Bao Yuan Ji spent two years creating Taichung’s “Yuan Ji Taiwanese Cuisine”. The Michelin-starred chef presented classic Taiwanese cuisine and rare Tibetan teas to show his attachment to the taste of his hometown | Vogue Taiwan

The hemp rope that symbolizes the close connection between family members creates a beautiful screen, and the rattan wall is inspired by tea leaves. Some of the art works on the wall come from the chairman’s collection, and some of the paintings feature Taichung cityscapes created by foreign artists. Every element was extracted from the life experience and hobbies of the founder of Baoyuanji, gradually outlining the appearance of “home”. Finally, Lillian Wu chose Aqua Creations, an Israeli lighting brand that emphasizes nature and craftsmanship, and covered it with translucent The hand-dyed silk creates a warm light that evokes nostalgia for hometown and family.

“Yuan Ji. Taiwanese Cuisine” dining area on the first floor.

“Yuan Ji. Taiwanese Cuisine” dining area on the second floor.

“Yuan Ji. Taiwanese Cuisine” private room.

► Taichung “Yuanji. Taiwanese Cuisine” opening highlight #02 Sort out the genres of Taiwanese cuisine and integrate them into the taste memories of hometown

Under the theme of “home”, the cuisine of “Yuan Ji Taiwan Cuisine” combines the hometown flavor (special food and ingredients of Lukang, Changhua) that Bao Yuan Ji General Manager Cai Minglun is most fond of, and the diverse styles and techniques of Taiwanese cuisine over the past 400 years. ⸺Including the cross-regional and cross-border fusion of flavors from Guangdong, Fujian, and Japan in the early days of the development of Taiwanese cuisine; the Beitou gentleman’s banquet during the Japanese colonial period, which added the spirit of pursuing perfection in Japanese cuisine; the table culture that took shape in the 1970s In addition to satisfying the appetite, more importantly, the purposeful act of sharing meals is to establish social connections and shared memories. It is also an important puzzle that shapes Taiwanese cuisine. The person who sorted out many clues to form the exclusive style of the Yuan Dynasty is the leader who once led Taipei Chef Lin Juwei has won two Michelin stars for four consecutive years at “Invitation House”.

Cai Ming, general manager of Bao Yuan Ji, and Lin Juwei, the chef who leads the “Yuan Ji. Taiwanese Cuisine” cooking team.

Chef Lin Juwei is well versed in Taiwan’s seasonal ingredients and is good at bringing out the true qualities of the ingredients with appropriate cooking techniques and precise seasoning. In the two years since he joined “Yuan Ji Taiwan Cuisine”, he and his team have jointly developed hundreds of dishes. , there were more than 60 dishes finally presented on the menu.

Speaking of the characteristics of “Yuan Ji Taiwan Cuisine”, Chef Lin Juwei emphasized that although many dishes are inspired by the general manager’s hometown flavor and childhood memories, there are also common dishes familiar to Chinese people, but when presented on the Yuan Ji table, in addition to using The biggest difference between the best ingredients is the pursuit of details. “Working hard in places that most people can’t see, and precise control of details, are the keys to making Yuanji’s cuisine go one step further in terms of flavors that people are familiar with. “

► Taichung “Yuan Ji Taiwan Cuisine” opening highlight #03 gives new twists to classic dishes, and the details make the difference

The appetizer “Sweet Garlic Xishi Tongue” is Lukang’s specialty seafood, with a delicate and crisp texture, fresh and appetizing; the “Chen Pu Fish Maw Stewed Chicken Soup” is brewed with cooked Pu’er tea collected by Yuan Ji, and the dark soup looks rich. The taste is light yet layered; one of the representative hand-made dishes, “Beigang Sesame Oil and Ginger Lamb Belly” uses mutton from Changhua and is cooked with sesame oil and ginger sauce commonly used for winter nourishment in Taiwan, giving the mutton dishes a new twist; “Golden Date Smoke” “Smoked Chilean Sea Bass” uses longan wood from Taichung Dakeng to smoke the fish. It is eaten plain first, and then dipped in special golden date mayonnaise or special garlic powder. The three flavors are equally exciting; the finale of Taiwanese fried rice noodles is a commonplace for ordinary people. Delicious food, but as Chef Lin Juwei emphasized before, the Yuanji team has worked particularly hard on stir-fried shrimps, and it is this kind of dedication that can create a bowl of soul-stirring Taiwanese flavor.

The finishing dish “Lukang Noodle Tea with Almond Dew” is also one of Yuan Ji’s representative dishes recommended by Chef Lin Juwei. He tried to create different versions of Yuan Ji General Manager’s favorite noodle tea when he was a child, and later discovered that it is compatible with almond dew. The best, so we developed a combination of flour tea paste as the bottom layer and almond milk as the top layer, paired with homemade rice fragrant sticks to replace the function of fried dough sticks. When they are independent, they have simple and simple flavors. After mixing and adding, the aroma and layers are more intense, making this Tao Dessert not only brings memories, but also brings suspense that makes you want to go back and relive it again.