When I travel, I make a point of trying as much of the local cuisine as possible. I've had chicken heart, bull frog legs, duck tongue, chicken gizzard and a bee larvae omelet. The only thing I've passed on in my travels so far has been rabbit head. And while I haven't outright refused stinky tofu, I've been avoiding it for my last year in Taiwan.
Stinky tofu is a staple of Taiwan cuisine. Fried, steamed, stewed or barbecued, it's a fermented tofu that packs an olfactory punch. Stinky tofu is sold at night markets and roadside shops, the scent wafting out over the street for blocks. It's easy to tell where stinky tofu is sold: you can follow your nose to the storefront. However you might want to walk in the opposite direction because the smell has been compared to rotten garbage and smelly human feet.
The origin of stinky tofu dates back to the Qing Dynasty. According to legend, a man named Wang Zhihe failed his imperial exams, so he turned to selling tofu to make a living. One day, he prepared too much. Unable to sell the excess, he put it in a pot and forgot about it. When he came back a few days later, he found the tofu had turned greenish and extremely smelly. From there he made the totally logical decision to give it a taste and found it was delicious. He started selling the stinky tofu, which eventually made its way all the way to the imperial palace.
I have to say, I was unimpressed. While many of my Taiwanese friends claimed it tasted good, and that 'the stinkier it is, the better it tastes' I was not buying it. I would often have to hold my breath as we walked past stinky tofu stalls at night markets. The smell is truly hair-raising. But when we ended up at a night market with a bunch of friends and they found out both Emily and I had never eaten stinky tofu, it could no longer be avoided.
With sadistic grins on their faces, they sat us down and ordered steamed and fried tofu. A phone was pulled out to film out reactions. Internally, I was steeling myself.
The steamed tofu arrived first. It lacked the pungent odor, which our friends said was unusual (according to them, steamed tofu is usually more stinky than its fried counterpart). It was topped with pork and sat in a chili sauce broth. The others giggled as we each picked up a piece.
When it hit my tongue, the first thing that registered was the heat. The temperature overtook any stinky flavor. Once it cooled off, however, the flavor was alright. Prepared by the gag-inducing smell, it was a pleasant surprise to actually enjoy it.
Then came the fried tofu. These were bigger bricks, fried to a golden brown. Typically topped with a ton of garlic and served with Taiwanese kimchi, this batch only had the kimchi. Emily and I split a cube and went for it.
The 'stinky' in stinky tofu finally arrived. It was as though the smell, which I'll remind you is akin to rotten garbage, had been distilled and soaked into the fried outer shell of the tofu. The taste sat on my tongue like a mousetrap. I chewed as quickly as possible and washed everything down with a big gulp of an Aiyu jelly drink.
So as it stands now, I enjoy steamed stinky tofu and will avoid the fried. One of my friends mentioned that it's an acquired taste, one that many Taiwanese have spent a lifetime acquiring. I can definitely understand that. It seems to me like a version of blue cheese (which I also don't enjoy), in that if I tried it some more, or maybe at a different shop, I could grow to enjoy it. However, just as with blue cheese, I find my dislike of it strong enough to prevent me from starting the process of acquiring the taste.
I am glad I've tried it. Stinky tofu is a huge part of the night market/street food culture here in Taiwan, and I was missing out. Besides, I was able to wash it down with a heaping bowl of mango shaved ice (another Taiwanese specialty) right after, which made the experience that much sweeter.
My recommendation: Try it. Even if you have to plug your nose. You might be surprised.
My ranking (1-10: 1-mind blowing amazing, 5-normal food, 10-worst thing ever)
Steamed stinky tofu: 5.5
Fried stinky tofu: 7.5
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