Tuchengzi Zhanbo Handmade Buns Introduction
Chen Ting-Hui's grandfather, Chen Lao-Gang (born in 1902), originally opened a grocery store at the current site on Chengbei Road. When his uncles and father split the family business, his father, Chen Zan-Tong (born in 1953), took over this store and changed its focus to selling rice and animal feed. In 1998, Chen Zan-Tong began making handmade buns and steamed bread for sale, and in 2003, he passed the business to his sons, Chen Ting-Fu and Chen Ting-Hui. The elder brother, Chen Ting-Fu, operates a breakfast business in the morning, while the younger brother, Chen Ting-Hui, sells handmade buns and steamed bread in the afternoon. The buns from Zan-Bo are filled only with pork belly, while the vegetable buns contain mushrooms, vegetarian ingredients, and preserved vegetables, all made starting at 10 AM and ready by 1 PM. The steamed bread is produced in two batches: the first batch comes out between 12 PM and 3 PM, while the second batch is from 3 PM to 6 PM, all continuously baked. In addition to the plain steamed bread, there are also cranberry steamed bread and grain steamed bread. The cranberry steamed bread is made by mixing cranberries into the dough, giving it a unique flavor, while the grain steamed bread is made from whole wheat flour, mixed grains, raisins, and dough. It is worth mentioning that Zan-Bo leaves some of the fermented dough each day, storing it in the refrigerator to continue fermenting into a “sourdough,” which is then mixed with fresh dough the next day to create buns or steamed bread.
