Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Chai Chee Pork Porridge: This Teochew Ah Hia actually prefers Hainanese porridge!



Ah, an anonymous reader quipped that being Teochew I only liked the grainy kind of porridge. Not true, not true. My favourite kind of Jok is actually the Hainanese style one which has broken grains in it. I guess it might be something I grew up with. I remember eating Jok almost every Sunday morning with my Dad when we were still living in Toa Payoh lor 8 and it was this kind of Jok. Best thing was that there was a You Char Kway stall in the same market were this old man used to sell 10 for a dollar. Happiness is dipping a freshly fried You Char Kway into hot porridge!



For me, I like my porridge with lots of savoury minced pork balls which have been well seasoned with sesame oil. So the porridge here certainly hit the right buttons in my books. The porridge was nicely flavored which, according the the aunty is attributed to long hours of cooking with the best pork bones a hawker can buy. 4.25/5

Since we are talking about porridge, can I ask our readers what you usually do with the egg? Do you break it, leave it to cook or leave it out entirely?

Conclusion

Great bowl of porridge with savoury minced pork that hits the spot when you need something to warm the tummy on a cool night.

Chai Chee Pork Porridge
FengShan Food Centre
Bedok Blk 85
Opened till late

37 comments:

Anonymous said...

Finally, you blog on Chai Chee Pork Porridge. I have been harping on you to try this stall as in my opinion is the best thus far of all the jok I ate :-)

Holy Drummer said...

Break the egg! Swirl it around so it becomes thick and 'kao'. Add century eggs to double up!

I swear by my childhood porridge at the Marine Terrace Market.

Just ask Cactuskit =)

JENCOOKS said...

Have not tried Chai Chee Pork Porridge but the one at Bedok Interchange is already in my Approval List.

lovegoodfood said...

Whenever i go to FengShan. I will eat the Bak Chor Mee, the hokkien mee and also Chai Chee Porridge. Love the taste of their porridge..

cactuskit said...

Break the eggs too and swirl it around just like Mr. Holydrummer. That way shiok lah. Agree that this porridge is special.

There are quite a few nice ones in the east. Next time go with you at your reservist stint. ; ). Or else, mostly nite porridge.

jems said...

I have tried this stall and I dun add the egg~~ Haha! That's also why I do not really like Hainanese style porridge. Too gao (thick)for me and ya, reminds me of the boooooring homecooked porridge we were made to eat everyday as a kid....

For something in the west, try this stall at West Coast FC. Colleague dapao and tried twice.
Similar to this Chai Chee porridge.

saampat said...

Holy Drummer,

Is the Marine Terrace porridge still there?

ice said...

Just mho, certainly not what the doctors would prescribe: slurp up the raw yolk before it gets cooked then swirl whatever that's left into the porridge.

For a mean bowl of Hainan porridge if you're in the West, try Soon Lee at Clementi Central. These guys are really good and have been around for ages.

sumosumo said...

ahh...
as the regulars know.. i really dislike jok...

and chai chee porridge is the only jok i eat... (i dont even eat my mother's jok, and she makes damn good jok, according to my family and friends)....

finally you blogged it... 4.5 for me... this jok.

serenemai said...

me too! i love love love the thick and gooey kind of jok.

as for the egg...

BREAK IT!!!!

reychen said...

Yup yup... one of the abv average stalls around bedok 85 hawker. Something to go for when you have had enough of the greasy food there. i'd prefer to stir egg till its totally "dissolved" into the Jok!

smart said...

This is one of the best jok in Spore. When I am ordering I request everything also want. They have so many ingredients. I like to save the best for the last so I break the egg when I am 3/4 done.By the way the son is now back at Tampines Round market.

flyboy said...

It's mostly when I want to eat less oily food that I consider ordering jok to eat. But when it comes wif a you tian I get tempted to eat. So conflicting so I usually end up not eating jok...

As for the egg, I like to suck up the egg yolk by itself, I love egg yolk!!

love ur blog btw it's very useful and the pics always make me hungry!

Nod said...

break ze egg and let it half-cook by the porridge's heat

hgfoodie said...

Chai Chee porridge is too "gao" or "gooey" for my liking. My all time favorite is the ex-Midnight Curry old man's porridge. Sadly to say, he no longer sells them, guess he's retired. This old man has been selling porridge for over 20 years in hougang in chie toke huan (those who are familiar will remember).

Anonymous said...

there's a branch at tampines round market. I would say the standard has dropped for the past few years although it's still quite gd..

Michelle said...

