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• Stinky tofu might be an acquired taste but...

Nanjichang nightmarket is Taipei's foodie heaven and has remained blessedly fully local in character and committed to food, glorious food and only food. There are actually a few vegetarian places here that boast of specialty steamed stinky tofu, but Jia Chou Dang is a favourite because of the other items on the menu. Apart from the variety of noodles, the little dishes of appetizers are all created with care -- the cooked celery salad with a generous sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds can certainly convert any celery hater -- and the nutty rice, topped with salty mustard greens and chopped cashew is wonderfully satisfying despite the moderate serving size. As to the steamed stinky tofu, it is flavoured with shiitake, endamame and Thai basil and comes in your chosen level of heat (from chilli). It does not demand that you think of it as a particularly nasty type of cheese, just a great source of savoury, tasty vegan protein!