Traditional Taiwanese Food v.1

If you've never had these two items, then you wouldn't know what they are just by looking at the drawing.

I'm not sure about the translation of the left item, so I just called it by the shape as Cup Rice. Sticky rice is mixed with pre-cooked pork, shitaki mushroom, dry shallots, and other secret ingredients; then the whole thing is packed into an aluminum cup and sent to the steamer. Well, at least this is how my mom used to make it.

Stinky Tofu stinks (therefore goes the name), but it's one of the yummiest food in the world. Unfortunately, unless you can find a reputable restaurant or road stand (and this is no easy business), you are more likely to be disappointed or even hate it.

While we are on Stinky Tofu... I found that the fried tofu at Andaman Thai Cuisine restaurant in Richmond 99 Ranch tastes like Stinky Tofu without the smell! The inner texture is not the same (Stinky Tofu uses fermented tofu, while fried tofu uses silky or soft tofu), but both shells are crispy. And its dipping sauce! Somehow it tastes just like Taiwanese kimchi -- sweet and sour -- probably due to the fish sauce. For people who are afraid of the smell, this might be a good way to start.

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I was testing my new waterbrushes with watercolor pencils in this drawing. Because I only applied them on 90lb WC paper to simulate my Moleskine Watercolor Notebook, the WC pencil marks didn't get resolved as much as I'd like. I tried the large waterbrush with watercolor the other day, and it seemed to work fine (other than my unfamiliarity with water control).

Each brush contains its own water supply, which makes watercolor sketching very handy. It's also capable producing small scale of serious art as you can find on this Japanese waterbrush website. I found myself like the Japanese ink&pen style over the Western watercolor style. Could it my familiarity with this style (Manga uses it extensively) and the drawing plays the primary role?

Media: colored pencil, watercolor pencils, fountain pen (for Cup Rice), technical pens.