Stinky Tofu at Tang Steamboat & BBQ Restaurant, Penang
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Ever tasted the delicacy Stinky Tofu (Chao Tofu) from Taiwan?
It was an amazing steamboat dinner we had on the weekend with some friends at Tang Steamboat & BBQ Restaurant in Rangoon Road, Penang. It is a different kind of steamboat whether when it comes to choices of food and soup.
Customers can choose between the buffet and the ala carte meal. We took the ‘All You Can Eat Buffet’ at RM22 nett per person which includes a wide range of seafood, meat and side dishes for the steamboat and skewered sticks for the BBQ. Besides that, we got the chance tasting the famous Taiwanese specialty Chao Tofu.
Extra items besides the regular menu
The popular Chao Tofu is widely loved by some for its exotic taste and also turned off by others for its unbearable smell. It is deep fried, not really crunchy but almost crumbly and soft on the inside. It was served topped with chili oil and with the accompanied sour cabbage.
Chao Tofu – the love/hate affair! How about yourself?
Eaten just the way it is or with the accompanied sour cabbage
The smell which originates from the fermentation process was quite exotic to say the least. I personally quite like the taste but that can’t be said for our friends. They were gulping down water in a hurry just to get the taste out of their mouths!
An unforgettable impression for the 1st time trying out Chao Tofu!
Moving on to the main dish, the steamboat comes with a variety of soup and we went for half a pot filled with the special spicy Ma Lat soup and the other half with clear soup. You have to place your order for the ingredients as they are not laid out as in other restaurants and you won’t see people rushing for the food. Only order the amount that can be consume as wasted food will be charged to your bill.
The meal was served with their homemade sauces, chili and the black sauce. The black sauce comes with chili padi and onions while the chili dip is slightly sour and had strands of baked coriander in it.
I am quite impressed with the varieties of specialty ingredients. Who would have thought of finding minced pork and fish glue at a place like this? It is indeed creative of them to come out with such simple homestyle ingredients. The minced pork was served with an egg. We mixed it up and scooped spoonfuls of it into the pot of soup.
The other house specialty was the fish glue. It is kind of fun having to form the fish glue ourselves into rounded shapes using two spoons. I still remember my grandmother used to make this type of fish glue herself. Everyone enjoyed it, especially after it was being cooked in the Ma Lat soup! It was very fresh with a springy texture.
All of us being beef lovers took up a few plates of beef slices, cold bean curd, prawns and duck blood. The other recommended item was the baked mushroom. The soup gets thicker and more flavorful as it boils with the sweetness of all the ingredients. We added in some noodles to absorb the wonderful flavors of the soup.
Everybody having an awesome time!
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