Charcoal Fried Hokkien Mee: Just as the signboard says!

Does a charcoal fire really make a difference to the taste of the food? I know that a charcoal grill definitely imparts a smoky flavour to satay and other BBQed meats, but how does a charcoal fire actually impart taste through a wok to Hokkien Mee? Some would argue that it is the intensity and the wider distribution of the heat that makes the difference. Personally, I think that it is just a novelty and novelties attract attention.

I'll bet that when the first gas stoves came out, people said that food cooked over gas was more tasty. It's just like HDB homes. When they first came out, all the people living in the Kampungs rushed to get the HDB flats. Nowadays, the situation is the other way around, although, the Kampung hut would have to have nice toilets, air-conditioning and broadband connection before I would trade my home for it.


Hokkien Mee $3

You don't commonly find Hokkien Mee cooked over a Charcoal Fire nowadays, so when I saw the banner advertising this newly opened stall at Telok Kurau Road, I just had to go investigate. It turns out that they are related to the Geylang Lor 29 Hokkien Mee which also uses Charcoal Fire and the stall over at East Coast Road also known as "Geylang Lor 29 Hokkien Mee".

The old lady frying the Hokkien Mee certainly looks about right for the role. Still spotting a sleeveless blouse with a hanky sticking out of her armpit, she had been frying Hokkien Mee for over 20 years at the Geylang Lor 9 stall. This might explain why the Qiu Ji Hokkien Mee over at Lor 9 did not quite meet up with expectations the last time.

Standing there watching her fry the Hokkien Mee is a treat which you would not want to miss. It's got that old fashioned, nostalgic feel about it. Everything gets really messy as the noodles are flagrantly swirled around the wok with some rogue bits escaping off the rim. The expectation builds as the stock gets added to the noodles and the cover is placed over the wok. Then the long minute before the lid is finally lifted you are rewarded greeted with the blossoming fragrance as the noodles and the stock merge to become the familiar yellow-brown gooey mass. Finally the prawns are added and the noodles are unceremoniously scooped onto a plate that is way too small. Absolute magic!

Hokkien Mee fried over charcoal somehow does give it a bit of an edge in taste. Whether it is psychological or not, I am not sure. The noodles are nice and gooey but not overly rich and they use the thin bee hoon which absorbs the stock very well. For $3 you get a generous portion with three good sized prawns. The only let down was the pork lard which was not crispy which lowered the ratings by a quarter of a point. 4.25/5

Conclusion
Bit of a Heritage Hokkien Mee with a good lineage. It's only been opened for a month, so do try it and let us know if it meets up to your standards.

Charcoal Fried Hokkien Mee
324T Changi Road Kim San Leng Food Centre
11am to 10pm
Closed in Tuesdays
81823745 SMS/Call to order half an hour for pickup

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Beef Delights: What do you do when you found something good to eat?

With iwatch_uest, liverpool, Tag and smart

When you found something good to eat, do you:

1. Keep it all to yourself so that the place will not get crowded and the food quality won't drop
2. Rush home and post it up on the internet so that the world will know
3. Ring up all your friends and organize a makan trip to the eatery
4. Go back again to try it a second time to make sure the first was not a fluke before telling the world
5. Take pictures of it so that you can re-live the ecstasy at your free time
6. Just file it into your memory banks so that when someone asks you, you can rattle off a few makan spots and appear like a real guru
   

Well, Liverpool found this Beef Hor Fun and could not wait to get all of us makankakis there to try. Of course when you rave about a place so much, you also run the risk of everyone not feeling the same way you do, which can be quite embarrassing....... believe me I know.

So anyway, the group of us where "sold" this Beef Hor Fun by Liverpool who described it as "You have not tasted Hor Fun until you tried this one". This is what I call a "stick your neck out ready for the chopping board" kind of statement, especially when it is applied to a group of pretty "hardened" makankakis. (Myself NOT included, I am still joyfully discovering new things to eat everyday)

So when the Beef Hor Fun finally arrived, we all inspected it very suspiciously, wondering how an innocuous plate of Fried Hor Fun could get Liverpool so excited as to risk being shot down to pieces.

The Hor Fun was slippery and lively which was a nice contrast to the crunchy bean sprouts. The Beef was not overly marinated such that it assumed a sponge-like consistency. It still retained its natural bite but at the same time it did not require a mastication marathon to make it pliable enough to swallow. The beef did taste a tinge sourish that day, perhaps an indication that they use lemon juice or some other citric acid as a tenderizer. The Hor Fun could do with a bit more wok hei but overall, it was a pretty good plate of Beef Hor Fun for me. 4.25/5 However, I have to add that some of the other hardened makankakis were not so impressed, so Liverpool still ended up getting part of his ego bruised. But Liverpool being a cool guy he is, just responded with his signature chuckle.

This Beef Delight stall had just finished shooting for a Channel 8 program that featured its Beef Hor Fun, so the owners are understandably confident about their dishes. Since I have been searching for a wet Beef Hor Fun, we decided to give the wet version a try as well.

Unfortunately, there was a real lack of wok hei on the Hor Fun and the gravy was thin and watery and could really do with more of a beefy punch. 3.25/5

Conclusion

This would be one of the best dry Beef Hor Fun I have tried so far though I don't really go for this dish much so I have not got a good yardstick to compare it with. I can imagine how it can be better though.

Beef Delights
11am to 9pm
Closed on Sundays
51 Telok Ayer Street
China Square #B1-23

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