A Taiwanese-American Cookbook That Makes Me Drool! (ZAN! #2)
one notable thing by creators from across the Asian diaspora
Thanks for subscribing to ZAN! The Newsletter. Every other week, you’ll receive an email with five recommendations of works by creators from across the Asian diaspora. For the weeks in between, you’ll receive one long-form recommendation. This week is the first of these long-form recommendations. Enjoy!
I wandered into NYC’s iconic Strand Bookstore a few weeks ago with the hope of impulse-buying a book for my collection. (Some days, you just gotta.)
And while passing through the cookbook section, I immediately locked eyes on the right answer.
What is Win Son?
Win Son is a Taiwanese-American restaurant in Brooklyn, NY.
The restaurant’s name is inspired by the family business of one of the co-founders, Josh Ku, whose grandfather founded a sweater manufacturing company in Taiwan named Winsome.
What makes this cookbook special?
While Win Son’s cuisine is inspired by the foods and flavors of Taiwan, you’ll find that many of their dishes have a creative (and delicious) spin.
For example, they top their marinated cucumbers — my summer side dish staple — with wu yu zi, or cured mullet roe (also known in Italy as bottarga). Their bakery section features bolo bao, the classic pineapple bun, but they fold their milk dough in a way that imitates a croissant. Say no more.
Even if you aren’t a cook (or maybe you’re just an aspirational one), this book is a beautiful celebration of the history and culture of Taiwan, and is a joy to comb through.
I would say that this cookbook is more for intermediate cooks rather than beginners, and it does require the acquisition of a few Taiwanese pantry staple items. But if you’re an adventurous eater, these dishes will make your taste buds sing!
I proudly display this book on my coffee table and love to flip through the pages while trying not to drool all over the pages. It would also make an excellent gift for a Taiwanese food-loving friend!
Win Son in Real Life
After bookmarking every other page of recipes, I knew that I had to get myself to Win Son as soon as possible to try their food. And it did not disappoint!
Located in Brooklyn, Win Son runs both their main restaurant and a nearby cafe (called Win Son Bakery) on the same intersection.
And just down the street is Yun Hai Shop, a Taiwanese general store where you can buy condiments, snacks, and more. A very stacked intersection in terms of Taiwanese things!
Many of the dishes they serve at the restaurant are featured in the cookbook — including clams with basil, lu rou fan (braised pork & rice), fried eggplant, and more.
As for the bakery, I visited a little late in the day, so there weren’t as many options (I need to get the sun cookie next time!), but I devoured a flaky bolo bun and a surprisingly sweet-and-savory mochi donut. No pictures because I inhaled them. Would highly recommend!
The bakery also serves Taiwanese breakfast, which I still need to go back and try — I’m craving xian doujiang (savory soy milk) and some good fan tuan (sticky rice rolls).
👩🏻🍳 Josh Ku, Trigg Brown, and Cathy Erway - Win Son Presents: A Taiwanese American Cookbook
And so, the Win Son cookbook officially joins the list of zàn recommendations! With my cookbook addiction spiraling out of control (my coffee table is has five cookbooks on it at the moment), you can probably expect some more cookbooks on this newsletter in the future.
Know a friend who would love the Win Son cookbook? Share this post with them (or impulse-buy this book like I did and send it to their house. They’ll love it, I promise).
And don’t forget to subscribe if you haven’t already done so!
Lastly, don’t forget that my inbox is always open if you have a recommendation for something that would be great for the newsletter. You can shoot me an email with your recommendation at zanthenewsletter@substack.com. You can also send me a DM on Instagram at @rebeccaericsonhua. I’d love to hear from you!
Until next time,
Rebecca
Can't wait to get my hands on this cookbook!!