Zhongzhen Day Market: My Family’s Taiwan Tradition

Join me at Longgang Zhongzhen Day Market 龍岡忠貞市場 in Zhongli 中壢, Taiwan to enjoy some of the best local Taiwanese treats right after landing in Taiwan. I’m back in Taiwan to spend some time with family while enjoying some of my dad’s favorite places back home. It’s our family tradition to come here first thing every time we come to Taiwan for a bowl of hot local rice noodle soup and a stroll around the market for the best Taiwanese snacks. If you’re ever in Zhongli, here’s some of our family’s favorite eats this time!

龍岡忠貞市場

Getting to Longgang Market
Longgang Market Food Options
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Getting to Longgang Market

If you have ever been to Taiwan, you will know it is a foodie paradise. Honestly, I never get jet-lagged when I’m in Taiwan because I am way too excited. In every single Taiwan trip I have ever filmed, the first stop has always been Longgang Zhongzhen Day Market 龍岡忠貞市場, located in the city of .

Just like every other time, we headed over immediately after landing in the Taoyuan International Airport. It takes about 40 minute taxi ride from the Airport to Longgang Zhongzhen Market. By public transportation, it takes about 1 hour and 20 minutes via the Airport Line to Laojie River Station 老街溪站, then transfer by bus to Zhongzhen bus station 忠貞.

Longgang Market Food Options

There’s so many unique foods to try at Longgang Zhongzhen Day Market 龍岡忠貞市場! When I was little, this was our Saturday morning routine with my dad, and we would pick up whatever we wanted to eat.

This market was established to support a growing community of refugees from Burma, Myanmar, and other parts of Southeast Asia after the 1950s. The food here is a unique blend of Southeast Asian, Yunnanese, and Taiwanese. In particular, this area is famous for a type of flat Yunnanese rice noodles called “mi gan” 米干, which has an extra step of drying to make them extra chewy. In fact, every April they hold the Longgang Rice Noodles Festival here.

Gluten-Free Millet Flax Scallion Pancakes – 禾稼小米蔥油餅

Taiwan is famous for the green onion pancakes, but Wojia Green Onion Pancake 禾稼小米蔥油餅 has making this treat extra healthy and tasty here at the market for over 30 years. This healthy green onion pancake has been my latest obsession at only 60 NTD per half sheet. These pancakes are actually completely gluten-free, made with flax seed and millet flour instead of the usual wheat.

It’s made fresh from dough into a giant sheet right in front of you, pan-fried with little to no oil. Then, it’s flavored with their signature spice blend, or the spicy spice blend if you like a little heat, and cut into pieces. Somehow, it still ends up being super crispy, chewy, and packed with lots of flavor in between all those flaky layers. The more you chew it, the better each bite gets. I really want to try to learn how to make it, because it’s so yummy!

Rice Noodle Soup – A Xiu Mi Gan 阿秀米干

The real highlight of the market for my family, is A Xiu Mi Gan 阿秀米干, famously known for their Yunnanese cuisine and house-made rice noodles. From the moment we land in Taiwan, this is always our first stop, and it’s been a tradition for as long as I can remember.

We immediately ordered a bowl each of their combination rice noodles (80 NT for small), which comes with poached egg, liver, and pork. The noodle’s clear broth is simple, but is so surprisingly full of flavor. The noodles have just the right amount of chew. The poached egg adds the perfect finishing touch, giving it that comforting richness from the egg yolk. It’s humble, it’s comforting, and somehow always hits the spot.

Then, I had to head straight to their self-served marinated side dish station, where you can choose from a variety of braised items. The staff will confirm the price, cut them up for you, and drizzle on that signature sesame garlic sauce. I grabbed seaweed, fresh tofu, dried tofu, soy-based imitation chicken, and pig’s ear. Each item is super well-flavored by the braise, but not overly salty.

I honestly think this place is better than most noodle soups I’ve ever had anywhere else. They actually open at 5 AM – 2 PM on weekdays except for Tuesdays, and until 7 PM on weekends.

Fried Donuts and Sesame Balls

This nameless little stall in Zhongzhen Market sells only 4 fried treats: donuts, “twin” donuts, pickled cabbage buns, and sesame balls. The stall is lined with trays full of fried delights, ranging from 15 to 45 NTD each. These freshly fried donuts and sesame balls were perfectly crisp on the outside, and chewy on the inside. The fried buns were filled with savory goodness and refreshingly sour pickled cabbage.

Despite being nameless, this shop is located inside the market, and has a fairly large stall. They sometimes are closed on Wednesdays in the summer, but otherwise they’re open daily from 7:00 AM to 2:00 PM.

Soy Milk Honey Castella Cake – True Cake 初蛋糕

My personal favorite from spending all day at the market was True Cake 初蛋糕. This little cake stall sells dairy-free Taiwanese honey cake made with soy milk instead. They have 3 flavors: original, cheese, and a chocolate flavor that’s only available on the weekends. Each cake ranges from 180-220 NTD depending on flavor. They also offer branded designs for special occasions like holidays and births.

The cake itself has a delicate sweetness with a light airy texture, and a subtle nutty aroma in every bite. It is soft, it’s bouncy, and it just melts into your mouth. Don’t miss out on these delicious cakes! I always try to get there early because these sell out super fast every time. They actually have a few branches around Taiwan, but the Zhongzhen Market location is opened daily from 7 AM.

Green Onion Pancakes – 劉家正宗蔥油餅

At the entrance of the market, there’s Liu’s Authentic Green Onion Pancakes 劉家蔥油餅. This green onion pancake stall is always busy, but totally worth the wait. No matter how full you are, you have to get one. Their staff is making these pancakes non-stop, and you can smell that scallion pancake on the grill. The pancake is fluffy, not too oily, and packed with fresh scallion aroma. I added a freshly fried egg on top for some extra richness, too. Simple, but so, so satisfying.

You can get the freshly fried original green onion pancakes (half: 45 NTD, whole: 90 NTD), with the option to add an egg on top for 15-30 NTD extra. If you have access to a freezer and kitchen, you can also grab a whole bag of frozen pancakes for 120 NTD. They start selling at 5:30 AM daily until 11:30 AM except for Tuesdays, so come early to get your pancakes!

Boba Tea – 50嵐

Of course, what is the first day in Taiwan without grabbing bubble tea? We ended our market trip with a drink from 50Lan (五十嵐), one of Taiwan’s classic boba shop chains. Founded in 1994, 50Lan has over 500 branches you can find everywhere in Taiwan. They have pretty classic flavors like milk tea, fruit teas, ice cream teas, and simple green teas, combined with your favorite toppings.