Historical Cuisine Taipei Confucian Cuisine Debuts at the Confucius Temple

The new historical cuisine trend, “Taipei Confucian Cuisine,” has made its tasty debut at Taipei’s Confucius Temple. The Taipei City Government invited celebrated food critic Chu Chen-fan to create 10 unique dishes with distinctive features of the Taipei Confucius Temple—Taipei Confucian Cuisine—by drawing on the connections between the revered sages enshrined there and culinary traditions, integrating Confucian culture into the dishes.

Each dish of Taipei Confucian Cuisine has its own story. Take “Wen Tianxiang Chicken,” for example. Wen Tianxiang, a “sage” enshrined in the Confucius Temple, was once imprisoned in an earthen jail. Legend has it that during this time, an elderly woman who often visited him—assisted by a prison guard—prepared San Bei Ji (Three-Cup Chicken) using a clay bowl, mixing water, wine, and cooking oil, and brought it to Wen. Later, moved by his spirit, the guard began making Three-Cup Chicken every year on the anniversary of Wen’s execution to honor him. Another dish, “Kaoting’s Double Delights,” is based on amaranth, favored by Zhu Xi—one of the Twelve Philosophers—and features creative takes like steamed dumplings with amaranth and anchovy roe, and a dual platter of golden and silver egg amaranth, which are not only delicious but also rich in nutrition.

A number of top-tier restaurants and food businesses—including Jipin Xuan, Din Tai Fung Taiwan Cuisine, Grand Hotel, Sanchun Suci, and Yuanwei Bento—are already responding to the mainland’s independent travel policy, planning to officially launch Taipei Confucian Cuisine dishes after the end of June. In addition, to allow more tourists and locals to enjoy Taipei Confucian Cuisine, the Taipei City Government will also guide merchants in learning about and promoting these ten signature dishes.