Food Truck: Mama Liu Taiwanese Street Food
Area: South Bay (Milpitas, Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, San Jose)

On Wed night, I went with buddies to the 237 Night Market in Milpitas. The 237 Night Market occurs on the first Wed night of each month, till September. There was a circle of food trucks the past Wed; most of them were Taiwanese.

I got oyster vermicelli at the Mama Liu food truck. The vermicelli is thin, soft, and made from wheat.  There was tripe in the soup, but no oysters… Perhaps the soup was oyster flavored with the oyster sauce. The soup is on the thicker consistency side, and on the spicier side though not too spicy.

Whizztrip has info on the vermicelli, also called misua:

Misua is originated from Fujian, China. It is also made from the wheat flour (like thin pasta) but it is thinner than noodle (the difference is about 1mm) and the color of Misua is a bit brown that is got from extensive steaming. Misua is also highly versatile in Chinese cuisine and they are served with many complementary foods and can be used as a garnish or even boiled. Misua is also called wheat vermicelli in stores.

Here’s some info about the dish, from Wikipedia:

Oamisoir (traditional Chinese: 蚵仔麵線; Taiwanese: ô-á mī-sòa) is the English name for a kind of noodle soup that is popular in Taiwan and Xiamen. Its main ingredients are oysters and misua (Taiwanese vermicelli). One of the famous places serving this is in Dihua Street, Dadaocheng, Taipei. A tan-brown variety of vermicelli used for this dish is made primarily with wheat flour and salt, and gains its unique color due to a steaming process which caramelizes the sugars in the dough allowing it to be cooked for longer periods without breaking down.

Food in Taiwan has some more info on the dish:

Oyster vermicelli (蚵仔麵線) is a kind of noodle soup that is popular all around Taiwan and Xiamen Island. This omelet and pineapple cakes are the most favorite Taiwanese food sought after from mainland China and Hong Kong tourists. It is known by the Taiwanese phrase “oh-ah misua”.

Street vendors expertly combine handmade vermicelli with main ingredients oysters and misua, or Taiwanese vermicelli, wheat flour and salt with a variety of seasoned ingredients, such as slowly cooked pork-tripe. Its superb flavor is the use of deep-fried minced shallots. The bowl is then topped off with a few oysters and a pinch of cilantro. Vinegar is usually available for the eater to add to taste..It consists of short, light brown noodles swimming in a bowl of thick soup brot It’s very rich and delicious. You can find it in many night markets and street stall in the evenings and some day markets.

A tan-brown variety of vermicelli used for this dish. It gets its unique color due to a steaming process which caramelizes the vermicelli. This allows it to be cooked for long periods without breaking down.