Yin Yin Grass Jelly / Oil Head Egg Cake / Pin Hua Douhua Introduction
The Legend of Xian Cao Bo in Chiayi. The story of the taste of packaged grass jelly, "Xian Cao Bo still waiting for customers after closing his business," is mostly pieced together from local narratives. What do the young successors have to say? Eric recalls that when he was selling egg cakes at Yi Yin, Xian Cao Bo had already retired for ten years. Initially, the elderly man was quite unhappy about someone occupying his territory. Eric affectionately calls him "Grandpa." Xian Cao Bo was very old and, after retirement, walked from his home to Yi Yin every day, seemingly "waiting for customers," but essentially it was a reflection of the loneliness of the elderly; he could chat with people here and be accompanied by noisy young ones. As time went by, one day, Grandpa asked Eric: "Do you want to learn how to make grass jelly?" This is how the story continued. Grandpa insisted on using relatively troublesome sweet potato flour to set the grass jelly. The young man practiced hard for a long time before he received the approval to start selling. When he opened a shop named "Yi Yin Xian Cao," Grandpa was still alive and would occasionally come by for "quality control," vouching for the old customers that this shop was personally taught by him. The friendship between the young man and Grandpa became a beautiful tale. A few years ago, Xian Cao Bo passed away, and Eric regrets not preserving Grandpa's appearance, only being able to ask a friend to paint a portrait in memory. He has also recreated the original taste of packaged grass jelly ice as a tribute! Image source: Chiayi City Government Tourism and News Office | Photographer: Mag.
