Its distinctive folk traditions and rich cultural depth give Taiwan an expansive culinary landscape that scintillates the taste buds and nourishes fond memories of this truly exceptional island. The iSee Taiwan “Quest for Unique Culinary Stories” campaign is helping lift the veil on Taiwan’s unique culinary culture. Following on from the DonAmigo promotional campaign in 2016, Taiwan’s tasty Guabao became the focus of 2017.

Emotive and interesting stories about Guabao were collected in order to pique international gastronomic curiosities. Resulting in the creation of a culinary map, that highlighted the variety of delicious Guabao specialties available across the nation.

The iSee Taiwan Foundation research traced the history of the Guabao in Taiwan as far back as 1927, when contemporary social commentator Huang Wang-Cheng noted that Taiwanese enjoyed eating “tiger bites pig” sandwiches during traditional end-of-year dinners before Chinese New Year. While this delicacy is known to have originated in Quanzhou, China, the traditions of eating Guabao before the start of the New Year and of calling them “tiger bites pig” are both unique to Taiwan.

Today the Guabao is deliciously tied to traditional festivals and local culture throughout Taiwan. Its outer bun resembles a purse or, from the side, like the mouth of a hungry tiger, while the inner pocket is stuffed with fatty pork, pickled vegetables, crushed peanuts, and fresh coriander. With a bit of imagination, the whole presentation looks like a tiger munching down on pork, thus the source of its “tiger bites pig” and “good fortune in hand” monikers. 

This year’s Quest for Unique Culinary Stories campaign received 554 illustrated and written stories and 127 photo entries. After careful vetting and review, by an officially convened panel of experts, 8 Best of Show Illustrated / Written Stories and 2 Best of Show Photo Stories were selected.

The plethora of submissions reveal how deeply rooted the Guabao is in the everyday experience of the Taiwanese. It also shows how this savory delight has evolved and morphed over the generations, with changes to the shape of the bun and a proliferation in recipes and ingredients used to make the filling.

One of the award-winning stories was related to the author’s childhood association of Guabao with baseball. “Coach told us that our mitts were shaped like a Guabao bun. He said that if we didn’t falter and that as long as we used our mitts to catch baseballs during play, with the same tenacity that tigers “bite the pig”, we’d surely win the championship next year. We ate our Guabao as tears streamed down our cheeks. It was the first time I’d ever truly tasted ‘hope’.”

Another entry, a Canadian – Amis couple, won the competition with a delightfully innovative, romantic fusion of indigenous Amis and Western culinary elements in their mountain pepper and cheese sauce Guabao.

Looking to add significant new marketing momentum to the Taiwan Guabao, the iSee Taiwan Foundation invited 9 Online Celebrity Foodies from Japan, Singapore, and Malaysia for a Guabao themed cultural tour of Yunlin County, the source of most Guabao ingredients, from January 31^st to February 2^nd.

Yunlin is famous for its “happy pigs” not only do they regularly dine on yoghurt but also grow up listening to Mozart. The facilities also include a solar-powered meat processing plant and cultural-education hall that is open to visitors. In addition, the group visited a century-old, handmade black-bean soy sauce factory and enjoyed sampling the handcrafted goodness.

The tour finale was, of course, a hands-on Guabao experience activity. The foundation held the Guabao Goes Global Banquet on February 1^st, the traditional day for end-of-year dinners. A delightfully creative array of Guabao ingredients made their way to the tables, including 5 different types of buns and 11 different fillings, letting guests build their own, unique Guabao creation. The Mickey Mouse-shaped “Mickey Guabao” as well as a bear-paw-shaped Guabao bun turned out to be the stars of the evening. The event was a visible success for the Online Celebrity Foodies and the organizers alike.

Japan, Singapore, and Malaysia all have dishes similar to Taiwan’s Guabao. Maureen, founder of the Singapore foodie website Miss Tam Chiak shared that “I’ve been to Taiwan many times and have had Guabao before. But only now after this cultural tour do I appreciate what I’ve been eating is more than just ‘Guabao’. I’ve been dining on culture!” Akimoto Erina from Japan remarked, “I was surprised to find the napkin at my place at the banquet table embroidered with my name. … I am so impressed with the foundation’s efforts.”

Japan’s Ishii Mikiko noted that “I would still be in the dark about the history of the Guabao if I hadn’t taken this trip. There’s an intricate backstory to the Guabao … when to eat it, how to eat it … I hope to introduce what I’ve learned on this trip to my friends back in Japan to help them know Taiwan better.

After returning home, the 9 Online Celebrity Foodies produced two videos and 10 articles introducing their Guabao themed Taiwan experiences. Thus a wider audience outside Taiwan were exposed and educated on Taiwan’s cultural food traditions. The introduction to the subtle elegance of Guabao, breathed gastronomic life into familiar, comforting flavors.

Please visit the following websites for more activity news and information: http://istdiscovery.iseetaiwan.org/2017guabao/