popularity among customers. Those in light blue are recommended by the eatery.
Since I was eating alone and would like to try as many flavours as possible at one go, I ordered the combination of fen guo pudding and soy milk tofu pudding (綜合粉粿布丁豆漿豆花). I am unsure what to call 'fen guo' (粉粿) in English but it tasted starchy. You can choose to add toppings to the pudding with additional charges if course. After making payment, just wait while they serve your order.
I went to the nearest empty table to enjoy the dessert. After checking their website, this is the breakdown of the different things in the bowl. Based on the pictures from the website, going clockwise, the dark-coloured 'fen guo' is 黑糖粉粿 (black sugar fen guo), the transparent 'fen guo' is 原味粉粿 (original taste fen guo), and the white-coloured fen guo is 豆漿粉粿 (soy milk fen guo). The one in the middle would be tofu pudding.
It was the first time I was eating 'fen guo' (粉粿), I think. Unique taste. Starchy. The whole dessert was too sweet for me. I don't have a sweet tooth in the first place so that is just me. The pudding was nice. Nothing quite special.
They sell their soy milk in bottles too. I wanted to buy a bottle to try but decided against it since I ate the dessert. Sugar overloaded.
I went around the eatery to take a few more pictures after eating. Here is a little history on Tofu pudding. During the olden days, Tofu Pudding was put into two heated wooden buckets like those below and carried around by peddlers on the street. They would call out for customers to try their pudding. Once an order had been placed, the peddler scooped the warm tofu pudding with a metal spoon and served it in a white china bowl. They only served warm pudding in the past. I believe the the wooden buckets are still in use because there were pictures of their staff serving pudding from them in some blogs. It actually gives you a nostalgia feel (古早味) to be served from these buckets.
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| Tofu Pudding - hot or cold? |
A nice eatery to satisfy your sugar craving on a hot afternoon. Come with a couple more friends if possible, especially those with sweet tooth and enjoy the other desserts on the menu.
Eatery: Hsiu Ann Peddler Tofu Pudding (修安扁擔豆花)
Address: No. 157, Section 3, Guohua St, West Central District, Tainan City, Taiwan 700
(台南市中西區 國華街三段157號)
Contact: +886 6 226 1069
Operating Hours: Mondays - Sundays (08 00 - 22 00)
Website: http://www.xiuanbeanjelly.vrworld.com.tw (in Chinese)
Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/XiuAnDoHua
Click for Google Map directions
