Nanmeng Market （started in 1909) Address: No.8, Sec. 1, Roosevelt Rd., Zhongzheng Dist., Taipei City 100, Taiwan (R.O.C.) [MRT: Chang Kai Shek Memorial Hall exit 2] 台北市羅斯福路一段八號 Open Hour: Here's a calendar of when the market will be closed. (The circle red is day off) B1 and 1F will be closed every Monday
Sorry for whoever got cut by out panoramic. :( First of all, we wish every one a Happy Chinese New Year! May this year be prosperous, flourish in all your wishes, and merrier to the Year of the Horse. We've been so busy helping with Mom buying ingredients and food preparation for the feast on New Year's Eve. Our grandpa comes from a small village called Nantung in Shanghai, he is 92 this year, birthday on New Year day, for us this is the biggest day of the year besides celebrating the New Year to come! It's been popular these years for people to buy take out New Year food from hotels and restaurants, however it's a big NO for Mom since she thinks it's not sincere to celebrate the feast, moreover she is a good cook, she cooks far good than one mass of food. She prepared a full table of Chinese New Year's food where you can read it here. We climbed over people and fight our way in Nanmeng Market to buy ingredients , where all regions of Chinese food are being sold there. Mom said it's the market where every regions people can find what they need, the first photo is written "North and South Goods", really a place where various of Chinese food can be find there. Tim and Tiff were both astonished by all kinds of food, however there were many we eat them regularly at home, and at there we realized what we eat everyday are all Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions food. No wonder everytime we visit a Shanghainese restaurant we were like "Uh...isn't that what Mom just cooked the other day?" Also, Mom said it was a place for people to buy ingredients when they have guests in the house, they have ingredients that are rarely being sold outside and the finest as well. Mom told us when she was young, every time she came here, the shop owner would asked her "Having guest today in the house?" and they'll find the finest food for her to welcome the guest. They say when you travel- must go to a local market to understand the culture. When in Taiwan, must pay a visit to Nanmeng Market and brisk through behind the scene of Chinese food. Specifically we were buying egg dumpling, it's same thing as the dumpling we eat, however the wrapping is made by egg. Mom reminded us we must buy fresh ones, not those that have been made few days ago and lived in the fridge, but ones that were handmade and cook on the spot. The gold dumplings resemble money and will be put in the main soup we eat on New Year's Eve to wish everyone Gong Hey Fat Choy, a shiny year with gold. Another thing was on the list was: ham. The soup Mom was making need ham to brew the taste, she added a tiny slice of ham each day to make the taste much thicker and thicker. Tim drank the soup and said: "This is what 'soup layer' called." The sausages handing on the hooks are sausages of different regions taste. A woman yelled out to the shop staff (it's was busy and loud in there) "What's the difference between Yunnan (Yunan Province) sausage and the normal sausage?" "It's stronger taste with more spices." We also found raw ingredient of food like fermented glutinous rice (the photo that looks like white bubble), normally what we had are ready-to-cook fermented glutinous rice and eat them during winter times to whisk away the cold, it's good for ladies, Mom used it this year for New Year Eve dish with shrimp. Quiet an interesting place, Tim and Tiff had so much fun here, we did come here when we were young, however from the above squishy, squashy photo you'll find, it's not a pleasant place for kiddo to enjoy the smelly adult air. We told Mom we know where to find good foods and would initiative come here when our tastebud is on for something now.
不好意思路人甲被我的全景照砍頭了。 Tiff et Tim 祝大家新年快樂！馬年大家一起馬上賺大錢，馬上封侯，萬事如意，事事順心！ 這一陣子我們很忙著幫媽媽一起準備過年年菜的食材採購與準備。 這幾年很多家庭流行訂餐廳與飯店的年菜外帶，或是在外面慶祝新年，但是我們覺得過年吃家人親自切煮的年菜就是很不一樣，特別有味，雖然每一年我們都覺得事前準備好辛苦，但吃到那豐盛的一頓時都覺得好幸福。大年初一是外公生日，他今年可92歲囉，來自江蘇南通，很會燒菜的媽媽每一年都會大秀廚藝的燒一桌江浙菜讓外公回味家鄉味。 媽媽過年滿漢全席在這兒。 我們姐弟倆在人滿為患的南門市場殺出一條路尋找放在鍋底的火腿與上頭的金元寶。 媽媽跟我們說南門市場最為人知的是：「這是一座南北貨的市場，在這兒可以找到各省的壓箱寶，最珍貴的食材，也是主人要請客時一定會來的地方採買最上等的貨品」 她說她小時候只要來這幫外公買食材，老闆都會問她「今天家裡有客人啊？」然後翻箱倒櫃把最好的食材拿給媽媽。 我們倆在這兒逛得目不轉睛，什麼都想買，發現很多我們平常吃的食材廬山真面目，媽媽詳細的跟我們解釋「平常我們在家吃的菜叫做江浙菜、上海菜、也名為本幫菜」 難怪每一次我們到外面上海餐館時都發著呆對著食物說：「這不是昨天家裡媽媽做的菜嗎？」 旅行時到各國當地的市場逛逛可以更了解當地文化，若來到台灣可以來南門市場走走，看看大中華的食材在這兒上演 剛有提到我們來這兒尋找金元寶。 金元寶其實是蛋餃，過年時我們會放在湯鍋裡祝大家恭喜發財，財源滾滾。 另一則是火腿。火腿是要放在鍋底調味道的，媽媽炖了一星期的湯，每一天放入適量的火腿，Tim吃了大呼「這就是所謂有層次的湯！」 人來人往的南門市場，眾多的香場懸掛在店門口，有一位婦女大喊「雲南的香場與平常的香腸有什麼不同？」「雲蘭的香腸口味比較種與多一點辛香料」，真是有趣的場景。 我們也發現酒釀原始的貌樣，原來是一棵一棵白色酒麴，再去釀造的。冬天或感冒時，我們總是會煮一鍋酒釀蛋來溫暖身體，今年過年我們將酒釀放入茄汁明蝦這一道菜裡，帶出蝦的甜味。 小時候我們會跟著媽媽與外婆來南門市場，但個子小什麼都看不到之外還沒空氣，每一次說到南門市場，我們都退避三舍。但今天我們超興奮的，根本就是發現另一座後院一樣，還買了在外面賣很貴的烤素方，以後我們都知道要吃這些食物時直接來南門市場買就好了！✌️
