Xiao 3rd Road Large Intestine Rice Ring (Da Chang Quan)

Da chang quan is a Xiao 3rd Road snack made by stuffing pork large intestine with glutinous rice and pig blood, steaming it, slicing it, and drizzling it with ginger-infused soy sauce paste. Xiao 3rd Road is another food street near Temple Street, with stalls that feel more neighborhood-local than Ren 3rd Road. At the da chang quan stall, the steamed intestine is sliced into thick rounds and plated, ginger soy sauce paste drizzled over, the ginger aroma arriving before anything else. The well-known Xiao San Da Chang Quan stall was founded in 1968 and has been operating for more than 50 years — a must-try for getting to know Xiao 3rd Road, and one half of the two-intestine pairing alongside pig liver sausage.

The well-known Xiao San Da Chang Quan stall on Xiao 3rd Road was founded in 1968 and has operated in Lane 99, Xiao 3rd Road, Ren'ai District, for more than 50 years, only setting up a physical storefront in 2015; besides da chang quan, its signature items include pork lung, ji-gu-la (grilled fish cake), and pork large intestine head. A separate pig liver sausage stall on the same street has reportedly been running for more than 70 years. Together they form Xiao 3rd Road's signature "two-intestine" pairing, though the ingredients and preparation are entirely different: pig liver sausage stuffs pork liver into casing, while da chang quan stuffs glutinous rice into pork large intestine.

What is Large Intestine Rice Ring

Da chang quan uses cleaned pork large intestine as the casing, stuffed with long-grain glutinous rice and pig blood, tied at both ends and steamed, then cooled to set before being sliced into rounds about 1 to 1.5 centimeters thick. The glutinous rice absorbs the fat from the pork intestine during steaming and takes on an intestinal aroma; the pig blood provides a deep color and a mineral undertone. After slicing, soy sauce paste and ginger juice are drizzled over the top — the ginger's pungency is there to balance the oily edge of the intestine casing. In terms of texture, the glutinous rice is the main body — soft and substantial — while the outer layer of pork intestine gives a satisfying chew.

Xiao 3rd Road runs alongside Temple Street's Ren 3rd Road, forming an extension of the Temple Street night market food zone. Xiao 3rd Road is known for the pairing of da chang quan and pig liver sausage; though both look similar — sliced intestine rounds — they are entirely different in composition: pig liver sausage uses pork liver stuffed into casing, while da chang quan uses glutinous rice as the filling in pork large intestine. Local word of mouth on Xiao 3rd Road shows these old stalls have been serving the neighborhood for many years and are part of the Temple Street ecosystem, but with a more everyday quality that attracts fewer tourists.

How to eat like a local

Local knowledge

Sources: Xiao 3rd Road food street local reputation records; survey of snacks around Keelung Temple Street. Photos pending Dio's on-site shoot for exclusive channel footage.