I was at a Taiwanese restaurant in Sydney called Din Tai Fung and I saw this curious combination of foods all on one plate on the menu. I couldn’t resist ordering it – It had 3 food items that I absolutely love: Silken Tofu, Pork Floss and Century Eggs (Preserved Duck Eggs). I’ve just never imagined them served together!

At first glance, the dish looked pretty menacing. Even I was slightly afraid. How could this combination possibly work? And not only that, the dish was served cold! It was topped with a sweet, dark, caramel-flavoured soy sauce as a seasoning which didn’t drown the delicate flavours.

I enjoyed the different textures of the three ingredients which worked well together. It took me about 3 bites to really appreciate the magnitude of the dish – the silky softness of the tofu, the salty, ammonia-like flavour of the century eggs, the sweet, dry and salty fibres of the pork floss.

It was a light and refreshing entree, just like the calm before the storm of what was to follow…