Bracing for this Duck Rice
I can now count on my one hand how many times I’ve been to hawker centre here in my hometown Singapore. This is again that time I’ll be visiting one. It is because of a recommendation of a friend regarding this braised duck dish with rice usually served at hawker centres. It is actually called Duck Rice. She knows I only tried eating duck once, a Peking duck to be exact and that was ages ago. I’ve never tried it again ever since.
My notion of what duck taste is somewhat fishy. That is understandable since ducks really eat fish that is why it has that fishy taste. But the Peking duck I had before was really delicious so I am all for trying this duck rice. The stall is Lim Seng Lee Duck Rice Eating House. They do the Teochew style of braising the duck rice dish because it has a slightly runny sauce unlike the Hokkien version which is thicker.
When I went there before lunch time there were already some people ordering the famous duck rice they serve. The duck is thinly sliced and sitting on a small platter with the braising liquid. Accompanying the duck is a serving of steamed rice with the duck’s braising liquid splashed on top. I took a sip of the braising sauce before trying the duck. The sauce was very savory and a little bit sweet. It was really good. That alone I can already eat the rice with. Then I sampled the duck meat. They were really soft and you really don’t have to exert so much effort into chewing it. It tasted even more amazing when I added the chili sauce. I cannot stop eating it with the steamed rice.
I can see and taste why Lim Seng Lee Duck Rice Eating House serves the best duck rice in Singapore. I cannot help but thank the owner of the stall and tell him how good the duck rice was. The duck rice really made my day – will certainly go back there and try the Kangkong with lime juice because it seems a lot of people were ordering it too along with the duck rice.
Game to Try This Soup
Since my palate was conservative before, my preferred types of food and dishes are so limited. Take for instance for meat dishes, I am confined to pork, beef and chicken only. For me they are the most flavorful and ‘safe’ to eat types of meat. My only deviation was a veal meal which I find also flavorful. Aside from these, I never tried other types of meat such as wild pig, mutton, lamb, goat, rabbit, venison or even turkey. I don’t like the ‘gaminess’ taste that some wild meat has. For me they either have a ‘rustic’ taste or bland. But I wouldn’t know as I have not eaten any.
The other day a friend took me to a restaurant that serves a Mutton soup (Indian Muslim). It is also known as Kambing soup. I had reservations at first but I don’t want the old Miss Prim and Proper get in the way of tasting this “good unique soup” as my friend describes it. The soup has a yellowish thick broth. I can already smell the spices once the bowl was placed in front of me. My friend informed me that some of the spices they put in are cinnamon, fennel, star anise, coriander, cumin and curry. Diced mutton meat can be found at the bottom of the soup. My friend told me the he used to eat this Mutton soup (Indian Muslim) when he was the kid and the ones we are eating now taste exactly the same as he remembers it. He said the soup they serve there is not as oily as others make it.
First sip of the Mutton soup (Indian Muslim) and I was already sold. It was really good: spicy and quite enjoyable. The spices have already balanced out the gaminess the mutton meat had. In other words it has absorbed well the flavor of the spices. I never thought that I would enjoy this Mutton soup (Indian Muslim) concoction. Suffice to say, I am now more open to eating other types of meat after trying this dish.
Being Miss Prim and Proper on Chinatown Food Street
Being a conservative woman before and now wanted to try something out of the box, someone told me to go to Chinatown. He said that they have the most unconventional but flavorful Chinese cuisine you could find in Singapore. More than a dozen food stalls line up Smith street and tables and chairs are set up outside for a unique al fresco dining experience.
Well, that sounds good to me. I never remembered going in that place. After having a wonderful time in East Lagoon last time, I reserving my comment until I see the place and tasted the dishes there. I went with that friend the other night. Since it was already nearing dinner, the place with its bright modern houses is adorned with beautiful lights creating a festive mood. Once you approach Smith Street, you can easily smell fragrant dishes being cooked and the rows of table being occupied by hungry diners. I am getting very excited. My friend told me that the Char Kway Teow and Fishball Noodles are good here.
Among locals, I can see a lot of tourists eating in this street food center. I can see a lot of seafood (BBQ) being cooked on the side of the street: squid, prawn, clams, fish and even scallops. My friend led me to Ah Fatt Fishball Noodles stall. He said they serve the best fishball noodles in this entire street. Before I would never thought of on the side of the street because of hygienic issues, but the dining atmosphere really got into me and it did not matter who I was seated with because the place was really busy that night. I was glad that there were a lot of fish balls in the dish because they were really flavorful and don’t have that fishy taste and the fact that they were soft and not rubbery. The noodles were also tender and cooked just right. I think we were slurping the noodles too noisily that I and my friend were laughing while we were devouring the noodles. Anyway, it means that we were thoroughly enjoying the fishball noodles.
