As Hakkas in early times were mostly involved in agriculture, the Hakka culture is known for a diverse range of rice cuisine.  But you probably don't know how creative the cuisine is unless you have visited the Hakka Carnival at the Yimin Temple plaza.  The following is report of the Hakka dishes available in the carnival.

Soak pure Indica rice in water for 5 days.  Grind it to a fine paste, press to remove excessive water, and roll into dough.  Use a shaping board to cut the dough into thin noodles.  Cook the noodles in boiling water for 5 minutes and it's done.  Add some syrup and ice cubes.  Or otherwise add some leek, minced pork, dried mushrooms and dried shrimps to become a different dish.

Grind Indica rice to a fine paste.  Steam until it reaches 0.2~0.4 in thickness.  Cut it into long, flat slices and quickly cook them in boiling water.  Add some deep fried scallion shreds, bean sprouts, pork shreds and shelled shrimps and it's done.  Wow, yummy!

It is a typical festival cuisine for the Hakkas.  Soak glutinous rice in water for 1 day.  Steam-cook the rice and pour it into a mortar.  Two persons take turns to pound the rice while another person rolls it constantly to mix more evenly.  After pounding, break it into small balls.  Place the glutinous rice balls on a layer of sugar or peanut powder in a dish.  Use chopsticks to cut the rice balls into small pieces and eat with the seasoning powder.  In early times, poor Hakkas villagers always served glutinous rice balls before the main courses in a banquet.  The sticky rice balls created a stuffed feeling and consequently reduced the consumption of other foods.  The custom means a lot to the thrifty Hakkas.

A red rice cake is also called a red turtle cake because of its pattern.  It has filling made from mashed sweet beans, peanut powder or mashed red beans.  Hakka families in an auspicious occasion, especially the birth of a newborn baby boy, will make at least one catty of red rice cakes to show their gratitude to heaven.  Usually it takes place on lunar October 15 of the year.  The celebrating families offer sacrifices to the Jade Emperor and distribute red rice cakes to their neighbors to share the joy.

The rice sponge cake symbolizes prosperity.  It is also a typical Hakka festival food.  Add baking powder to a rice paste to make it rise.  Steam-cook until the top of paste cracks and looks like a lotus blossom that symbolizes wealth and abundance.

Moxa is believed to be capable of relieving fever and avoiding evil spirits.  Therefore, the moxa rice bun is a necessary item for Tomb Festival.  Mix one part glutinous rice with one part Indica rice.  Grind to a fine paste and press to remove excessive water.  Add moxa leaves and roll.  For the skin to taste sweeter, add some sugar.  The ingredients for sweet filling are mashed red beans while those for salty filling consist of turnip slices and pork shreds.

 Traditionally-made Wine：

The process of traditionally-made wine is as follows: husked brown rice -> steam-cook -> mix yeast -> pour into a pot -> saccharification -> fermentation -> distillation -> original flavored rice wine, pleasantly fragrant and smooth to the taste.

        As many Hakkas families settle around Yimin Temple, there are a few Hakka restaurants near Wo Lung Road and Cheng Chung Road.  A-feng Hakka Restaurant is one of the most authentic Hakka restaurants.  The following is an introduction to the restaurant's specialty dishes.

Cut an entire cabbage or wax gourd into a few pieces.  Simmer them in stock until they taste a bit sweet.

Crisp pig's intestines are an exceptional match with refreshing ginger slices.  The just-right vinegar sourness and red hot chili make the dish more delicious and alluring.

Stir-fried Duck's Tongue Grass – An Ideal and Delicious Wild Vegetable：

Originating from Mei Nung, duck's tongue grass used to be a wild vegetable grown by farmland and collected by farmers to feed their ducks.  Add some ginger slices, cordia dichotoma forst and broad bean paste to stir-fry with duck's tongue grass.  It is very delicious.

Healthy Nymphoides Hydrophylla：

Nymphoides hydrophylla used to be an aquatic plant found in the unpolluted Cheng Cheng Lake in Mei Nung.  In recent years, due to water pollution, most farmers have grown it in their backyards.  Without the hazard of pesticides, it is a healthy vegetable.  Its cooking method is similar to that of duck's tongue grass.

Sweet and Sour Stir-fried Pineapple With Edible Tree Fungi：

The slightly sour pineapple makes a perfect match with crisp edible tree fungi.  To please the eye and appetite, add some red hot chili and stir-fry.

Invigorating Stir-fried Basil With Eggs：

The fragrant basil is capable of invigorating the body.  Stir-fry with salty dried turnip and eggs to make a delicious dish.

Delicately-baked Salted Pork：

Pickle pork belly in special Chinese medicines and pepper for 1 week.  Steam, roast and then slice to serve with garlic shoots.  For health care purpose, this dish no longer tastes as salty as it used to be.

Bitter Gourd With Salted Eggs – A Symbol of the Hakka People's Nature：

Enduring bitterness and working diligently are the nature of the Hakkas.  The dish of bitter gourd with salted eggs mixes these two features.  Both ordinary bitter gourd and wild bitter gourd are suitable for making this dish and taste delicious in all seasons.

Hakka-style Stir-fry – Another Bowl of Rice, Please：

The ingredients of this famous Hakka dish include pork belly, dried squid shreds, dried bean curd and refreshing celery.  It makes a perfect match with cooked rice.

Yummy Spiced Pig's Knuckles：

Pig's knuckles stewed for nearly 3 hours make an exquisite dish.

Source of text：Provided by A Feng Hakka Restaurant.

Source of pictures：Photographed by I-dunno team members.