October 2024 Shoal Menu
Autumn typhoons are slowly arriving, and the body feels an instant change of season; late autumn shifts from warm dryness to cool dryness. The rock sugar-stewed pears are finally nearing their end; with Cold Dew approaching, it's time to make pomelo tea.
October operating hours: Lunch and dinner are served on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays; on Tuesdays and Fridays, only dinner is served. Weekend afternoon tea is temporarily unavailable. Closed on Mondays. When visiting Shoal 2.0, please make a reservation and pay attention to our operating hours. We may close irregularly, so please do not come in vain.
You can make reservations by sending a private message to our page; we will reply during our free time. If you prefer not to use digital tools, please call between 14:30 and 16:30 to make a reservation by phone. For reservations not for the current meal period, please avoid calling during serving hours; it's difficult to handle everything properly when we're in a rush.
| October 2024 Menu |
| This translation is provided by ChatGPT and cannot guarantee complete accuracy. Please refer to the original Chinese menu for detailed information. |
Wind-Cured Chicken
NT$200
A Shoal classic, synonymous with the restaurant's culinary history and craftsmanship. "Wind" refers to an ancient method of preserving food before modern refrigeration—marinating and hanging it outdoors during the cold, windy days of winter to capture rich and abundant flavors. The sweetness of the chicken, the saltiness of sea salt, and the fragrant numbness of Sichuan pepper overlap in layers. The intense yet fresh Sichuan pepper salt enhances without overpowering. Stir-frying the salt elevates the spice's aroma; salting by hand determines the perfect flavor. Steaming preserves the tender texture and original taste, using a bamboo steamer passed down for three generations and meticulously maintained over the years by master craftsman Huang Fu-Xing from Lucao, Chiayi. This complex and time-consuming process infuses deep flavors, making it a masterpiece of culinary artistry.
Spicy Kidney Slices
NT$250
Preparing offal requires exceptional knife skills, especially for kidneys. A flat knife glides over curved surfaces to remove the renal glands. When cutting the kidney into a flower pattern, one must hold their breath and control the depth at halfway; too swift, and it severs. Served with blanched jicama in Sichuan pepper salt water, and dressed with a sauce blending sesame paste and spicy peppercorn sauce, creating a unique flavor that's salty, sweet, numbing, spicy, sour, fresh, and aromatic. The sauce is poured over the kidney slices, resembling wing-like patterns. Recipe referenced from Zeng Xiu-Bao's The Chef at Home.
Drunken Gizzards and Hearts
NT$140
Amber-colored huangjiu exudes the fragrant aroma of rice wine. Using pure wine marinade without adding broth or diluting, seasoned with sea salt and huangjiu to achieve robust simplicity. Chicken gizzards and hearts are soaked to be both tender and chewy, creating a genuinely rich and mellow flavor.
Four Delights Wheat Gluten
NT$230
A recreation of a family banquet dish by Ye Xin-Qing, founder of Yongfu House—a symbol of culinary nobility in the 70s. Shoal's close associate, Mrs. Ye Lin Yue-Ying, provided the family recipe. Unlike common methods that tear raw wheat gluten into small pieces for better flavor absorption, we retain its complete square shape. We select black winter mushrooms and seasonal fresh bamboo shoots, lily flowers, and cloud ear fungus, meticulously removing stems despite the labor. "Roast" here implies "braising"; slow cooking over low heat to let flavors infuse and reduce the sauce. Time and precise heat control are the essence of braising, bringing out the sweetness of mountain vegetables and subtly hiding the umami of scallops—all absorbed by a piece of wheat gluten, fully showcasing the subtle flavors of the cuisine.
