Thank you very much DB for the clear direction. I did a bit of digging and found the address and phone number:
台北市中山北路七段14巷6-1號
(02) 2876-8557
Thanks again, I will surely go have a look.
This place has Mexican-style chorizo from Canada for $1300/kg:
P&P Food & Spices 東遠
Taibei, Zhong1zheng4 District, Jin1men2 Jie1, 9-14, 1F
金門街9-14, 1F
This street runs southwest off of Roosevelt, just southwest of Shida. Take Heping westward to Roosevelt; turn left, go about 200+ yards, and turn right; after a ways it’s on your left (small entrance, not well marked)
2365-0633
[quote=“Dragonbones”]G&G is a deli in Tianmu where you can get good sandwiches, sliced meats and cheeses, and a variety of imported gourmet items and Western foods. Some may remember them from many years ago, when they were a classy-looking deli on the west side of Zhongshan road a couple km south of Wellman’s, but now they are in an alley behind the NE corner of the intersection of Zhongshan and Tianmu.
Take Zhongshan N. Rd. north, past the American school, and cross the main part of the Tianmu Rd. intersection then IMMEDIATELY turn right onto a small, poorly marked road before passing any buildings or stores (it almost feels like you haven’t completely cleared the Tianmu Rd. intersection). You’ll see a 7-11 fifty yards ahead; go past that, veering slightly leftward, and you’ll see a bright pink sign. Just past that is G&G, on the south side of the alley.
G&G has some things Wellman’s either doesn’t carry or is sometimes out of, but also many of the same items. Today I saw filo, clotted creams (I don’t recall seeing either at Wellman’s), turkey franks, beef franks, pepperoni, corn tortillas (Wellman’s is often out of those), English muffins, some decent breads, meats and cheeses, and Anchor Steam beer, among other things. I normally go to Wellman’s, but they were closed today, and open tomorrow.[/quote]
I used to shop there… Owner is a bit of an arrogant prick, but whatever, I buy my food and go…
Think of living in Taiwan as a great opportunity to become the chef you never could be because you must make so much stuff from scratch. It takes a bit of time and your family may object to being guinea pigs…but hey…you’ve all got access to some of the best meat and produce in Asia. I really, really miss the fresh limes…
He’s been nice to me, at least on the few occasions I’ve been there. G&G tends to carry some things Wellman’s runs out of, like corn tortillas. And G&G has Spanish chorizo, which is hard to come by in Taibei.
Then again, the owner did try to tell me that Mexican and Spanish chorizo are the same product. 
That’s like saying British sausage and Cajun sausage are the same.
Aye. I probably never would have tried making tortillas, tamales or chorizo from scratch, back in Mexico or even the US.
He’s been nice to me, at least on the few occasions I’ve been there. G&G tends to carry some things Wellman’s runs out of, like corn tortillas. And G&G has Spanish chorizo, which is hard to come by in Taibei.
Then again, the owner did try to tell me that Mexican and Spanish chorizo are the same product. That’s like saying British sausage and Cajun sausage are the same.
Aye. I probably never would have tried making tortillas, tamales or chorizo from scratch, back in Mexico or even the US.[/quote]
For sure…isn’t it a great feeling to be able to roll-up to a market, see what’s fresh and then say - oh let’s take some this and some of that and make some of this? Of course, there is always the missing ingredient so you get good at substitutions too.
What, no gorgonzola? Well, we’ve got, er, dried dofu. Yeah, that’ll do.
[quote=“Dragonbones”]This place has Mexican-style chorizo from Canada for $1300/kg:
P&P Food & Spices 東遠
Taibei, Zhong1zheng4 District, Jin1men2 Jie1, 9-14, 1F
金門街9-14, 1F…2365-0633[/quote]
Tonight I’m making some Cajun jambalaya, and just grilled the last of my disappointing Costco “Andouille” (too salty, not flavorful enough) alongside a couple links of P&P’s abovementioned Mexican-style chorizo from Canada, and I find the latter much more suited to Cajun cooking; it’s spicy and flavorful, and perfect to grill and slice and add to stew. (It’s actually not quite spicy enough for my tastes for other Mexican uses like scrambling with eggs and tortilla strips, adding to quesadillas etc., but given how hard good Mexican chorizo is to get here, it’s a decent substitute – just add a couple dashes of cayenne and you’ll be close.
I’ve never had authentic Cajun Andouille, but if you have, I’d be very curious to hear your comments on this P&P chorizo to see how it compares.
