Vegan dishes at Taipei's izakaya-style restaurant, CHAO 炒炒新亞洲蔬食, go perfectly with beer!

Three points

1. Taiwanese izakaya style called "Rechao".
2. Rich Asian cuisine that will satisfy even non-vegans.
3. There is also a wide selection of stir-fried dishes and homemade drinks.

Vegan cuisine in an izakaya-style restaurant that pairs well with beer!

Vegetarian food is widely enjoyed in Taiwan. Many restaurants around town feature signs saying "素食," which means no meat or fish. Currently, strict vegetarians and flexible vegetarians account for 40% of the population.

Recently, with growing awareness of animal welfare and environmental protection, more and more young people are turning to vegan food, and sophisticated restaurants are opening one after another.

One such example is CHAO 炒炒新亞洲蔬食, located in Taipei's most popular shopping district, East District. Owner Li Pei-jeh, a vegan herself, runs a variety of vegan restaurants, including Mexican and Italian. "I hope that in the future everyone will be able to enjoy vegan food at least once a day," she says.

When you think of plant-based cuisine, you might imagine it being lightly seasoned, but this restaurant prides itself on its Taiwanese izakaya-style cuisine known as "la chao," and all of the dishes are richly seasoned to go well with beer.

Their signature dishes include "Kung Pao Chicken," a chicken imitation stir-fried with chili peppers, and "Pineapple Shrimp Balls," shrimp imitation made from konjac and tossed in mayonnaise. These plant-based meat substitutes are close to meat in taste, texture, and nutrients, making them popular even among non-vegans.

The store is also actively involved in eco-friendly activities, such as serving homemade drinks in glass bottles and hosting beach clean-ups in order to reduce plastic bottle waste.

Life in Taiwan, where vegan food is readily available, could be a useful reference for considering the eating habits of Japanese people in the future.