Fu Juang Yuan King of Stewed Pork Trotter & Knuckle in Taichung 富狀元豬腳

One of Taichung City's top tradition braised pork trotter and knuckle shops with long queues every day. The trotters and knuckles are slow stewed with soy sauce, spices, ginger, onion, chili pepper etc., without any medicinal herbs.

Restaurant name: Fu Juang Yuan Pig Trotter 富狀元豬腳

Address: No. 203, Section 1, Meicun Road, West District, Taichung City, Taiwan 403

Tel: +886 4 2301 3588

Hours: 11:00am - 8:30pm (Monday off)

Fu Juang Yuan is a casual diner in Taichung City specialising in braised pork trotters and knuckles. Though less than 20 years old (founded 2004), Fu Juang Yuan is already well established as an icon of old Taichung flavours. It is popular with Taichung folks and also visitors from out of town.

The fresh pig trotters are first blanched in boiling water, cooled in cold water, cleaned (any trotter with clots are discarded), and then slow stewed in soy sauce and spices (no medicinal herbs) for at least five hours. Slow stewing keeps the trotters supple and prevents them from turning mushy soft.

Fu Juang Yuan's golden brown stewed trotters rich in collagen are tender with a light spring to the bite and are juicy like melons. The skin is smooth and the tendon, especially, has a "QQ" bouncy chewiness to the bite. The trotters and knuckles taste savoury sweet and are aromatic.

The stewed pork trotters are eaten with mee sua (rice noodles), aromatic rice (flavoured with caramelised shallot and garlic) or lou rou fan (the quintessentially Taiwan stewed pork over boil white rice).

Fu Juang Yuan also serve various popular side dishes such as bamboo shoot soup, stewed pig tail, intestine, braised chicken egg, tofu, bamboo shoot, etc.

Translated by Tony Boey on 20 Jan 2021