You know you're at the right place when you see the huge, century-old bishopwood tree (Bischofia javanica) in a small square by the main road. As you stroll down Shenkeng St. (better known as Old Street and even better known as Tofu Street), your nostrils will be assailed by a peculiar odor. It's been described as unwashed feet, an open sewer, or horse manure. But as is the case with Camembert or Limburger cheese, odiferous fermented curds can taste heavenly. Many foreigners don't like it. I love it.
Here's Tofu Street:
Allow chunks of tofu to ferment in rotten vegetable matter for a couple weeks, and the result is stinky tofu. Whether you like this delicacy or not, Tofu Street makes for an interesting scene with restaurant after restaurant displaying bubbling pots of tofu, simmering in rich, spicy broths.
In addition to stewed tofu, you can also get deep-fried tofu and, believe it or not, barbecued tofu. There are many stalls selling barbecued tofu, which are then stuffed with your choice of fillings, such as fermented cabbage. This one, Jindading, is the most famous stall of them all, and consistently has the longest line. It was even visited by Ma Ying-jeou (then Taipei mayor, now president of Taiwan) in 2004.
This happens to be the stall visited by chef and food critic Andrew Zimmern, in the Taiwan episode of his show Bizarre Foods. He adheres to the wise principle that if there are several stalls selling the same thing, go to the one with the longest line. However, he made a mistake. This stall does not sell the same thing as the other stalls. This one specializes in "xiang doufu" (fragrant tofu, or actually, non-stinky tofu). Don't get me wrong: what they sell is excellent, but it ain't stinky.
I decided to go across the street, to this stall: Shenkeng Jindakuai. This had the longest line of all the stalls selling barbecued stinky tofu.
Barbecued, brushed with sauce, stuffed with fermented cabbage and dusted with hot chili powder: it was excellent! A little messy and unwieldy to eat, because the tofu wants to fall off the skewers, but they make a tasty treat for the stinky tofu aficionado. Andrew Zimmern, eat your heart out!
Yum!!
