The Taiwanese Table: Food from the isles of Formosa

The Taiwanese Table: Food from the Isle of Formosa bring over 80 delicious recipes that are reflective of the simple, balanced and fresh quality ingredients of the Taiwanese cuisine. It’ s been 20 years since Muriel and her mother Jade opened up their successful restaurant Blue Eye Dragon in Pyrmont, bringing together their love of what they cook at home and their joy of Taiwanese cooking. Making food, to Jade, was never about following a recipe— it was about understanding the ingredients, mastering the technique and, most importantly, appreciating the flavours of every dish. Muriel’ s earliest memories of great food traces back to her early school years in Taiwan when she lived with her maternal grandmother, Liu-Mei. Her grandma could grew anything in her incredible vegetable patches and nearby rice fields. When Muriel’ s parents opened up their very first seafood restaurant in Melbourne, she was spoilt to have the comfort of traditional home cooking and the endless choice of a menu at her parent’ s restaurant. It is when Jade started teaching Muriel about ingredients — how to select them, how to prepare them, how to cook them — that she truly understood how great food is made. This cookbook is a culmination of all the great dishes Jade made for her family and her other family, the customers of Blue Eye Dragon, over the past twenty years. A love letter from a daughter to her mother and Taiwan.

It’ s been 20 years since Muriel and her mother Jade opened up their successful restaurant Blue Eye Dragon in Pyrmont, bringing together their love of what they cook at home and their joy of Taiwanese cooking. My families are all involved. We do it because we love it.