Caizong Li

Review

Caizong Li, at No. 159 Chenggong 1st Road in Lingya District, has been making peanut rice dumplings for more than sixty years and is now in the hands of the third generation; it is one of the first names locals mention for this dish. The MICHELIN Guide has listed it as a Bib Gourmand since around 2022 and 2023, it remains on the 2026 list, and everything it sells is vegetarian.

The dumplings contain only glutinous rice and peanuts, nothing else, and are boiled in the southern style until the rice is soft and the peanuts crumble. Michelin describes round glutinous rice from Changhua with Yunlin peanuts, while another report mentions long-grain glutinous rice and Beigang peanuts, so sources disagree; check before you go. Each dumpling uses three leaves, old and new mixed, folded in the family's own triangular method. Try a bite plain to taste the leaf aroma, then add the sweet-savoury sauce and peanut powder, with a bowl of vegetarian tofu miso soup on the side.

Fans praise the strong peanut fragrance and a sauce that is not cloyingly sweet, and vegetarians can eat with confidence; foreign visitors also mention the clean shop, friendly staff and free unsweetened tea for diners. Critics say the flavour is very simple and the texture soft, and not everyone likes boiled southern-style dumplings; some found that dine-in dumplings sold out soon after lunch.

Michelin and Supertaste both list hours of 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. daily, while older listings say 5:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., so hours may have changed. A dumpling costs NT$35, with miso soup extra. Add the chilli sauce on the table for heat, or ask the owner for minced garlic. Chenggong 1st Road is busy, so look for roadside spaces or a nearby car park; some diners mention mobile payment is accepted.

It works as breakfast or an afternoon snack and suits vegetarians well. First-timers only need one dumpling and a bowl of miso soup; bigger appetites can start with two. Eat it plain first, then add sauce, peanut powder and chilli to taste.