Fish noodle soup right here in the heart of Yonghe has over 40 years of history behind it. Spanish mackerel is one of those overlooked fish when looking for a baked or pan fried delicacy. But when it is coated in batter and deep fried, then paired with a spicy sauce like the one below, it’s top dollar, in my book.
This vendor specializes in the thick soup known as 羹 gēng. The idea behind this style of fish noodle soup is that cornstarch is used to make the soup thicker in consistency, adding to the shiny look and almost silken texture of the broth. It doesn’t impart flavour in any way at all, that comes from whatever the vendor chooses to focus on for the soup base.
This vendor focuses their menu on 3 types of soup:
- 紅燒土魠魚焿 – hóng shāo tǔ tuō yú gēng
- This type of fish noodle soup is the spanish mackerel marinated in a specific sauce, then coated with a batter before being deep fried and added to a thickened soup.
- 赤肉焿 – chì ròu gēng
- This type of soup is quite common around Taiwan, boiling strips of a meat paste (usually pork), then adding them to a thickened soup.
- 沙茶魷魚焿 – shā chá yóu yú gēng
- Using a satay sauce, fresh squid is boiled and added to a thickened fish noodle soup
Basically, you choose the soup base you would like, then choose whether or not to add noodles to it.
土魠魚羹油麵 Tǔ tuō yú gēng yóu miàn
Deep fried fish with noodles and soup
$75
The noodles in this picture are known as 油麵 yóu miàn – oily noodles. The direct translation makes them sound disgusting, but they aren’t oily at all, my guess is that oil is just one of the ingredients in the noodle mixture when it’s being created.
This is my standard order when I go here for my fish noodle soup craving. The satay sauce gives it a nice twist of flavour, the beansprouts add little pops of freshness, the noodles are great, and the deep fried fish is amazing.
土魠魚盤 tǔ tuō yú pán
Portion of deep fried fish balls
$75
I’m not exaggerating here, I always get an extra plate of the deep fried fish, because it is just that good. It’s even better when paired with their signature chilli sauce. The delicate nature of the fish and the thin, yet crispy, batter is just spot on.
沙茶魷魚米粉 shā chá yóu yú mǐ fěn
Squid soup with rice noodles and satay sauce
$70
This is definitely a little more delicate than the deep fried fish balls and the thicker style of noodles, but no less tasty at all. The fish noodle soup base is relatively similar across all dishes, but the squid adds the delicate nature that is so welcoming in this dish. The rice noodles are also much less filling than the noodles in the first dish shown, so this could be classed as a ‘lighter option’, maybe? If you don’t fancy any noodles, you can just get the thick soup instead.
The bottom line
If you were ever going to venture out of Taipei and delve into Yonghe (and I really think you should), then this fish noodle soup should be up there on your list of things to eat. Make sure to get the extra portion of deep fried fish on the side. You would feel really happy when you leave.
Thick soup not your thing, but still want some delicious soup? Check out Wanhua pickled melon soup 小王煮瓜 or even this Vietnamese tomato based Pho.