An Ode to Xiaowei Yansu Ji's Finger Foods

In Taiwan, snacking culture is a big deal. Small bites prevail over the meal. Street stalls and hole-in-the-wall joints outnumber established restaurants by a great margin. Nearly every passerby clutches an oil-spotted brown paper bag and thin wooden skewer.

In other words, to call Xiaowei Yansu Ji a Taiwanese snack shop should by no means prompt you to underestimate the food.

Popcorn chicken (RMB 15) comes out piping hot, with a moist interior and crisp breaded exterior, brightened by spindly strands of deep green basil and doused liberally with five-spice powder, white pepper, salt and a touch of sweetness. White broccoli with basil (RMB 10) and green beans (RMB 10) come in for this breaded-then-deep-fried treatment as well. That same peppery seasoning gets sprinkled on roasted corn (RMB 10). Proprietor Mark Wang uses a variety called shuiguo yumi (水果玉米), or “fruit corn,” and the deep-yellow kernels certainly hit some high sugar notes.

In the night markets of Taiwan, zhuxue gao (pig’s blood mixed with glutinous rice and then fried) is sold in massive bars on skewers. Xiaowei takes a less hedonistic approach, serving up bite-sized cubes (RMB 15). These are true delights, rich and earthy in flavor.

Another Taiwanese specialty is tianbula (甜不辣 “sweet not hot”), which may sound like tempura but is more similar to oden. At Taipei snack stalls, fish paste cakes pressed into different forms are jumbled with daikon and tofu, and a thick brown sauce of chilli paste, miso, sugar and soy sauce pulls it all together. Xiaowei’s version skips the heavy sauce, lightly frying strips of fish cake.

With menu items priced strictly between RMB 10-15, Xiaowei Yansu Ji is ready to fulfill all our snacking needs – a quick workday lunch at Guomao, a Sunday afternoon snack to break up a day of retail therapy at Chaoyangmen or a welcome alternative to the jianbing grease of backstreet Sanlitun.

Xiaowei Yansu Ji 小尾盐酥鸡 1) Daily noon-11pm. Sanlitun Houjie,
Chaoyang District (6415 4861); 2) Mon-Sat noon-8pm. B1/F, Yintai Center (near Guomao subway Exit C), 2 Jianguomenwai Dajie, Chaoyang District (no tel); 3) Daily 10am-10pm. B1/F (near movie theater), U-Town Shopping Center, 2 Sanfeng Beili, Chaoyangmenwai Dajie, Chaoyang District (no tel) 1）朝阳区三里屯后街; 2)朝阳区建国门 外大街2 银泰中心地下１层(近国贸地铁 C); 3) 朝阳区三丰北里2号楼悠唐生活 广场地下１层(近博纳国际影城)

Photo: Sui