Heng Heng Bak Kut Teh: The one with the optional Abalone

Fancy a $128 Bak Kut Teh?  Well, if you are an Abalone afficianado and just have that craving for some Abalone, then you just might pop down to Heng Heng to order one.  The rest of us, Abalone apatheticians might stick with just the pork ribs and keep the extra $118 for a rainy day...... or some Wagyu beef.  To each his own I guess.

This quite famous Bak Kut Teh stall, which is just a stone's throw away from the other more famous Bak Kut Teh stall (Ng Ah Sio) has certainly got its share of fans.  And I suspect that they might even had new fans coming across from the recently renovated Ng Ah Sio, which has now lost a lot of its authenticity since they were bought over by Jumbo.   Somehow, eating Bak Kut Teh in a run down coffeeshop still has its charms.

For those who don't like their Bak Kut Teh with a peppery kick, Heng Heng might just be your less abrasive alternative.  The soup here is sweeter than what you would expect of a Bak Kut Teh with strong hints of cinnamon and star anise.  The meat is nice but you will need good incisors to bite into them as they can dislodge ill fitting dentures.  While we we sitting there, we noticed that there were a lot of people ordering steamed fish which we missed ordering.  I came away with the niggling feeling as if I just walked out of Disneyland without seeing Mickey Mouse. 4/5

Conclusion

This Bak Kut Teh is good for those who prefer Jazz to Heavy Metal.  The soup is smooth and sweet and not as peppery as other places.  It's not cheap though, we ended up paying more than $30 for three pots of Bak Kut Teh, one Teh Kah, some chye bueh and you tiao.

Has anyone here tried their Abalone version?

Heng Heng Bak Kut Teh
107 Owen Road
Singapore 218914
7.30am to 2.30pm
Closed on Tuesdays
62924913


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Hup Cheong Hakka Yong Tau Fu: Why "Yong" Tau Fu?

Hakka Yong Tau Fu (40 cents per piece min 5 pcs)

Ever wondered why Yong Tau Fu is called YONG Tau Fu?  Tau Foo we all know is bean curd, but what's teh meaning of "Yong"?  Well as it turns out, the word "Yong" is actually a simplification of the Hakka dialect "Nyiong" which means to stuff.   Thus Yong Tau Fu simply means stuffed bean curd.

But both you and I know that they have other stuff besides stuffed bean curd right?  The same meat or fish paste can be used to stuff everything from bittergourd to eggplant.  I guess someone long ago thought that we should eat more veggies besides just bean curd and started stuffing lady fingers as well.

OK, so how come there is Yong Tau Fu and then there is Hakka Yong Tau Fu?  Why do stalls make the distinction that they are "Hakka"?  Well it turns out that even though the dish is widely regarded as Hakka in origin, over time, the meat and seafood stuffing at some stalls was replaced by fish paste.  Some people think that this is probably due to the fact that our ancestors wanted to make the dish available to the Muslim population who are unable to eat pork.  Over time, fish paste Yong Tau Fu became so common that the stalls selling the original version had to distinguish themselves from the others by calling theirs Hakka Yong Tau Fu.

For me, the tray of deep fried wonton, meat balls and Ngor Hiang in the photo above is irresistible flavour waiting to be devoured.  The meat filling here is shiokalicious and very addictive.  It is great in the tofu, but when simply deep fried as a meat ball and dipped into the sweet sauce.... man why does something so good have to be bad for you? 4.5/5

Conclusion

Well, much as I wish I could just eat a whole bowl of meatballs, my good sense tells me that I should balance out my bowl with some veggies and greens and of course some tofu to add some textural contrast to the deep fried items.  But next time, I could do with a few more meat balls....
 

Hup Chong Hakka Yong Dou Foo
Blk 116 Toa Payoh Lor 1
6.30am to 3pm, 5pm to 8.30pm
Tuesday closed
90932009 Alan


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The Polls: The Best Hawker Centre in Singapore!

Thanks to everyone who wrote in with your nominations!
It took a while to count all the nominees but here are the Top Ten Hawker Centres as nominated by our readers:

1. Old Airport Road
2. Maxwell Road
3. Chinatown (Smith St)
4. Chomp Chomp
5. Tiong Bahru
6. Whampoa
7. Hong Lim
8. Changi Village
9. East Coast Lagoon
10. Ghim Moh 

The Polls are opened! May the best Hawker Centre win!

