washing aiyu (洗愛玉)While gorging myself silly at the Taiwan Food Street, I saw this man repeatedly rubbing and submerging a tiny bag of seeds in a basin of cooled water. I stood in front of his stall to
As the bag of seeds was squeezed and massaged, a slimy gel oozed out. After 3 minutes, no more of the yellowish tea coloured gel could be extracted. The contents of the bag was discarded. The washed gel is then left to set into a jelly. No need refrigeration!
Aiyu jelly (愛玉冰) is a jelly made from the gel on the seeds of a variety of fig (Ficus pumila var. awkeotsang) found in Taiwan.
Left picture : Dried inside out fruit of F. pumila var awkeotsang, ready to be used.
The jelly is usually served with honey and lemon juice. You can also add it to other sweetened beverages or shaved ice. In hot summers, it is particularly popular as a cool drink. Since the gel doesn't dissolve in hot water, aiyu is sometimes used as an ingredient in hot pot.
Thirst-quenching, appetising aiyu jelly drink! S$2
packets of aiyu seeds S$10 each, 3 for S$20Said to be a healthy drink, good for our digestive system, I just love slurping it. Refreshing.
It's my favourite drink these few days! Excuse me while I get another cup.
*to the crowd of bystanders* Excuse me. Excuse me! EXCUSE ME!!!!
Wordless Wednesday
YAY! First commenter?? :):):)
ReplyDeleteHa ha ha so cute la you pushing everybody out of the way to get ur jelly juice. It does sound refreshing, is it sweet on its own? I like the sound of the jelly with shaved ice. ;)
See, that's why it's good to be a night owl...can be first to comment here LOL! Okay, nite nite! :)
ReplyDeletethat sounds so yummy! never heard of it before :)
ReplyDeleteEh? That sounds interesting. How does it taste like btw? Sweet, I presume?
ReplyDeleteVery Intersting, a bit like a flax seed gel only seems much more versatile.
ReplyDeleteThis is a most interesting post.
ReplyDeleteYou know, here up in the North, we have limited access to what we call exotic fruits. Figs are among those.
Have a great rest of the week.
btw. Thanks for all your comments and support in the past.
hugs
Tor
I learn something new every day. Never heard anything like it. Glad you got your jelly juice
ReplyDeleteI think I've eaten that a long time ago. Can't remember what it taste like now. Sounds like a great refreshing drink for summer!
ReplyDeleteI believe there's one like that here in Manila. That sure looks refreshing, ECL!
ReplyDeleteWah.. whatever that is.. it sounds, like GP said, refreshing!
ReplyDeleteAm night owl too but not first commenter.. boohoo!! hehe
Hey, I have tried this drink in Taipei's shiling night market! I didn't know that the jelly is made from seeds...I am so suahgoo...:(
ReplyDeletethat looks interesting ... and delicious! would love to give that a try!
ReplyDeleteLooks good!
ReplyDeletei want to try too...sound really interesting the way they squeeze them. ;)
ReplyDeleteIt looks rather thirst quenching. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteemm..i think i watch about this seeds in a Channel 8 show..
ReplyDeleteguess its sometime similar to 'wan tou long'..
He he he, I see u here LJ lolz...
ReplyDeleteECL, just voted for u and Jaymes, you go girl! :):):)
mariuca,
ReplyDeleteFirst commentator!! haha...
I was asleep already when you commented.
The jelly is tasteless. Honey, lemon juice and shaved ice is added to give it its appetising taste.
Hi tiffanie,
ReplyDeleteNow that you have heard of it, the next thing you should do is to try it. :)
Oh this is interesting. Is it easily available in Singapore? Where is the best place to get them?
ReplyDeleteck,
ReplyDeleteThe jelly itself is tasteless, the honey or syrup gives it the taste. YOu can add the jelly to green tea, soy bean milk, Milo, coffee.....
sukhmandir,
ReplyDeletehmmm.... I have not seen flax seed gel nor tasted it.
toraa,
ReplyDeleteThank you.
We have to import most of our fruits as Singapore doesn't have much land for agriculture. We can find lots of exotic fruits here though.
Dianeca,
ReplyDeleteThat's the benefit of blogging.. we learn something new everyday. I'm bulging with lots of info and not enough time to blog about it. :)
cc,
ReplyDeleteIt's a great drink for summers! Wish I could sell it to other countries. :)
sasha,
ReplyDeleteOh, so you can get it in Manila too. That's cool!
LadyJava,
ReplyDeleteI'm slowly turning into a night owl too. I'm blogging mostly late at night... due to work and family commitments. Lack of sleep...
waitingkitty,
ReplyDeleteThis drink is common in Taiwan.... I did try it when I was in Taiwan but didn't know how it was made.
maiylah,
ReplyDeleteYes, do give it a try when you have the chance.
gran,
ReplyDeleteIt tastes good too! :)
bidarlah,
ReplyDeleteI was attracted by the squeezing and massaging... hehe....