[quote=“Dragonbones”]
I’ve never had authentic Cajun Andouille, but if you have, I’d be very curious to hear your comments on this P&P chorizo to see how it compares.[/quote]
Can’t comment on the Chorizo in question but I can’t see why there would be anything wrong with using chorizo in lieu of andouille in jambalaya. However, since andouille is smoked and mexican chorizo generally isn’t you would be losing that depth of flavor the smokiness in andouille adds. Plus the good thing about jambalaya is there is no real set recipe. After the trinity you can pretty much add whatever kind of meat you want (though I’ve never seen a beef jambalaya). One of my favorite jambalayas is Chicken and Tasso, a classic, but made without andouille.
Yeah, I’d love to add that, but we’re not in Cajun shopping heaven here.
I like that flexibility. I’ve never had jambalaya, actually, except for what I made just now, so I honestly don’t know how it would compare, but what I made wasn’t half bad. Like a very spicy, slightly wetter, wild southern cousin of paella. And it got even better after 24 hours in the fridge, which is interesting.
[quote=“Dragonbones”]This place has Mexican-style chorizo from Canada for $1300/kg:
[/quote]
I could make you a pretty good copy (albeit not as dry) of that Mexican-style chorizo, at way less than half the price. 
Yeah, I’d love to add that, but we’re not in Cajun shopping heaven here.
I like that flexibility. I’ve never had jambalaya, actually, except for what I made just now, so I honestly don’t know how it would compare, but what I made wasn’t half bad. Like a very spicy, slightly wetter, wild southern cousin of paella. And it got even better after 24 hours in the fridge, which is interesting.[/quote]
I just finished making a rich, tasty gumbo. Ingredients include okra and Andouille (from Breeze), bell peppers, onions and celery, chicken, spices, garlic and a rich roux (I cheated and prepared the roux in the microwave). Oh, and gumbo filé powder (which I brought from the States).
:lick:
Ohh…sounds good. :lick:
[quote=“Chris”]
I just finished making a rich, tasty gumbo. Ingredients include okra and Andouille (from Breeze), bell peppers, onions and celery, chicken, spices, garlic and a rich roux (I cheated and prepared the roux in the microwave). Oh, and gumbo filé powder (which I brought from the States).
:lick:[/quote]
How did you stir it? The constant whisking isn’t just to keep it from scorching. You need to constantly stir a roux to make sure the granules are all cooked evenly. I can certainly say I’ve never come accross a juke box that can cook evenly. I suppose it would be okay if you were making a blonde or peanut butter roux where it’s more for thickening than for that deep nutty/smokey complexity, but for gumbo one needs a chocolate roux to truely bring out the trinity and the spices. When it comes to roux’s, once you go black…Anyway, I’m not dissing your gumbo, I’m sure it was good. I just don’t see how you could anyone could make a good chocolate roux in the microwave. It’s something that needs constant attention. A pain in the ass no doubt, but certainly worth it.
thebayou, please enlighten me as to the terms you’re using for these various types of roux. I’ve only done a basic flour and butter roux for thickening.
They describe the color and by default how long you’ve been at the stove stirring. To get a nice chocolate roux you would need to use oil, butter has too low of a smoking point.
How did you stir it? The constant whisking isn’t just to keep it from scorching. You need to constantly stir a roux to make sure the granules are all cooked evenly.[/quote]
First I mix the flour and oil together in a 2-cup pyrex measuring cup, whisk it to a homogeneous consistency, then microwave for two minutes. Then, oven mitts in hand (it becomes as hot as napalm), I take out the cup, whisk the contents again, then zap it for another minute, and repeat the process (zap, whisk, zap, whisk) until the desired color is achieved.
Yes, it’s a cheat, but it works fine for my needs. I’ve never burned roux this way, and the roux remains quite homogeneous throughout the process.
[quote=“Chris”]
Yes, it’s a cheat, but it works fine for my needs. I’ve never burned roux this way, and the roux remains quite homogeneous throughout the process.[/quote]
It ain’t cheatin if it works. Of course I have some doubts, but I’m certainly gonna try it.
I’m from the Houston, TX area and have lived 12 years in Louisiana, so I’ve had my fair share of home-cooked Mexican and Cajun foods. Can someone please tell me what the heck “Canadian chorizo” is? Isn’t that blasphemous? Sounds like saying, “Lets eat some good ole’ New York pupusas.” :eh:
It’s a product imported from Canada which resembles the spicy Mexican style of chorizo, as opposed to Spanish-style. Thus “Mexican-style chorizo from Canada”. It’s the closest thing I’ve found here so far, but my homemade is much better.
Does the microwave get rid of the pasty taste of the flour?