Everyone gets three votes!

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Seng Huat Bak Chor Mee: Bak Chor Mee round the clock!

Bak Chor Mee (with extra mushrooms) $4

There is no shortage of good Bak Chor Mee stalls in Singapore.  It ranks right up there alongside Chicken Rice in terms of popularity and the number of good stalls around.  But it is something not many tourists come to Singapore seeking to eat.  I can't really figure out why this is so.  Perhaps the Singapore Tourism Board had failed to market this particular dish during the 70's when they were heavily promoting Newton Circus as a Tourist destination.  When we did our polls on the favourite hawker dish amongst Singaporeans, Bak Chor Mee came in third.  We all like it, yet when our overseas friends come to Singapore, do we actually bring them to eat Bak Chor Mee?  They are more likely going to end up eating Chicken Rice and Chilli Crabs right?

Bak Chor Mee is one of the few Chinese dishes which seems to work well around the clock, much like Roti Prata.  So there are a few stalls which operate 24 hours where you can get a hot piping bowl of noodles even in the middle of the night.  Of these, I think that Seng Huat, which is conveniently located just opposite Parco Bugis is probably the best I have eaten so far. 

I have never been impressed with Bak Chor Mee places that substitute tomato ketchup for chilli when you order a bowl of Bak Chor Mee mai hiam (no chilli).  To me, a good Bak Chor Mee should taste good even without chilli and this only occurs when there is a good mushroom sauce and a dash of good quality black vinegar.  And the mushroom sauce is exactly what makes this particular bowl of Bak Chor Mee so good. 

As you may know, mushrooms are rich is natural glutamates which give foods that savoury, umami flavour.  That is why mushroom ketchup was quite a popular condiment in the past.  Both tomatoes and mushrooms are natural sources of glutamates which explains why the Italians like to use tomatoes in their cooking.  This stall actually uses both tomato ketchup and mushroom sauce to flavour their noodles.  However, they use such a small amount of tomato sauce that the taste does not dominate. Instead it adds a complementary tang and sweetness to the noodles that is very well balanced. Our noodles that day was a little overcooked but I think it is something that can be rectified if you remind them that you want yours QQ. 4.25/5

Strictly speaking, you should get only meatballs for Bak Chor Mee and fishballs when you eat Teochew Kway Teow Mee.  But the lines of demarcation are blurred nowadays.  So this stall also sell very nice fishballs which are handmade.  I was told by the owner that they still hand make their fishballs because it gives the fishballs a smoother texture and better bounce when compared with machine made ones.  

This is another one of those really established stall which has spanned three generations.  The grandfather started selling Bak Chor Mee in the 1950's and the father took over in 1969. They now have five stalls around Singapore selling Bak Chor Mee.

Conclusion

Really satisfying bowl of Bak Chor Mee in a central location and opens round the clock!  I think that with so many branches, you do lose a little of that personal touch and quality control.  But that is the trade off for the convenience of having Bak Chor Mee avaialble 24 hours a day.

Seng Huat Eating House
492 North Bridge Road (Opposite Bugis Jn)
Singapore 188737
Opened 24 hours


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Yong Li Fa Ji Fish Soup: The day I learnt to eat Fish Head

Whenever we sit down to have a meal as a family and there is a whole fish around, the head and tail of the fish invariably ends up on my mother or mother-in-law's plate.   The problem starts when we have both mothers sitting on the same table with only one fish head........

I never thought that fish head would be such a favourite amongst our foodies.  When I posted my question on our facebook page, it garnered so many responses!  It seems like foodies really love their fish heads!  What is surprising is that even young people love it!  I had always thought that it was something for the older folks. 

The eyes have it!

The favourite parts of the fish head seems to be the cheeks and the jelly bits behind the eyes.  I guess eating fish head is like eating stuff like chicken feet and pig trotters.  It's all the fiddly, slimy, jellylike bits that get some people excited and others cringing. Some folks also said they like the two strips of meat on the top of the head and others go straight for the brains!  Of course you have probably been told that eating fish brains will make you smarter.  Well, if the fish were so smart, you wouldn't be eating its brains would you?   In the same vein I don't think eating too much chicken would make you "chicken". 

