You may have biked around and had the bento in Chishang, but you may not have tried popping rice here. There are two big guys for rice popping hidden in Chishang Farmers’ Association. I miss that loud “bang” sound. A loud rumble, come trying popping rice is a good decision.
After the firecracker like loudness comes the white smoke. And there is the savory smell of pop rice after the smoke disperses. The pop rice is a perfect snack.
Photo: It looks already tasty in the photo. And this is the ingredient.
Making pop rice can be a collaborative work, and the tip is “fast, sharp, and precise”. Once mastering it, you’ll find making pop rice is easy.
Starting from simmering the maltose, local roselle in Taitung is then added. The timing has to be “precise” when the syrup is ready for the moderate stickiness.
Photo: The timing is crucial when making the maltose syrup, which tastes roselle.
It must be “fast” pouring the syrup into the pot and mixing with grains of popped rice, since the maltose gets cool very quickly, if not fast enough, it will fail to shape.
Photo: Fast stirring the popped rice in case the maltose cools down.
Slice it after it is leveled, and both the mind and the knife have to be “sharp”. Everyone gets to use the knife and sees how to slice fast and well.
Photo: Be sharp with the knife, and you can slice it as big as you want.
Photo: DIY roselle flavored pop rice goes well with a cup of Genmaicha.
Harvest Meal
Chishang Farmers’ Association introduced “Harvest Meal”, including a meal and the bowl, spoons and chopsticks as well as the chopstick cover and a bag, all can be brought home.
In the old days during the busy harvest period, men in the villages helped one another by sharing the work; women and children would carry the lunch for all to eat together by the paddies so it was called “Harvest Lunch”.
“Harvest Meal” comes from such a concept and the dishes are made of seasonal local vegetables, chickens and braised meat, making it very abundant!
This thick and exquisite clay bowl comes from Yingge; artisans in Zhushan are invited to make the spoon and chopsticks; and the beautiful chopstick cover and the bag is Hakka style. After having the meal, visitors can have the whole set of bowl, spoon and chopsticks as souvenir from Chishang, what an economical good deal!
Photo: Many group visitors ask to have Harvest Meal. After the meal, they can bring the whole set of tableware home. A good deal.