Braised Dried Tofu
NT$150
We choose the famous Fengyuan flavored dried tofu from the legendary soybean revolution brand. Made with imported, non-GMO, food-grade soybeans naturally bred under contract in the U.S., using tenfold filtered pure water, soaked at low temperature, and first-pressed soy milk. The tofu is formed by coagulation, wrapped and shaped manually with cloth, with no artificial colors or additives. Marinated in the rich and fragrant Shoal's cured meat broth, which has the fatty sweetness of soaked pork belly, combined with the elegant aroma of Ruichun original soy sauce—a century-old pure-brewed brand from Xiluo. The tofu absorbs the fragrant and mellow marinade, with rich soybean and soy sauce flavors. Thinly sliced dried tofu, stained with a tea-brown sauce color, has a soft and tender texture, moist and sweet, accentuated with Shoal's red oil.
Lemon Century Egg
NT$185
Using award-winning, lead-free herbal century eggs produced by exemplary farmer Su Qing-fa from Tainan. The duck eggs come from ducks raised in low-density conditions, with a 90% egg-laying rate, fed on cornmeal, soybean meal, and probiotics. Coated in a mixture of red soil, acacia, plantain, banyan aerial roots, wild grapes, and lemongrass, and aged for a month, these century eggs are clean and free of off-flavors. The egg white is a deep black, and the yolk is as molten as lava. Diced tomatoes and onions, mixed with celery, cilantro, and minced garlic, are tossed in a light and translucent Yongxing soy sauce, and grated lemon zest is added for a refreshing and appetizing flavor.
Chilled Chayote with Fermented Bean Curd
NT$150
Using the famous Kun Chang Hang sesame oil fermented bean curd, we chill and mix it with the crisp and sweet chayote. Made with a half-century-old mucor fungus strain, following a traditional two-stage fermentation method. First, tofu is fermented with Sichuan pepper and sorghum wine in clay jars for 90 days until it becomes creamy and flavorful. Then, the tofu cubes are placed in glass jars with sesame oil and chili for a second fermentation, enriching the layers of flavor. Salty, sweet, and fresh, with a slight spiciness that lingers—it's a limited handmade product passed down through three generations, capturing the authentic taste of Anhui hometown. Chayote, commonly known as Buddha's palm squash, is pale green and humble with strong vitality. Introduced to Taiwan during the Japanese occupation, "chayote" refers to the indigenous people of ancient southern Kyushu in Japan, and the vine was one of their main crops. Chayote shoots are commonly known as dragon whisker vegetables.
Red Yeast Roasted Pork
NT$210
Shoal's homemade red yeast and Ruichun original soy sauce's pure-brewed flavor are used to marinate premium pork belly with interlaced fat and lean meat. The red yeast imparts a rich aroma and vibrant red color. Wrapped with various spices like star anise, cinnamon, clove, Sichuan pepper, fennel, and licorice, the complex layers of spiciness blend with the pure soy sauce flavor, rich and penetrating. Slowly roasted to perfection, the meat juices are savory and aromatic, and the meat is tender and enticing. Served with pickled vegetables to balance the richness, it's perfect over fragrant taro-flavored rice or as a delightful accompaniment to drinks. The dish requires 25 minutes in the oven; good food is worth the wait.
Concubine's Beef
NT$330
An elaborate banquet dish from Hunan cuisine as recorded in Fu Pei-Mei's cookbook. The sweet and sourness of tomatoes and the root sweetness of carrots are braised to bring out a rich, alluring flavor reminiscent of a concubine's charm. Using Taiwanese beef for assured quality and sweet meat flavor as the base. Beef short ribs are cut into pieces and sautéed with plenty of scallions, ginger, and star anise. Gangshan Mingde's pure-brewed spicy bean paste and sweet flour paste are incorporated. Essential to red-braising is soy sauce, starting with the Daisho era during Japanese occupation—Changhua Shetou's Xinhechun soy sauce, double-fermented and dry-aged, suitable for substantial ingredients with deep, mellow, and sweet aftertaste, collaborating with the century-old flavor of Xiluo's Ruichun original soy sauce to achieve the great work of red-braising. Generous amounts of fresh tomatoes are added and braised until soft but not mushy, rich and flavorful.
