Shuangbaotai

Shuangbaotai or horse hooves is a sweet Taiwanese with a cavernous hole and chewy dough on the inside and a crisp crust on the outside. It is made by twisting two small pieces of dough together and frying them, causing them to separate slightly while remaining connected. It is similar in taste and texture to a -style beignet from the United States.

In Taiwan, shuangbaotai are a type of ''xiaochi'' typically sold by hawkers at street stalls or in night markets but not in regular restaurants or bakeries.

Names

The name of this food, 雙胞胎 , meaning "twins," is derived form the fact that the dish is two pastries twisted slightly together as if conjoined twins. The Minnan name is 馬花糋 , meaning roughly "horse-hoof cake", also in reference to its shape or 雙生仔 meaning twins.