I love to leave my egg to be half-cooked by the jok and then eat it last.. the half cooked egg yolk is the best! Btw, can you feature this Good Old Frog Porridge? They just shifted to Outram Road (beside Tiong Bahru Pau) from Chinatown. Their frog is pretty big in size and very fresh.. There's some promotion going on now since they just moved to a new place. Have being their regular customer ever since I tried it two years ago!

ieat said...

Why don't you post it in the forum so that our forummers can start the ball rolling.

Anonymous said...

OMG... Finally, Bedok food!! you should try the porridge stall that opens in te afternoon where I have my lunch, I think it might be the same owners, but the Umph level is at level 4....

ieat said...

Don't even know your name so how to know where you have your lunch? In fact, even if we do know your name, how do we know where you have your lunch?

Angel MeowS said...

I did not know that you lived in Toa payoh lor 8.

I remember that jok Stall too. I had it every morning when I attended Primary School there.

After the old uncle pass on, the son took over the You Char Kway.

Such wonder stalls they had there in the past

ieat said...

Wow, can't believe you also had the same childhood experience! I remember there was a black chai tou kway which was also quite nice there!

Were you in primary school in the 70's?

Jeremy said...

Hor liao! I am drooling...

liverpool1965 said...

always loved kiam neng or kiam her with porridge, they have this as add-ons here? :)

ieat said...

Don't think so.

I am amazed that a post on Porridge can arouse interest in so many readers!

JENCOOKS said...

So many contributors that I lost my message just now.

Ah Hia, Simplicity always draws the crowd.

I must try this porride soon......

cactuskit said...

Actually, I've learnt to appreciate both the gao chok and the lighter more watery chok. If well prepared, each has its own distinctive flavour and strength. Its just like wanton mee. Altho my pref is the hongkong springy type, I also enjoy the other types. I guess I enjoy all sorts of good food.

Maybe that's why there's not a single cuisine type I don't really enjoy in Asia.

JENCOOK said...

This forum is keeping me awake...

I have just tried a runny porridge at the temporary hawker centre at Bugis. It has sprinklings of light anchovies over it and it taste as superb, very light on the stomach compared to the gooey ones.
I think the light jok is teochew and gooey, Hainanese.

Anonymous, you are so mysterious leaving trails without an end.

liverpool1965 said...

plain watery porridge, tomato ketchup, luncheon meat....my kinda of meal when I was 5-7 years old... :)

smart said...

The chai chee porridge was started by the son and it was good. He left to expand his business but due to partnership problem he is back at the Tampines Round Market.Yes when he was away the porridge was not good at all.

khim said...

hey flyboy & michelle,

i luv half cooked egg yolk too!! =) i always leave it til e end to eat.. as they always say: save e best for last! ;)

Anonymous said...

My flat is 5min walk from Blk 85 hawker centre & have been eating at this HC for a long time.

It was really good when the father was the one cooking the porridge while the son would stand at the stall just taking orders. When the father stopped cooking, many others took turns to be at the stove - the son, the wife, an auntie, an uncle etc. Not sure if the auntie & uncle are related to the owners. Standard varies or has been dropping since then. The worst porridge I had from this stall was cooked by a really young guy.

Meanwhile, they also opened a day stall at the inner row, managed by another son & that uncle. Was also told that another stall was opened at Tampines.

I didn't mind waiting for 30min or more for the porridge few years back. I used to eat the porridge like weekly or more. Now, I don't even remember when was the last time I ate the porridge.

Holy Drummer said...

On, Cactuskit!

The Marine Terrace one is still there, but the mother at the stove is getting on with old age, though the sisters might carry on the business.

"Xin Xian Pork Porridge" - Marine Terrace Market & Food Centre. Mornings only up till about 10 plus or sell-out.

If you don't like pork, they also have a mean fish porridge (I'd usually order mixed fish with 'bak chor' to have best of both worlds) - their fillet is 'kim mak lor' (threadfin, I think) - they get theirs direct from the market! Very huge slices & very fresh!

Do try Bee Bee Carrot Cake as well - by sisters too! White with extra chilli, thank you very much.

khim said...

i've always been a fan of such thick & gooey type of chok! i think one of e store (which sells satay & chok!) is similar to e one in e picture. think they r hainanese too ba..

qwaszx said...

my comment disappeared! :(

so here it is, again...

i like my egg half cooked. popping the whole yolk into my mouth and letting it burst inside. shiokness!

although sometimes i do mix it in when i'm almost finished with the porridge.

and yeah! it's a 4.5/5 for me too :D

Anonymous said...

I love this chai chee porridge. The meat ball big and siok. Usually will order the big bowl. aioko

chaozhouzi said...

Never like this stall. The one or two time I ate the porridge, I had to drink plenty of water because of the MSG. I prefer the pork porridge at the 511 FC.

Post a Comment