I saved some room for Char Kway Teow because after finishing the noodles we headed next to Hill Street Fried Kway Teow. Another noodles dish but this one is stir fried. Judging from the smell and appearance of that Char Kway Teow we’ve passed by on tables, no wonder the lines was long in that stall. Before I would never dare eat something so greasy or what you might say ‘swimming in oil’ food, now I would never pass this one. On my Char Kway Teow I can see prawns, lots of it, squid, bean sprouts, cockles, onions, some fish cakes that were thinly sliced, chili and some eggs. It has a sweet and salty savory sauce that makes it very addictive. I surprised myself by having another order of this stir fried noodles.
Before we went home, we passed by Ci Yan Organic Restaurant and it serves great vegetarian meals. We got some Banana walnut chocolate chip muffin to take home and they were hot and fresh from the oven. Thinking that it is healthy takes away the guilt in eating this muffin. Not bad for a take home dessert. I never thought I would have so much fun eating and doing some food shopping in Chinatown. I would definitely visit again.
Second Time’s a Charm
We all know that Singapore is known for its hawker centres because of the affordable street foods that they have there. Well, I have a confession to make. I have never been to anyone. I did try to go once, but when I saw how crowded it was and people being sweaty and all, I just turned back. My mother never took us there, ever. She always tells us that it is better to eat at our home rather than eat there. Besides all food sold there are greasy and not good for our health. That’s my mother - always on the negative side of things.
Now that I’ve decided to make a difference in my life and try new things, I thought of trying to go there the second time. My friend suggested the East Coast Lagoon Food Village at East Coast Park. It was different from other hawker centres in Singapore because it is located next to the beach and the tables are set up under palm trees.
So one day I took off to East Coast. The sea breeze is really refreshing unlike the hawker centre I went to before. Since it is close to the sea, I figured that they serve fresh seafood there. I immediately look for a Singapore chili crab. What better way to start my meal than having chili crab, right? I found a stall where they have this and there are people waiting in line so I was thinking maybe their version is good. Eating chili crab is messy but I don’t care, it was delicious! The sauce was sweet and spicy and crabs were succulent. I ordered extra mantou to clean up the sauce.
Next thing I looked for is the char kway teow. This is the greasy food my mother is trying to avoid. The one I had was served on a banana leaf which was a big no-no for me before. I preferred eating on plates. This local Singapore recipe has a reputation for being unhealthy. I can see why. It has shrimps, cockles, croutons made of pork lard and everything is stir fried on pork fat. But again, who cares? It was really so good. All those ingredients made it very tasty. I had fun eating it because I was imagining my mother scolding me for eating such an unhealthy food.
Lastly, I looked for some oyster omelet. Again, this favorite Singapore food is extremely greasy. I can just imagine my mother’s face while I was ordering this dish. It comes with a chili vinegar sauce maybe to cut on the greasiness of the omelet. The vinegar sauce is really good. And the omelet was very savory.
Why second time’s a charm? I really enjoyed eating at the hawker centre in East Lagoon. Not to mention the food was very affordable. While sitting on those tables outside near the beach sipping some coconut water, I was just taking it all in. I was thinking of all the good things that I have been missing all these years. I will definitely try other hawker centres next time!
Me then and Me now
I used to be an obsessive Compulsive when it comes to everything in my life. Same goes with the food I eat. It must be clean or neatly prepared. Added to that, it must taste great. That holds true with the restaurants I choose. That is why I try to go to the restaurants that are known, which have already been tried and tested not only by me but also by other people and holds good food review.
Well you might ask why I am like this. It stems from my upbringing. My parents are strict and they want everything in order. My mom is a stickler when it comes to cleanliness. This is so evident in our house, particularly in our kitchen. Cooking is like a military task, everything should be properly done and in sequence. This may sound straight and boring, but it is not. This blog is a testament that we only deserve to eat the best food expensive or not even in the most unusual way.
Now I’ll try get out of the box, leave my comfort zone and go into the unknown. Why you may ask again. I am tired of living by the rules, by doing something in sequence even in eating and preparing food. I WANT TO TRY SOMETHING DIFFERENT. Like my friends always tell me, it’s time for a change. Also, for the first time in my life I am learning to cook. So I am excited!
I’m bringing with me courage, patience and determination into trying out the different Singapore food. I am so looking forward to it. I think this is the new me, young, wild and carefree. Well not wild, just maybe in food taste.
