Bonito Flake Soup 柴鱼汤

Bonito Flake Soup (柴鱼汤) is a broth made fragrant with thin flakes of dried bonito. In Taitung (臺東), the Green Island (綠島) prison's official food workshop identifies locally made bonito flakes as a quick way to prepare sweet, savoury stock.

From dried fish to broth

The workshop's flakes are made entirely from bonito. Drying the fish by roasting is an important part of making the ingredient. Its serving method is to bring the soup to a boil first and then add the flakes, which quickly flavour the liquid with the fish's sweetness.

Green Island's bonito tradition

The producer connects the ingredient to Green Island's fishing history: during Japanese rule, pole-and-line bonito fishing was introduced and a bonito-processing factory was established there. The fishing technique and dried-fish production became shared memories among older island residents.