Expert Info
on 5 Sep 2012
Is it possible to find Western food in Taiwan? I'm thinking of things like pasta, pasta sauce, flour, Western fruit and veg, that sort of thing. Can you only find these things in speciality stores or do normal supermarkets also stock some Western food? Is it expensive? Also, for Taiwanese food in supermarkets are ingredients all in Taiwanese or are ingredients also in English? I have some food allergies so I like to know what I'm eating.
It's definitely possible to find a lot of Western food items in Taiwan's supermarkets. We have a few big chains such as Carrefour, Costco, Matsusei, and Wellcome which carry a variety of Western products such as pasta, sauces, and flour. The only downside is that the majority of these products aren't stocked regularly, so one day something you find might be there and the next time you need it, it might not. The best thing to do is to buy in bulk and stock up on the things you really use when you cook.
As far as Taiwanese food products, unfortunately most do not have English/Chinese translations. However, the nutritional information labels are the same as most other countries so with a little creative memorization, you can certainly learn the amount of calories, sugars, and proteins in a product. As far as ingredients, you can always ask a Taiwanese friend to translate any new product you want to try before you buy. Hope that answers your questions!