I have to start working mornings during summer vacation, so I’ll need something a little more substantial for breakfast than what I’m eating now. I was wondering what options are available for breakfast cereal here in Taichung. I’ve been to Carrefour and Finga’s, and I can also try Jason’s (we don’t have a Costco card, so that’s out), but I was wondering if there are some places that may offer other, better alternatives. I’m looking for something a little more hearty and substantial than a lot of the papery, sugary ones targeting spoiled children. Making my own muesli sounds like a good idea, but I don’t know where to get oat bran, wheat bran, or even decent rolled oats. Any suggestions where to get decent breakfast cereal in Taichung or else the ingredients to make some?
Alternatively, what are some other healthy breakfast options? They have to require very little preparation time in the morning (and we don’t have an oven for those that can be baked ahead of time).
I’ve thought along the same lines as the OP. I decided to get my breakfast at the breakfast store. It’s quick, cheap, tasty and vegetarian. Buying alternatives is slow, expensive, requires a kitchen and refrigerator, and expensive.
Obviously much of the breakfast store stuff is unhealthy but compared to an All-English - not so bad. In the morning one is entitled to high energy stuff. You have to choose what is best - avoid ‘meat’ and ‘cheese’ if you want less calories. I personally alternate with cheese and non-cheese days…
Balance it out with proper meals the rest of the time and you’ve got a, ahem, balanced diet. Fruit is really easy to come by, of course, so I make sure I eat several a day, usually in the evening.
So: get creative at the breakfast store, eat lots of fruit (3-5 a day), and eat properly (with vegetables) the rest of the day.
Go to the big organic stores -like Santa Cruz- they have breakfast wraps and juices and such, plus muesli and granola bars.
Jason’s and City Super carry higher end cereals, not just sugary ones. Personally, though, I am a sucker for Post’s banana walnut, but limit myself to half a cup and use low fat milk.
The other thing is that you have this ample offer of fruits, so a fruit smoothie -banana, papaya and low fat milk, for instance, no sugar- is a nice option, add some flaxseeds or other stuff. Or fruit, yogurt -also available at organic stores- and granola.
Sandwiches would be a no brainer if we had proper bread. Dunno how’s the offer in Taichung. In this case, buy your own bread machine/look for a reliable provider of organic/whole meal bread.
Peanut butter toast :lick: As long as the bread is whole wheat!
[quote=“Icon”]Go to the big organic stores -like Santa Cruz- they have breakfast wraps and juices and such, plus muesli and granola bars.
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Sandwiches would be a no brainer if we had proper bread. Dunno how’s the offer in Taichung. In this case, buy your own bread machine/look for a reliable provider of organic/whole meal bread.
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Thanks. I never knew about Santa Cruz, but apparently there’s one in Taichung, so I’ll check it out. Do they sell the ingredients for muesli or is it already mixed and packaged? Any other stores like them?
We have Finga’s for some pretty decent bread. Whole wheat and double rye are my mainstays.
get a few of the Carrefour rolls or dan bing pastry sheets, buy some sliced meat from your nearest market and quickly fry that, add some lettuce and tomato and your favorite sauce (a little oyster sauce works well with pork, hoisin with beef) and away you go.Takes me 10 minutes to make breakfast for the family.
So, who’s the winner? :discodance:[/quote]
The one who isn’t forced to choke down peanut sludge of a morning? Coffee and two cigarettes do me well enough.
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I am on a plan that I eat something every 3 hours, more or less. Before I walk the dogs, I have 1/2 a cup of cereal and milk, since it is very bad for your digestive health and health in general to spend several hours after waking up doing stuff and delaying breakfast. Mid morning at the office I have a latte and the snack the food service sends me, which today was a chicken and mushroom pesto quesadilla and garbanzo with peas. I eat half and leave half for mid afternoon. If they send fruit or anything less substantial, I have some nice bread and cheese in the company fridge to help me by. If I am home, then it’s an omelette, cheese, bread or sweet potato. I used to have apple juice but it is too many empty calories. Breakfast should not be taken lightly! :soapbox:
Pancakes. Hola (which you can usually find attached to any Carrefore/B&Q mall, has a great ready made mix from California company called Coyote. Organic grains and damn delicious. Mix with a few oats to make more hearty and yogurt and smother with local mulberry jam.
If there is a Cottonfields organic outlet they have the best thick yogurt on the island. Great with fruit.
I fifth the pb and jam sandwich with a whack of fruit and yogurt and coffee. As long as it is organic pb and good am. Again, the local organic mulberry stuff is so good.
Muesli has been mentioned a few times: City Super have a good selection. No point making your own.
Like a lot of other posters here, I usually start with muesli, fruit, and coffee. I used to like Ready Brek back in the UK (it’s a sort of flavoured oat sludge, similar to porridge but … not). You can make a passable substitute by putting a bag of rolled oats in the blender for ~1 minute. Dry-goods stores sell oats for ~$50NT for half a kilo, which will last you a good six months. Shake it around a bit while blending; the aim is to shred it, not turn it into flour. Keep it in an airtight jar. To prepare, heat a bowl of milk in the microwave, add 1tbsp oats, flavouring (I like cocoa powder) and fructose. Stir and microwave again until it just boils. Voila, nutritious slop that will bring back some childhood memories (if you’re British).
It doesn’t really take much time to prepare a breakfast if you don’t expect high cuisine. I get up shortly after 6, cook steaks or salmon for the four of us, drink my coffee-eat and am showered, dressed and out the door, kids in tow, by 7.
But to answer your question, when we ate cereal we would buy a big box of oats from Costco, it lasts a millennia, and mix nuts, berries etc for variety. Tasty congee is easy to prepare and keeps well in the fridge. You can add all kinds of different ingredients to that.
[quote=“SlowRain”][quote=“Icon”]Go to the big organic stores -like Santa Cruz- they have breakfast wraps and juices and such, plus muesli and granola bars.
…
Sandwiches would be a no brainer if we had proper bread. Dunno how’s the offer in Taichung. In this case, buy your own bread machine/look for a reliable provider of organic/whole meal bread.
[/quote]
Thanks. I never knew about Santa Cruz, but apparently there’s one in Taichung, so I’ll check it out. Do they sell the ingredients for muesli or is it already mixed and packaged? Any other stores like them?
We have Finga’s for some pretty decent bread. Whole wheat and double rye are my mainstays.[/quote]
Well, stores may have different stuff, but usually the muesli is sold already mixed, differnet flavors -nuts, tropical fruits, whatevers.
Aside from Santa Cruz, there is Cottonfields. There are also several local organic coops. In any case, as said, Jason’s and City Super, maybe even Matsusei may have them.
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