Pan-Fried Stuffed Perch
NT$265
The technique of pan-frying originated in Shandong and is commonly used in northern cuisines. Fillets of perch are butterflied and stuffed with minced pork filling, coated with flour and egg batter, first fried until crispy outside and soft inside to release the aroma, then braised with scallions, ginger, and red and yellow peppers to enhance the color and flavor, bringing out the delicious taste of both seafood and meat. The perch is farmed in Pingtung with HACCP and ISO certifications to avoid contamination risks during processing. Before processing, the fish are depurated in holding ponds, then selected, cut, vacuum-packed under low temperature and low bacteria conditions, and kept fresh at -18℃ throughout logistics.
Sausage with Tomatoes and Clams
NT$180
We have commissioned Gui Lai Biao, a Hunan cured meat brand with a 60-year history that only operates in winter after the northeast winds have fully blown, strictly adhering to traditional hometown flavors. Their specially crafted sausage recipe contains no MSG or preservatives. With a ratio of 30% fat to 70% lean meat, the meat is hand-cut into cubes to ensure texture and juiciness, avoiding machine processing. The sausages are stuffed into pure pork intestines, with lean meat from the pig's hind legs. The thick, reddish-brown sausages are slowly stir-fried over low heat to release the sweet aroma of the meat, then stir-fried with tomatoes, mushrooms, and clams for a dish full of rich flavors.
Pickled Bamboo Shoots and Minced Chicken Stir-Fried Eggs
NT$145
Zhushan pickled bamboo shoots, amber in color, have a sour and fragrant taste that stimulates the appetite and are sweet and refreshing. This unique flavor from the region represents Taiwan's pickled delicacies. Chicken breast is minced into a paste and marinated for depth of flavor. We select organic free-range eggs from Green Life Farm in Yongjing, Changhua. The eggs are proud and rich, bursting with aroma in your mouth. Stir-frying eggs requires high heat, with softness as the highest guiding principle; Little Crab likens it to a medium-rare filet mignon. The fluffy egg dish is sprinkled with minced garlic chives; the fermented aroma, soy sauce fragrance, and mellow taste make it appealing even when you have no appetite.
Mushrooms with White Water Snowflake
NT$140
A classic vegetarian dish from "Shoal's Bento for Zheng Xinzhe." White water snowflake, also known as the plant "xingcai" mentioned in the poem "Guan Ju" from the Book of Songs, is native to Zhongzun Pond in Meinong. It was a wild vegetable that saved people during summer food shortages on Hakka village tables. Hakka farmers domesticated it, turning it into a new economic crop in Meinong after the tobacco era. Zhong Yongfeng and Lin Shengxiang composed the rural epic "Wild Lotus Leaves the Village" about it. Shoal participated in the wrongful conviction rescue of the Zheng Xinzhe case, providing regular visits, psychological support, and transitional placement, personally delivering meals to the detention center continuously for three years. Zheng Xinzhe was acquitted on November 21, 2017.
Fragrant Sweet Potato Leaves
NT$120
Using organic sweet potato leaves from small farmers in Xinshe, with upright stems and vibrant vitality. We select Yuanxing soy sauce from Huatan, Changhua, brewed twice using mixed-bean koji, combining the freshness of soybeans and the sweetness of yellow-hulled black soybeans. Instead of using brine from wet fermentation, we use the oil from the bottom of the pot to brew the sauce, doubling the fermentation time and concentration, achieving rich flavor through layered blending. Shoal refines its own pure lard, frying aromatic pork cracklings and crispy shallots. This simply seasoned dish features top-quality ingredients, each a standout in its own right.
Four Ministers Soup
NT$140
Known colloquially as "Four Gods Soup," this term originates from the Japanese colonial period as recorded in the Taiwan-Japan Dictionary. Due to Taiwanese homophones, "臣" (minister) was misread as "神" (god), and the misnomer persisted. The "four ministers" refer to four herbal ingredients: Chinese yam, gorgon fruit, lotus seeds, and poria, cooked with pig tripe or intestines into a savory soup. These ministerial herbs are not medicines for curing diseases but have supportive functions. Keywords from historical herbal texts include calming the mind, stabilizing the soul, and replenishing energy to sharpen the senses. Shoal adds coix seed for spleen health and angelica for blood nourishment, using pig stomach and intestines as carriers. This herbal soup that aids digestion is a Taiwanese snack deeply rooted in everyday life, a restorative soup to heal life's various ailments.