And when I tried the drink, it was irresistible!
mumsgather,
ReplyDeleteIt's a cool drink. You're welcome.
leonard,
ReplyDeleteI think it is 'wan tou long'... only that the Singaporean hawkers don't know how to market it. :)
mariuca,
ReplyDeleteThanks so much again! You have been a great supporter! *hugs*
Doreen,
ReplyDeleteThe company can deliver the seeds to your homes if you buy at least 3 packets.
I don't think they would send to NZ, unless you pay for courier service. That would be very expensive!
Oh so this is ai yu bing. I know we got it here but I never really went to try. Haha.
ReplyDeleteday-dreamer,
ReplyDeleteYes, Taiwanese ai yu bing. Go try it, it's refreshing.
Ya...a lot of Aiyu jelly here. You returned from Taiwan liow?
ReplyDeleteThe drink looks very enticing!
ReplyDeleteErm ... what is EC credits. Me very blur lah.
Anyway ... voted!
I have not seen anything like that before.
ReplyDeleteWhat's EC credits by the way???
tigerfish,
ReplyDeleteI haven't gone to Taiwan .... yet.
There is a mini Taiwanese Food Fair in Bugis Junction lah.
never tried that yet. looks like it really taste good.
ReplyDeletewilfrid,
ReplyDeleteI'll get you the drink tomorrow. Meet me for tea?
EC stands for Entrecard.. Go to
http://entrecard.com to sign up
oceanskies,
ReplyDeleteGo down... see and try for yourself. :) It's sweet and sour... very appetising.
the dong,
ReplyDeleteIt is good. I have been drinking everyday since the fair started. :)
wah... *gulps down saliva*
ReplyDeletethirsty leh.. ECL buy me some? :))))
=P
sylv,
ReplyDeleteNo problem... come to Bugis Junction. :)
It's really nice.
I think I would like to drink that :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for welcoming me back, I got something for you here:
http://emmyrose1028.blogspot.com/2008/07/strong-cup-of-coffee.html
Wow..this drink is interesting!
ReplyDeleteLooks really interesting, maybe a little on the sweet side, but I would like to try it.
ReplyDeleteInteresting... wonder if it'll be tastier if the squeezing was done with hands unwashed right out of... um... washroom. :-P
ReplyDeletehi ECL! i've seen these drinks at pasar malam but im not sure if they are the same. Anyway, i love drinking it! it's so refershing!! :)
ReplyDeleteoh, i've voted for you & yr son today!! All the best, dearie!! :)
ReplyDeleteHmmmmm Jelly with shaved ice!?!? Well, I was wondering where my shaver had gone :lol:
ReplyDeleteAiyu, those jelly desserts right?
ReplyDeleteRefreshing and yung but dun drink everyday wor!!! Later....LS :P *kidding*
emmyrose,
ReplyDeleteGlad that you're back to blogging!
Thanks for the award. *hugs*
my bug life,
ReplyDeleteYes, it is interesting and tastes good. :)
Hi catsynth,
ReplyDeleteThe jelly itself is tasteless, you can reduce the honey if you don't like it sweet. :)
Isaiah!!
ReplyDelete*piak piak backside*
Always think of funny things ah!
Auntie make the drink with my unwashed hands for you...
Come! Come! I have the jelly at home. hehe...
jean,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your votes!!
It should be the same thing... but this Taiwanese stallowner is selling it too expensive. :(
renny,
ReplyDeleteYou shave ice with a shaver!? :D
We have a special ice shaver machine for such desserts. Check out my son's blog to see those machines.
napaboaniya,
ReplyDeleteI have been drinking it everyday since Monday.... it clears the digestive system though... not LS. :D
That sounds interesting :) but i love softdrink
ReplyDeletegadis,
ReplyDeleteI seldom drink soft drinks... have to watch the sugar intake. :) Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. See you again.
I tried Ai Yu Bin years ago.. in 1996. :P my Taiwanese boss brought us to a Taiwanese restaurant.. I could still remember the light and sweet flavour of that drink.. mmm.. Like Xian cao!
ReplyDeleteBring some for me to try when I'm in SG ok?
sher,
ReplyDeleteYou're coming back to Singapore? Wheee... I'll buy the drink for you then.
I'm surprised they have it here in 1996 already.
Thanks for the post, learnt something new today! Always thought that this was just some 'normal' jelly -- like the agar-agar (seaweed) or jello (gelatin) we normally get. Who would have thought it came from seeds (and a disgusting process!) LOL
ReplyDelete