These dishes are all planted by Mother Nature herself — Hualien’s popular “Wild Vegetable Hot Pot” served fresh from harvest

▲Pick a whole pot full of wild vegetables and cook them fresh on-site for ultimate health benefits (Photo / Reporter Chou Chen-keng)

Reporter Lin Yu-ling / Hualien report

With its excellent water quality and air, Hualien is often praised for producing especially sweet and fresh fruits and vegetables, particularly organic produce grown without pesticides — not only delicious but also healthy. Originally a hairstylist in Taipei, Chen Yingmei decided to move to Hualien for rest and recovery after being diagnosed with thyroid cancer, and also began researching how to grow her own vegetables. However, she initially had trouble getting anything to grow.It wasn’t until she heard the advice to “let nature do the planting!” that she realized vegetables need to be grown in tune with the seasons.Now, the restaurant she runs combines a farm with dining to offer a “Wild Vegetable Hot Pot,” where guests can experience the joy of picking their own vegetables. With over 20 different kinds of wild greens available to be harvested and cooked immediately, it has become a favorite among health-conscious foodies.

▲Visitors first pick their wild vegetables in this peaceful farmland (Photo / Reporter Lin Yu-ling)

The owner of “Ying’s Field Leisure Wellness Farm,” Chen Yingmei, originally worked in beauty and hairdressing in Taipei. After being diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 1998, she decided to move to Hualien for rest and also began studying how to grow her own vegetables. But at first, she wasn’t very successful.It wasn’t until she saw her indigenous friend’s bountiful vegetable garden and asked for tips that she learned“All these vegetables are planted by Mother Nature!”Chen Yingmei then came to understand that “vegetables need to be grown according to the seasons,” and that planting the right crops for each season yields the best results with less effort.

Chen Yingmei developed a passion for farming, and wild vegetables became her healthy companions. She started her own vegetable garden and began sharing her harvest with family and friends. She even combined her garden with a restaurant to start a new business, hoping to spread the ideas of wild vegetables and healthy living to more people. Because many natural wild vegetables and ingredients are the best natural medicines — for example, honeysuckle can be used for tea and also helps improve symptoms of heat-related illnesses.

▲Many unassuming wild vegetables are actually natural health boosters (Photo / Reporter Chou Chen-keng)

Following seasonal changes, the farm maintains around20 to 25 types of wild vegetables,including common ones like dragon beard vegetable, sweet potato leaves, and mountain chrysanthemum, as well as less familiar names such as black nightshade, wild ginseng, and feverfew. These plants might be ignored in the mountains, but here they take center stage on the dining table. Guests can enjoy the fun of picking their own vegetables, guided by staff to harvest a whole potful before handing them over to the kitchen for cleaning and initial preparation — then they’re ready to be cooked into a healthy wild vegetable hot pot.

The rule here is“cook the vegetables first, then the meat,”because meat releases purines into the soup when cooked, which the body metabolizes into uric acid and may lead to gout or other health issues. In addition to delicious wild vegetables and meat dishes, the restaurant also offers Hakka scholar buns and taro glutinous rice cakes as desserts. The scholar buns are made with wild vegetables and tapioca flour, mimicking the texture of grass jelly, and have a soft and tender filling. The taro glutinous rice cakes have a crispy outer layer and a soft, chewy inside — a small treat that’s both unique and delicious.

▲The scholar bun is made with wild vegetables and tapioca flour, mimicking the texture of grass jelly, and has a soft and tender filling (Photo / Reporter Chou Chen-keng)

▲The taro glutinous rice cake has a crispy outer layer and a soft, chewy inside — a small treat that’s both unique and delicious (Photo / Reporter Chou Chen-keng)

▲Lotus is not only an ingredient but also a beautiful decorative touch, symbolizing prosperity in bloom (Photo / Reporter Chou Chen-keng)

▲Locally raised chicken, showcasing the natural sweetness of the meat (Photo / Reporter Chou Chen-keng)

▲Purple sweet potato, a local specialty of Hualien (Photo / Reporter Chou Chen-keng)

▲Experience the healthy fun of picking and eating vegetables at the same time (Photo / Reporter Chou Chen-keng)

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