[#台味甜蜜蜜 / The Sweet Taste of Taiwan] 老闆，來一碗滷肉飯！/ Taiwan in a bowl: Lu Rou Fan (English below)
說到法式甜點的 #台灣味，怎麼能不提萬華的 菓實日？
前幾年就為菓實日將台灣傳統文化融入法式甜點的創意心折，如果說巴黎有日式銅鑼燒店 Pâtisserie TOMO 作為日法甜點水乳交融之作的代表，（參見 #法式甜點學 p.156, 241, 336, 337），菓實日便似乎象徵著法式甜點真正能在台灣生根、與在地庶民文化結合開出的芳草奇卉。TOMO 以法式甜點技法重新詮釋日式甜點，外型融入了銅鑼燒與法式經典（如 Paris-Tokyo、檸檬塔、反轉蘋果塔、日本威士忌聖托佩塔等）、口味也兼有兩者之長；菓實日則不受限於單一類型糕點，代表作「紅龜」與「滷肉飯」大膽地用法式蛋糕（entremets）重新詮釋了他們心目中的台味與台灣精神。
數年前有幸品嚐過「紅龜」，一直對酒釀慕斯加紅豆餡既新奇又傳統的搭配念念不忘。這次趁著留在台灣的時間，又去拜訪了他們幾次，還剛好遇到他們在籌備線上課程期間，有幸飽覽饅頭主廚的精彩作品，並品嚐了這碗讓我一直好奇不已的「滷肉飯」。「滷肉飯」不僅有著法式甜點繁複多層的特質，還非常奇妙地揉合了台味無比的混搭創意：以蜜漬地瓜丁加焦糖醬模擬了滷肉飯的靈魂元素——滷肉與滷汁、米香白巧克力薄殼包裹著八角慕斯則成了晶瑩的米飯，最妙的是一匙舀起，還會意外地發現碗底的驚喜：肉鬆加自製酥菠蘿（奶酥、crumble）和生乳酪蛋糕體，最上方點上一片鮮綠的香菜，就變成了一碗技法完全是法式、但風味組合與精神卻100%台味的滷肉飯造型甜點。
前兩個禮拜我提到「是否有 #台灣神髓？」、「什麼是台灣神髓？」、「台灣神髓是否能被表現出來、又該怎麼表現？」，而菓實日的「滷肉飯」幾乎是不偏不倚地回答了這些問題。所有曾經必須對外國友人介紹台灣飲食的朋友，都會知道「台灣味」、「台菜」非常難以定義與畫出界線，因為台灣就是一個充滿了移民的島嶼、乘載了各種不同文化混雜的歷史，尋求「純粹的」台味很難不落入徒勞無功的下場。事實上台灣的活力，確實也來自於那種能將不同文化輕鬆且毫不做作地混搭、交融的自在。菓實日的「滷肉飯」恰恰體現了這種看似大膽奔放、但成果無比協調的餘裕。多達八層，且有香菜、地瓜、八角、肉鬆等台灣常見的料理元素，被妥貼地收納在這個「法式蛋糕」中。或許你無法一口氣分辨出每一種元素與層次，但它們卻如此完滿、歡欣地在嘴裡融合在一起，讓人不由得脫口而出「好吃」！哎呀，這不正是「台灣」和「台灣神髓」嗎？
老闆，再來一碗啦！
📌 菓實日目前正在休息準備下一步計畫中，門市並未對外營業。饅頭主廚與先生韞豐正在忙著籌備他們的線上課程，也有一些與桃園 雙口呂 Siang kháu Lū 文化廚房合作的實體教學。接下來會有小量對外販售的計畫，關心他們動態的朋友記得追蹤菓實日的粉絲頁；好奇這些台味甜點如何設計、製作，也可以了解他們傾囊相授的線上課程！https://tinyurl.com/y8cchelc
🔖 延伸閱讀：
#Ying的台味甜蜜蜜 系列
台灣味、台灣神髓究竟是什麼？https://tinyurl.com/y7ewoon4
從「亞洲甜點在巴黎」思考何謂台灣味：https://tinyurl.com/y36tprn8
亞洲甜點在巴黎的還魂與新生－ Café Lai'Tcha 與 Fu Castella：https://tinyurl.com/y3pcspn5
👉🏻👉🏻 更多 #台北甜點店 影音，記得來 Instagram 找我玩：https://tinyurl.com/yb3a783m
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Kajitsu, a hidden treasure in Taipei’s Wanhua district, is a little French pastry shop that makes Taiwan-inspired pastries. Chef Mantou transforms traditional festive pastry “Âng-ku-kóe” and “Lu Rou Fan”, Taiwan’s national dish, into French entremets. It is not unusual that food adapts to local tastes when it travel overseas. It takes place in different forms. Take French pastries for instance, adding local ingredients in the classics is one way. For example, Japanese chefs may use yuzu to replace lemon when making their tarte au citron. Employing foreign skills to revisit or transform one’s traditions is another. Pâtisserie TOMO in Paris that combines Dorayaki and classic French pastries serves one of the best examples. In Taiwan, Kajitsu is another interesting case.
“Âng-ku-kóe”, “red tortoise cake”, used to be the most popular local festive pastry in old times. It’s shaped as a turtle and coloured in red (sometimes in green) since turtles are a symbol of longevity, fortune, and fame in Taiwan. Red is also the lucky color here. In Kajitsu, chef Mantou tries to transform this traditional delight into a French entremets. She keeps the sweet red bean paste in the filling and matches it with sweet rice wine mousse to modernise the traditional taste. “Lu Rou Fan”, braised pork rice, one of the most beloved dishes that can be seen everywhere in Taiwan, is the chef’s another brilliant creation. Mantou takes sweet potato confit and caramel sauce to create a “trompe l’œil” of the famed braised pork and its sauce, star anise mousse hints the indispensable spice during the braising, the rice crispy and white chocolate coating shape the bowl of rice, and the unusual combination of pork floss and cheesecake gives a little surprise beneath. A refreshing coriander leave on top takes you to the humid summer of Taiwan instantly. Lots of seemingly conflicting ingredients are grouped together, resulting in, however, an incredible harmony. It is a fascinating dessert that can only be created by a Taiwanese pastry chef as it parallels Taiwan’s history and reflects its source of energy: immigrants with diverse origins, cultures and values cohabit and learn to evolve together.
As Kajitsu’s pastries are deeply rooted in the everyday life of Taiwan, there are also other intriguing creations such as petits fours with motifs of old tiles and the sweet “Doom crackers” inspired by the role of the god ruling the Qing Shan Temple in Wanhua district.
Click on the photos and have a closer look!
🔖 Read more on this topic
What is the taste of Taiwan? What is the spirit of Taiwan? https://tinyurl.com/y7ewoon4
Asian pastries in Paris part 1: https://tinyurl.com/y36tprn8
Asian pastries in Paris part 2 - Café Lai'Tcha & Fu Castella: https://tinyurl.com/y3pcspn5
👉🏻👉🏻 Don't miss out my "Taipei pastry shops" featured story on Instagram: https://tinyurl.com/yb3a783m
#yingspastryguide #yingc #taiwan #tasteoftaiwan #菓實日