Champion Rice
NT$20
Grown by rice champion Tian Shou-xi in Zhubei, this Taoyuan No. 3 rice has won top ten classic rice awards for two consecutive years and was named the champion rice of 2014. Its sweetness is instantly recognizable and doesn’t require much chewing for its flavor to shine. The rice grains are perfectly distinct, with an ideal balance of softness and firmness. Freshly milled and delivered, this rice is grown sustainably without the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides, with orange ladybugs often seen among the strong morning glory vines. The soil is enriched with green manure year after year, ensuring a limited but high-quality harvest.
| Shoal’s Chicken Rice |
Founder Su Wen-wen’s nostalgic tribute to her childhood and hometown. Originally made for family, it became a fan favorite during Shoal’s anniversary celebrations, with many praising it as "the best chicken rice in the world!" Ma Shi-fang calls it "unparalleled," and Feng Xiao-fei remarked, "Shoal’s chicken rice is the kind of food that could boost rice consumption." A mother's heartfelt comment sums it up best: "This is exactly the kind of chicken rice a mother wants her child to eat!"
Private Chicken Rice
Straw Raincoat Cucumber
Golden Pipa Shrimp
NT$340
Soft, fragrant rice is topped with tender, sweet chicken, drizzled with rich chicken juice and traditional black bean soy sauce, and finished with aromatic chicken oil. The first bite brings pure joy! This fragrant and smooth chicken rice, paired with a variety of exquisite side dishes, offers a homely yet refined meal that will leave nothing but empty plates.
The straw raincoat cucumber is artfully arranged in a coiled dragon shape, with precise knife cuts that enhance its crisp, refreshing flavor. A blend of soy sauce, Sichuan pepper oil, and rice vinegar offers a tangy, spicy balance to cut through the richness.
The fresh shrimp, with the last segment of the shell and tail left on, is flattened into a pipa shape, marinated, coated in egg white and sweet potato flour, and fried to a golden hue. This dish, a favorite from Su Wen-wen’s childhood, is documented in old cookbooks from the 1970s.
Mini Chicken Rice
Chrysanthemum Radish
Pig Liver Rolls
NT$190
A smaller portion of chicken rice, ideal for those cutting back on starch.
Chrysanthemum radish is delicately cut into flower-like shapes, pickled in a sweet and sour blend with hints of gardenia yellow and perilla red.
Pig liver rolls, a refined dish from the old Taiwanese aristocratic cuisine, were once a symbol of luxury due to the high price of pork liver. The liver is made into a rich, dark pâté, then wrapped in caul fat to form a roll, packed with a flavorful filling of scallions and water chestnuts to balance the richness. Fried until golden and crispy, the first bite releases a burst of fat and liver flavors, offering a satisfying and elegant two-bite portion.
| Cooling Delights |
Dual Wen Grass Tea
NT$80
Throughout history, when encountering miraculous herbs, ancient texts would often exclaim, "This is true heavenly grass." These medicinal and edible plants have become a staple of everyday life across the seasons. Each plant of resurrection grass is simmered in a clay pot, brewed into a cooling tea that dispels seasonal heat. Founder Su Wen-wen, with twenty years of study in Chinese herbal medicine, has perfected these cooling remedies, carefully crafting the formulas herself. As the saying from the Shennong Bencao Jing goes, "There is nothing useless in the world, only people who cannot make use of things."
Hemsleya Flower Tea
NT$75
The Hemsleya flowers are fried with sugar until the sugar expands into a frosty coating, preserving the flowers through traditional roasting methods. This iced tea offers a refreshing, heat-relieving experience, made from a plant commonly found in Taiwanese herbal tea recipes.
| Warming Comfort |
Longan Flower Tea
NT$70
Longan flowers are stir-fried with sugar until the sugar crystallizes into a frosty coating, preserving the flowers' unique floral and honeyed aroma. The flowers are carefully selected, with each one picked with precision, like delicate embroidery work. Through traditional roasting techniques, this tea captures the essence of the land, offering the fragrant story of the April sun shining on treetops.
