Mountain Gourmet Cuisine: S-Mukas Upgrades Atayal Flavors

By MOOK Travel Life Network, Interview & Report by Lee Hsin-yi

 

Known for its communal system, S-Mukas operates under a tribal covenant where profits are shared among members for sustainable development, and corporate presence is rejected. Electricity only reached the village in 1980 (the 69th year of the Republic of China), making S-Mukas one of the last places in Taiwan to get power, and thus preserving its most pristine form. With the push of the Citibank and Seven Star Ecological Conservation Foundation, this year the primitive village began upgrading its tourism offerings. Chef Chen Yao-chung, hailed as the "Amis culinary god" by Yen Ching-chang, was invited to create a set of meals that combine sustainability, health, and hotel-quality standards, tailored specifically for the tribe. The new menu went on sale December 1.

S-Mukas has been developing tourism for 17 years. Tribal chief Masay Sulong noted that the first 7 years of individual operations were ineffective, but the following 10 years of collective management gradually showed results. Centralized management not only protects the land and ecology, but also attracted around 60,000 visitors last year. This collaboration with the Citibank and Seven Star Ecological Conservation Foundation brought chefs into the village to teach women cooking skills, dramatically transforming S-Mukas’ original dishes and reintroducing indigenous cuisine. Chef Chen Yao-chung, skilled in creative Amis cuisine, combined commonly used wild greens in Amis dishes with meat dishes from the Atayal tribe. “The environment in S-Mukas is ideal for growing wild vegetables. By pairing them with meats, we achieve balanced nutrition and enriched flavors,” said Chen. He highlights the natural taste of ingredients, using local bamboo, wood, and stones as serving vessels, and decorating plates with forest flowers for an authentic tribal dining experience. The initial set meals feature home-style S-Mukas dishes such as wild vegetable towers, millet rice, Makau pork trotters, mountain pepper leek-flavored bamboo shoot chicken soup, and tree bean pork tripe soup. The 11-course meal—including appetizers, soups, main courses, desserts, and millet wine—serves 10 people per table at NT$5,000. Made with fresh ingredients, those wishing to sample this S-Mukas Atayal cuisine must book at least one week in advance. Phone: 03-584-7688.

The “Green Living Taiwan Eco-Tourism Promotion Plan,” jointly launched by Citibank and the Seven Star Ecological Conservation Foundation, has entered its fourth year. This time, the plan selects the idyllic S-Mukas for promotion, starting with an upgrade of its food offerings, with further development planned throughout next year. Currently, S-Mukas has about 170 residents including those who work outside the village. Seventy-five percent of the tribe members are involved in building the shared community, with profits covering all residents’ living expenses, including children’s education from birth through schooling. For the launch of these new dishes, nearly the entire tribe mobilized—not just for cooking, but even creating the serving containers, such as carving simple patterns on bamboo to make unique soup cups. A dining experience that is closest to the culture of the Atayal people and also the most natural and unburdened will go on sale this December in the tribe of Jianshi Township, Hsinchu County, upholding the belief in sustainability and sharing.