All Wacked off of Scooby Snacks

So food here is like, way way way too involved and complicated and whatever whatever a topic for me to get all my thoughts down in one go, and of course there is no reason why I would have to. So, let’s subtitle this entry “Random Pre-packaged Snack Foods and Treats I Have Been Enjoying Lately”.

You can probably work out from looking at these that they are coated almonds. Coconut coated almonds, to be precise. And they are AWESOME. And I don’t have to share them with G, because he does not like coconut!

Steamed bean buns! To be honest I don’t eat these that often, I really prefer the cabbage or spicy pork variety. However, “bean bun” is much more fun to say. Go on, try it. Bean bun. Beanbunbeanbunbeanbun. See?

This, I have no idea what it’s called. It’s great though. It’s like, sweet black sesame crunchy stuff. I remember as a kid getting these sesame honey candies, maybe you know what I mean? They’re like that, except, um, black. And flat.

Pork jerky. Better than it looks in the picture on the package. (It would have to be, right? Because it looks like open wounds. Which is, for most people, really really not appealing.) I do love the drunk chef, though.

Ah, White Rabbit candies! This is a true Shanghai specialty. A creamy vanilla taffy-like candy, the kind that’s likely to pull out all of your fillings.  Made with condensed milk and possibly melamine. Curiously addictive. I’m going to go get one RIGHT NOW.

Sachima! If you live in a city with a Chinatown, you can probably find this in every food shop. It’s a bit like a Rice Crispies treat, except made with puffed noodles instead of puffed rice. They’re everywhere, but they vary according to brand. Some are really, really sweet, some are not so much; some are almost a bit soft, others are quite crunchy; some are made with big fat noodles, others with thinner ones. I like this brand (whatever the heck it is, Number One Smiley Cooking Man or what have you) a bit – it’s less sticky and sweet than some others I’ve tried and nice & crunchy. Apparently there are regional variations as well, Fujian province people make them with sesame, Cantonese ones often have coconut, etc etc.

This is nice stuff on a cold day. It’s like the local version of Swiss Miss, except it’s made with black sesame and not chocolate. Comes in little packets, you put the powder in a mug, pour on some hot water and stir it up, and voila. Very delicious, if  slightly offputting in appearance. (Don’t be fooled by the photo on the package. In the cup it’s a much less attractive, sludgy gray color.) Tends to leave a thick pasty sediment in the bottom of the cup as well, which I know doesn’t help sell it, but is actually quite tasty (like sweetened tahini, which I suppose is effectively what it is.)

M is all over these. They are little kid-sized dumplings with different fillings. She doesn’t usually eat very much – you couldn’t keep a parakeet alive on what she eats some days, it seems – but she will always eat at least half a package of these. I don’t want to feed her too much processed food in general but it’s good to know I can always default to these when she is turning her nose up at everything else. (Although last night she ate several mouthfuls of fresh spinach sauteed with garlic, of her own accord, with no begging, pleading or bargaining from me – HURRAH! Off topic I know, but I am just so damn pleased about it.)

Lastly another one of M’s faves. I don’t know what this is called. In our house we call it “waawaa!”, because in the commercials for it on TV, at the end of it they say “waawaa!” But actually the company that makes this makes several other food and beverage products and all of their commercials end that way, so it’s obviously a branding thing, and not the name of this specific product. Doesn’t matter though. We know what we mean when we say “waawaa!” in this house. It’s some sort of milky drink, but maybe not cow milk, maybe soy. It’s like Yoohoo, but not chocolate. Possibly it’s very bad for her and I am a terrible mother for allowing her to have it, I don’t know. Ignorance is bliss.