At Yongkuan Savory Taro-Rice Fritter on Jungguang Road in Jincheng, the owner opens in the early morning, frying blocks of savory cake in a vat of hot oil. The process: grind rice flour and taro into batter, season with sea salt and black pepper, steam into a firm cake, cut into blocks, and fry over a wood fire to order — the outside turns crisp, the inside stays soft with a gentle taro fragrance. A dip in sweet chili sauce or a shake of white pepper, a coin-price snack, sixty years of craft. Listed twice on kinmen.travel, this is a morning snack unique to Hopu (the old name for Jincheng), with a completely different logic from the turnip cake found on the main island.
What is Kinmen Savory Taro-Rice Fritter
Kinmen savory taro-rice fritter is completely unlike the "fried turnip cake" common on the main island — the main island version uses shredded white radish mixed with rice batter; Kinmen's version grinds rice flour and taro together into batter, seasons with sea salt, white pepper, and black pepper, steams it into a firm cake, then cuts it into squares and deep-fries to order. The result is crisp outside and soft inside, with a subtle taro fragrance. Served with sweet chili sauce or white pepper, typically in multiple pieces per order at a coin price — a budget morning snack in Jincheng.
Why does it represent Kinmen? Savory taro-rice fritter is a snack unique to Hopu (old name for Jincheng) — almost no equivalent exists on the main island. Yongkuan has maintained this tradition for sixty years and appears twice on kinmen.travel; wood-fire frying is a technical threshold — oil temperature control determines the crispness of the crust, and the taro-to-rice ratio determines the depth of fragrance. One of Jincheng's early-morning breakfast options, it regularly appears alongside Cantonese congee and noodle porridge on Kinmen people's morning menu.
How to eat it the local way
Local knowledge
Verified facts (sponsored content filtered)
- Listed twice by the Kinmen County Tourism Bureau (kinmen.travel), confirmed as a small-change street snack unique to Hopu (old Jincheng).
- Yongkuan Savory Taro-Rice Fritter has maintained its tradition for sixty years, insisting on wood-fire frying — the representative veteran stall for this snack.
- Kinmen savory taro-rice fritter is made from ground rice flour and taro batter, a completely different process from main-island turnip cake.
Visitor tips
- Yongkuan operates from early morning to noon; often sold out by afternoon — arrive before 11 a.m.
- Best eaten fresh on the spot; if taking away, eat as soon as possible to avoid the crust softening.
- Parking in Jincheng is difficult; use the public lot near the Qiu Lianggong ancestral residence and walk to the old Jungguang Road area.
Data compiled from the Kinmen County Tourism Bureau, Kinmen Winery, and a large volume of public reviews, with sponsored content filtered out. Photos will be replaced with channel-exclusive footage after Dio's on-site shoot.