Preserved Plum Fruit Tea
NT$75
Shoal’s signature preserved plums come from wild old trees in Yushan National Park, protected by the Bunun people of the Meishan tribe. These plums, ripened fully on the tree without chemical fertilizers or pesticides, are handpicked after the mountain boars have had their fill, ensuring only the ripest red-fleshed fruit. The vibrant, glossy plums are carefully deseeded by hand and preserved whole, maintaining their natural sweetness and rich, cherry-like fragrance. This naturally sweet, unadulterated ruby-red fruit shines in a hot tea, creating a drink of exquisite flavor and warmth.
| The Tipsy Quadrant |
Pomelo Brew
NT$160
"My brewing represents freedom!" states Kou Yan-ding, author of "You've Committed the Crime of Subverting Taiwan's Fruit Brewing." A single bottle can create a universe, once deeply immersed in Yilan's secluded self-brewed pomelo, before leaving Taiwan, he entrusted his precious brew to Shoal as a living testament to his existence. The brewing process is highly experimental, dissecting the pomelo's peel, vesicles, and seeds to explore the detailed flavors of brewing, a unique and astonishing experience.
| Wind-Resisting Warmth |
Sour Mandarin Tea + Mandarin Cake
NT$80
A unique Hakka tea drink, sour mandarin tea is made by repeatedly steaming and drying tea leaves stuffed into tiger-head mandarins, following the "steamed into rounds" method dating back to the Tang and Song dynasties. This rare compressed tea is used for health and wellness, with the lightness of aged tangerine peel aiding in vitality and warmth.
Shoal continues the tea-making tradition passed down from Zheng Xingze’s mother, Zheng Wang Qin-zi, who followed ancient tea-making methods. The tea blends twenty-year-old roasted tea with various herbs, following field research on Taiwanese herbal tea formulations, which often adapt to local needs. These practices honor the wisdom of traditional Chinese medicine.
The tiger-head mandarin from Miaoli’s Yuanli is grown with natural farming methods. Thick-skinned and juicy, the fruit’s sour and sweet flavor is released by opening the stem end and stuffing the cavity with tea leaves and herbs. The fruit is carefully steamed, compressed, sun-dried, fermented, and baked, undergoing nine rounds of steaming and drying. Over time, it becomes dark, firm, and shiny, embodying labor-intensive craftsmanship.
After being used in New Year offerings, these mandarins are transformed into tea, symbolizing blessings of peace, hence known as "peace tea." It takes six months to turn a single sour mandarin into sour mandarin tea, with its sweet and mellow flavor becoming richer as it ages, offering a glimpse into the wisdom of ancestral diets.
Mandarin Cake, made by preserving the whole fruit in syrup, offers a balance of sweet and spicy flavors. Mentioned in Qing dynasty records, it has become part of Taiwan’s Hakka culinary heritage, offering a nourishing, rich flavor.
Sourced from Chen Chin-feng’s Chien-yeh Farm in Hsinchu’s Emei, following traditional Hakka methods, the mandarin is scored, flattened, and cooked until it releases its juices. The fruit is then simmered with bamboo-furnace-cooked malt syrup, Shoal’s winter melon sugar, and rock sugar, forming a rich, amber-colored syrup. After resting overnight, the mandarin is baked until the skin is firm and the flesh soft, offering a complex, sweet, and tangy taste with a refreshing finish. Time transforms the mandarin peel’s sharpness into a soft sweetness.
