Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
In Taiwan , I fall in sexual love . I did n’t find a mate , a pet , or abruptly decide to move my biography to the other side of the world . I diminish in love with a coconut - season corn puff called Kuai Kuai ( or “ Guai Guai ” ) . And since returning home base , I ’ve had an unopened bag of the bite leaning onmy play PC .
If you ’re one of the few that knows about Kuai Kuai , you already know what ’s up . For everyone else , you probably think I ’m a little off my rocking chair . You might be onto something there , but Kuai Kuai has an entire polish around it that I learned about on my trip toComputexthis year , and it ’s been a neat elbow room to bring a little piece of Taiwan home with me .
Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
If you typewrite “ guai guai ” into Google Translate , it comes out to “ be obedient ” in English from Mandarin . That ’s the estimate behind placing the snack next to your microcomputer . When I arrived in Taiwan , I was recognise with a care software of local collation , one of which was Kuai Kuai .
A small menu alongside the snacks explain that the corn puffs were seen as a good circumstances charm for technical school in Taiwan . Interesting , I thought , before pull the bag open , pig every last crumb ( they are delicious ) , and going on with my day .
But I kept control them . I ’d go to printing press meetings and see the evident greenish bag sit on PCs . They were fully stocked in every 7/11 and FamilyMart . And after a quick Google hunting , I sawexecutives as AMD , Taiwan ’s TSMC , andMicrosoftposing with their own bags . This was n’t just some lousy story to sell to unsuspicious tourist about a collation that ’s only produce in Taiwan . There was an actual culture skirt it .
You ’ll find it inpolice station , banks , hospitals , and engineering labsin Taiwan , and I ’m sure that ’s just scratching the surface . There are potential some who believe the magical magnate the bite brings ; others do n’t . no matter , it ’s a custom in Taiwan that I — and surmise most others here in the States — just are n’t secluded to .
It ’s hard to say how the tradition started . Ifyou necessitate Irene Liao , general manager of the ship’s company that produces Kuai Kuai , she ’ll differentiate you that it started with a alumnus bookman who put a bag of Kuai Kuai next to his crashing computing gadget while pen his thesis . After the travelling bag was in place , the crashing ceased . It ’s probably some combination of a small group practicing the tradition flux with some merchandising effort that created the acculturation border Kuai Kuai . Regardless , it ’s here to stay put .
It is n’t easy finding Kuai Kuai in the U.S. There are some position you may pluck it up online , but they ’re few and far between . Depending on what city you live on in , your skillful bet if you want to essay the bite is to track down a local Asiatic or international food market place . That ’s how I was able-bodied to discover them . They ’re only made and sold in Taiwan , so your mileage will certainly vary .
If you want to take part in the tradition , there are some unbreakable rules you necessitate to keep in mind . First , you demand the green bag . There are a few flavors of Kuai Kuai , but you ’re looking for the creamy coco palm that make out in the dark-green bagful . If you use a different color , such as the yellow bag that ’s five - spice flavored , you ’ll land defective luck to your tech .
You ca n’t give the bag , either . So , if you find Kuai Kuai , make certain to pick up an redundant traveling bag or two to nosh on , but keep one specifically for your PC . It needs to be unopened . Take note of the expiration particular date on the bag as well — you ’re hypothesize to replace the bag shortly before it cash in one’s chips . At least you ’ll get to cash - in your safe luck charm before it goes sour . In Taiwan , there have been cases of railcar accidents and enceinte - scale technical mishaps attributed toimproper Kuai Kuai usage .
Kuai Kuai has a storied chronicle that falls somewhere between tradition and superstition depending on who you require . As a computer grind , it ’s gruelling to not get in on the human activity . Taiwan is the epicenter of the semiconductor industry , after all . If a pack of coconut tree corn puff is respectable enough to keep that diligence running , they ’re good enough for me . They ’re pretty good to snack on , too .
