I hadn’t realized the duty-free souvenirs at Taipei Airport are so interesting! Despite visiting Taipei numerous times over the years, I hardly paid attention to the souvenirs at the Taipei Taoyuan International Airport duty free shops. I went to Taiwan twice this year already! What can I say, Taipei is like a second home to me. This time I spent a bit of time at the duty-free shop inside the airport and discovered awesome edible souvenirs.
First, let me begin by explaining that there’s been a significant shift in my traveling style these days:
- I have not been traveling as frequently as before. Contrary to public (mis)perception of me perpetually jet-setting everywhere, I actually have been hunkering down big time in the last three years to focus on my design and digital marketing consultancy, aka day job. *poignant pause, deep breaths*
- I would take the smallest suitcase whenever possible and travel light. This means I have to be very mindful of what I buy. I can no longer splurge on wild shopping sprees like I did before. Gone were the legendary days of unrestrained 4-figure spendings at Target in one visit. The plus side of this is I end up with having a little bit extra $ to spend at the end of the trip.
- I don’t get souvenirs for other people often. By the end of most trips, I was usually broke. My suitcases were constantly packed to the gills too. Many times, they were perilously about to be tagged as overweight. I also tended to hand-carry several items. How did you think those plates and bowls acquired overseas made it back to Singapore in one piece? :P
BUT. I travel differently nowadays. With my puny suitcase already checked in, I was loitering a bit in the Taipei airport. Swinging my empty hands before boarding my flight, my vision landed on the cheerful displays of edible souvenirs at the duty free shop. In the past, the edible souvenirs at Taipei airport were mostly pineapple cakes, tea leaves, and more pineapple cakes. Not that interesting to me, because they were too common and predictable.
This time I noticed the packaging of the souvenirs on the shelves looking rather quirky. They were bright and colorful. Each product had better graphic design than the next. They looked fun and showcased the creativity and innovation of Taiwanese food industry.
The variety of products themselves was also intriguing and exciting. Dehydrated Guava Strips! Cherry Blossoms Nougats! Handmade Boba Milk Candies! Chocolate Covered Dried Longans! Scallion Pancake Crispy Rolls! Red Quinoa Pineapple Cakes! Taro Biscuits! So imaginative and creative! (Pardon all the exclamation marks, I was giddy with excitement. My imagination went into overdrive just by viewing the packaging.)
These duty-free souvenirs from Taipei Airport would definitely made fantastic gifts for friends and relatives, I thought. So I picked up a bunch of stuff and gave them away happily.
Fast forward to a few months and another trip to Taipei later, I got curious again at the airport. This time I decided to get some of these duty-free edible souvenirs for my own consumption.
Here are what I picked up:
1. San Tai Zi Flavored Peanuts
Peanuts coated in flavors inspired by Taiwan’s vibrant and classic night market food! There flavors are Beef Noodles, Fried Chicken Cutlet, Scallion Oil, and Spicy Mala. Each box contains 20 mini packets, so an assortment of every flavor makes these suitable for distribution amongst a lot of friends and relatives.
The peanuts are export-quality, they aren’t the itsy-bitsy sized ones. However I don’t find the flavorings pronounced enough. I had expected my tastebuds to be tingled by seasonings that taste close to the original food which inspired the flavor. But to me, these taste like regular peanuts.
2. San Tai Zi Crispy Seaweed Pork Rolls
Crispy paper-thin pork jerky sheets with embedded slivers of almonds are popular in Taiwan. IMO it’s an brilliant snack. The paper-thin sheets shatters with every bite and this version of pork jerky sheets rolled together with seaweed is Crispy 2.0.
The original flavor exudes a five-spice fragrance while the spicy flavor adds a mild kick of heat (but not overbearingly so).
3. Neko-leine Mango Madeleine Cakes
These madeleines are buttery and light with diced mango bits inside. Not overly sweet, the texture is quite soft although I wish there’s more mango in each bite. Each box contains six pieces and the back of the packaging is a coloring sheet (cute!). Anyone who’s bored mid-flight can doodle or color on it to pass time.
Fans of madeleines would be delighted to savor these since the diced mango gives off a nice tropical tang. I would buy these again as the madeleines are moist and fragrant.
4. Taipei Sweet Pineapple Cake Brownies
I am saving the best for last.
Normally, Taiwanese pineapple cakes are too dense and compact for me. I typically don’t go for more than one at a time, before reaching for a glass of water. This pineapple cake brownie, however, is exquisite. The combination of fruit and chocolate works beautifully. It has just the right amount of sweetness and every piece is sooo moist.
The pineapple aroma is delicate and the chocolate brownie base adds richness. These sweet treats are simply luxurious. SO DELICIOUS I SHOULD HAVE BOUGHT TEN BOXES! They’re on the pricier side though… NTD350 for just 9 pieces in the box.
The brand recently released a sister product, Strawberry Brownie. From the packaging it appears to be strawberry cake and brownie with strawberry jam in between. Uhm, pass. I’ll stick with the pineapple cake brownie version. I’m also not planning to share with anyone this time. :P
Those who’ve known me for a long time would know that I am generally not a snacker. I do not have a habit of eating tidbits/sweets/chips etc. But these duty-free souvenirs were so creative and delicious that I found myself taking short breaks from work to brew a pot of tea to enjoy these treats with. I have always enjoyed Taiwanese food (pork chop rice, beef noodle, ginger duck stew) and these snacks are equally imbued with Taiwanese flavors.
Who’d have thunk that duty free shopping at Taipei Taoyuan International airport turned out to be an awesome discovery of edible souvenirs? It was fun for me to not only stumble upon, but also try these yummy and creative edible souvenirs myself.
If and when you are at any duty-free shop in Taiwan airport, please check out the yummy snacks I have shared about. Grab several boxes of edible souvenirs for your friends and family (or yourself), especially the Pineapple Cake Brownies.
I am eager to discover other duty-free edible souvenirs at Taipei Airport that are just as delicious!
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