Cantonese congee is prepared by cooking rice for a long time until it begins to dissolve in the hot water and forms a thick broth. Some of the ingredients are added in raw when the congee. For example, pig liver is a common addition locals enjoy that can cook quickly in the hot congee. The congee I ordered this week had meatballs, fish balls and egg ribbons. I believe the egg ribbons are formed by cracking a raw egg into the dish and quickly mixing it to break it into pieces.
Of course, the main ingredient in peanut candy is simply roasted peanuts. A sugary syrup made from rice or barley is added. While the mixture is still hot, it is very dense, so it must be beaten and folded repeatedly to mix it together. I imagine this is how taffy is made in the U.S.
The ingredients added to the Cantonese congee are all available locally. However, I do not think Kinmen is suitable for growing rice, so the rice is probably imported. I heard a rumor that using organs as ingredients comes from tougher war times when good meat was scarce.
Peanuts grow particularly well in Kinmen's red clay soil. The Taiwan Travel Atlas claims that Kinmen's "dry sea wind and stable climate prevent the candy from becoming sticky." Peanuts also need many warm days in a row to grow well. In the U.S., peanuts are normally grown in the south around Texas, Alabama and Georgia. Like Kinmen, these states have more warm days each year than Philadelphia and the northern United States. Can you think of a food that might grow better in Pennsylvania than in Kinmen?
