Welcoming day for first graders at Yixien Elementary School (北投逸仙國小)
A couple of days later at Yixien, when the principal hired a rice crispy guy to come and give treats to kids who scored high marks on their first test of the school year. Kids in Taiwan seem to always be taking tests. They're not called "test-taking machines" for nothing, I guess.
Rice crispies in Taiwan are a traditional snack, made by street vendors. In Taiwanese, it's called "爆米香," literally, "fragrant exploded rice." Rice is "exploded" in a pressure cooker that look like a cannon, heated over a gas range in a vending truck (or rickshaw, depending on what part of the county line you are). After a terrifying exploding sound (imagine a cannon getting shot out of a pirate ship in the Caribbean), the rice is then taken out and mixed with vegetable oil, caramelized malt sugar and a little bit of salt in a big, big pot. Sometimes peanuts, sesame seeds, dried seaweed flakes, etc are added for variety. While still hot, the mix gets poured into a flat mold, rolled even and then cut into rectangles. Then kids come swarming out of nowhere to buy a piece of this tasty treat. I only got to know this yummy thing after growing up, and it's quite good. They're not as sweet and heavy as the ones we make with marshmallows and butter in America, and I really like them with dried seaweed flakes. I'll eat almost anything topped with dried seaweed flakes. The explosion really makes for great entertainment. Unfortunately, they've become quite rare these days.
Ka-boom!
*scream*
*oo... ah...*
*crunch crunch crunch*
*giggle*
*crunch crunch crunch*
*giggle*
(via www.epochtimes.com)
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(via http://www.got1mag.com/blogs/kimcherng.php/2007/01/30/p2192#more2192)
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