Mint and Mandarin Tea
NT$80
As recorded in Chen Shi-duo's New Compilation of Materia Medica: "When I encountered people suffering from external afflictions and emotional distress, I advised them to drink Mint and Orange Peel Tea, which brought immediate relief. The recipe uses one qian each of mint, tea, and orange peel, steeped in boiling water and consumed in a large bowl." Mint is not only effective for dispelling wind but is also known to ease melancholy. Shoal applies this traditional recipe alongside the Mandarin Cake and Tangerine Molasses, offering a soothing remedy to alleviate life’s burdens and stresses.
Stewed Pear Juice
NT$75
According to Compendium of Materia Medica, pears are ranked second among fruits, with Li Shizhen stating, "Pears promote fluid flow and have a downward-cleansing effect." Organically grown and naturally farmed, these pears are as sweet as honey, with a crisp texture and thin skin. The whole fruit is stewed with rock sugar, with no additives, resulting in a pure, warm beverage. The pear juice is as refreshing as jade dew, capturing the essence of autumn in a sweet and nourishing drink.
Starfruit Soup
NT$90
A traditional Taiwanese drink, starfruit soup carries a deep local flavor. As recorded in Taiwanese General History, Vol. 27: Agriculture, "The fruit has five or six ridges; sour varieties are used to make candied fruit or soaked in sugar water for soup." The yellow-green star-shaped fruit is preserved in sugar, creating a translucent amber-colored broth rich in natural fruit aroma. The candied fruit ridges transform into a gentle, thirst-quenching force, soothing the throat. The starfruit is sourced from Liu Family's Starfruit Soup in Tainan, a recipe passed down for three generations over 85 years, evoking warm memories of starfruit juice stands from childhood, like a nostalgic poem in a glass.
| Supreme Desserts |
Lychee Granita
NT$165
Sourced from Jiangxia Orchard in Puzi, Chiayi, where the wild-grown Heiye lychees are allowed to fully ripen on the tree, these lychees are soft, fragrant, and bursting with sweetness. Peeled, deseeded, and blended into a refreshing granita, they leave a long-lasting floral and fruity aroma in the mouth. After tasting the lychee granita for the seventh time, Ms. Da Nei Kang Ji remarked, "I truly felt like my soul was cleansed." This statement perfectly captures the essence and value of this dessert.
Fruit Ice | Preserved Plum
NT$100
Shaved ice topped with preserved plums, drizzled with cinnamon-scented caramelized sugar, is a beautiful and unparalleled dessert. The plums are harvested from wild trees at an elevation of 1,000 meters in the Yushan mountain range during early summer. These wild plums, cherished for their bright, sweet flavors, provide a refreshing escape from the sweltering summer heat. Shoal’s signature preserved plums are handpicked from wild old trees in Yushan National Park, meticulously deseeded by hand, and sealed with sugar syrup to preserve their natural, vibrant taste. The result is a naturally sweet, ruby-like plum, with a floral fragrance reminiscent of cherries.
Preserved Plum Cheesecake
Sun Moon Lake Assam Tea
NT$190
A harmonious blend of fruity and creamy flavors, Shoal’s preserved plum cheesecake delivers a luxurious combination of the rich sweetness of preserved plums and the indulgent smoothness of cream cheese. In Shoal’s dessert repertoire, only a cake as fragrant and full-bodied as this deserves the name cheesecake.
The preserved plums used are handpicked from wild trees growing on the cliffs along Laonong Creek in the Yushan mountain range, at an elevation of 1,000 meters. Without chemical fertilizers or pesticides, these plums are fully ripened on the tree and harvested just before they drop, their vibrant color and juicy sweetness preserved through meticulous hand-deseeding and slow cooking in molasses. The result is a naturally bold and fragrant plum with layers of intense flavors and a cherry-like aroma.
The cheesecake crust is made from local wheat flour, grown using sustainable practices by rice champion Tian Shou-xi from Zhubei. The crust perfectly complements the rich cream cheese filling, which is layered with bits of preserved plum and baked to create a seamless and unique flavor experience.
The menu at Shoal changes monthly according to seasons and festivals, designed based on the portion size and price for one person. You can decide the number of portions needed according to the number of people and appetite, and all dishes are served family-style. We accept reservations for only ten customers every thirty minutes.
