Shrimp rolls — xia juan — are one of the quintessential Anping district snacks: a filling of minced shrimp, pork fat, and seasoning wrapped in a thin tofu skin casing, then deep-fried until the outside crisps and the interior stays juicy. They are eaten with a dipping sauce of plum paste or chilli. Several shops along the old streets of the Anping district sell them, and the best are made to order rather than sitting in a warming case.
The Anping district is the right place to eat them because the shrimp roll tradition originated in the fishing communities that once lived around the old harbour. A walk along Anping Old Street brings you past multiple vendors, and the combination of freshly fried shrimp rolls with the street's older shophouse architecture makes for a complete afternoon. Local milkfish products — grilled milkfish belly, fish soup, milkfish congee — are also abundant throughout Anping.