Ying Ming Lin's Meatball Introduction
With nearly a century of history, this renowned establishment can be considered a representative of Hsinchu meatballs. Located next to the entrance of Chenghuang Temple, the white wall beside the seats, painted with large red characters “Lin's Meatballs,” is adorned with signatures and messages from many famous artists. Lin's Meatballs has been operating food stalls at Hsinchu Chenghuang Temple for several decades, currently managed by the fourth generation. Although the brothers each have their own stalls and operate independently, they all use traditional family recipes. The specialty features lean meat marinated in red yeast rice for one to half a day as filling, while the outer skin is made from sweet potato starch and "Nai Lai" flour, steamed and then deep-fried, resulting in a fragrant and chewy texture. The red appearance differs from meatballs in Changhua and other areas. In addition to the traditional scallion and pork flavor, they now offer various choices like shredded bamboo shoots and chestnut flavors, making it a unique feature of the Chenghuang Temple food stalls. Besides meatballs, the accompanying soups include Four Gods Soup and the famous Hsinchu "Kong Wan" Soup. The Four Gods Soup is simmered to the point of melting in your mouth, making it a perfect match for meatballs. Just one stall can sell two to three thousand meatballs on holidays; during regular days, many people wholesale meatballs from them for resale. Due to the authentic flavors of Lin's Meatballs, the establishment has attracted numerous features from well-known food programs and magazines. Adhering to tradition while innovating when necessary seems to be their secret to standing firm among many food stalls in Chenghuang Temple.