Fish Head Soup $5

Uncle Smart has been extolling the beauty of fish head soup from this stall since the days before the food centre was renovated.  I must admit I have not been a big fan of fish head but today I think I have seen the light.  (Maybe eating the fish eyes has made my eyesight more acute).  Compared to the sliced fish soup, the fish head soup as so much sweeter and the flavours was so much more complex and satisfying.  I can't say that I like all the fiddly bits yet, but I am certainly ordering fish head soup instead of the ordinary slice fish soup the next time I visit!  4.5/5


Conclusion


This is one of the best fish soups I have had in recent memory.  The fish head soup is much better than the sliced fish soup, so if you are after a robust, full bodied fish soup, go get a head!


So are you a fish head lover?  Let us know why you like fish head so much!

Yong Lai Fa Ji Cooked Food
Macpherson Food Centre
#01-66
79A Circuit Road
5am to 9pm
Closed Sun and Pub Hol


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Life Compact SOD Tea: It's all about Antioxidants!

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It might sound ironic, but over the last few years while I have been blogging about hawker food, I have become more concerned about the health benefits of what I eat.  So while I have been going around Singapore looking for the best hawker food, I felt the need to balance the less than healthy stuff that I eat with other stuff that is more healthy.  As a result, I have been taking my five green juice and a big bowl of fruits religiously almost everyday.

Last year I made another drastic change to my eating habits and that is to cut back on added sugar.  The medical community as a whole has started to realise just how detrimental refined sugars are to health and have started to place daily recommendations for the amount of sugar you take everyday.  The way I look at it, you were given a pancreas that can only produce that much insulin in a lifetime.  So if you eat lots of sweets made from refined sugars, then your pancreas has to make more insulin earlier on in life and you would run out of the capacity to make insulin when you reach middle age.  Diabetes is then the result.

So last year, I began to cut back on sugars by switching from Teh Si Siu Dai (less sugar) to Teh Si Kosong and eventually to Teh O kosong.  From there it was a natural progression to just drinking Chinese Tea.  Now Chinese Tea is my staple beverage.  Zero sugar, Zero calories, lots of antioxidants and its great for getting rid of cholesterol.

Aside from Chinese Teas, another alternative to the sugared beverages are the Herbal Teas.  In general, I think people refer to Herbal Teas as any Tea that is made from plants other than the camillia senensis which is the one plant that is responsible for all the Chinese Teas as well as the more familiar Ang Moh (Western) Teh.  Herbal Teas are particularly good if you are sensitive to caffeine and want a nice soothing drink just before bed as they don't contain caffeine.

I was asked to taste test some SOD Tea which is one of these herbal teas that are made from the Rooibos plant which originate from Africa.  This is the first time I have come across this particular Herbal tea and it is said to have beneficial antioxidant properties without the caffeine.  This tea has an interesting taste which reminded me of Luo Han Kuo but without its sweetness.  It is quite pleasant and doesn't have the tannic aftertaste of normal tea. It comes in a few flavours.  The Lemon SOD Tea was wonderfully refreshing and best served with ice while the brown rice tea reminded me of Japanese genmaicha (roasted rice green tea) which is a very soothing drink just before bed.  These ones come in tea bags which you steep in hot water like a normal tea bag.  They also have a version that has probiotics and is supposed to have a slimming effect.  This slimming tea comes in a powder form and can only be mixed with cold water.  I found this one a little to grainy for me and prefer the other versions.

Special for ieatishootipost readers
It's too bad that we just missed the Life Compact SOD Tea Time event on the 8th-9th July, where they gave away 2000 boxes of SOD tea.  But never mind, if you are interested to sample the tea, I have arranged for some samples and 100 pc of $5 vouchers for you to use to buy the tea at NTUC, Watson, Unity, Guardian, Prime and some medical halls.

You can pick up the vouchers at Good Morning Nanyang Cafe (recently voted best Kaya Toast in the Sunday Times), 108 Robinson Road.

More information about SOD tea can be found at their website here

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