Thursday, September 17, 2015

[Food Tasting] ChaoZhou Porridge 潮粥 at River Valley Road

Teochew Porridge is a comforting and delicious meal to have at anytime of the day. I love how I can have a variety of Chinese side dishes to go with my hot porridge. I usually just went to a popular coffee shop located near Bukit Merah for my Teochew Porridge cravings but now my option has increased, thanks to Meryl for bringing me to this food-tasting session at ChaoZhou Porridge. Get ready to step back in time and relish the delicious Teochew dishes in the restaurant's modern and air-conditioned setting.  


A little background of ChaoZhou Porridge, helming the kitchen is a head chef with more than 10 years of experience. To learn more about the Teochew cuisines, he often travel to Chaoshan, China to learn from the best chefs and acquire local recipes. He is well connected with the brains of diners and chefs there. 


At the restaurant, diners can discover seven types of dishes to savour: Cold; Steam; Braised; Deep-fried; Boiled Vegetables as well as Chaozhou signature and Chaozhou porridge. 


Diners may choose to order their food from the menu or simply walking over to the open kitchen where all the dishes are prepared and displayed. 


Drinks to quench our thirst first. I had Barley while Meryl had Ice-Lemon Tea before food is served.


潮主食
ChaoZhou Porridge 
[上膳若粥]
$0.70

The porridge is prepared by immersing rice into boiling water, and then cooked under high heat. This process splits and separates the rice grains. Each rice grain then becomes softened and the water also turns into a light porridge base. This porridge follows the authentic Teochew recipe as this is how working men in the past would cook their staple to allow them to save money and still have a gratifying meal. 


潮主食
Steamed Meat Ball with Porridge Water
[入乡随俗]
$5.50/piec

This is a variation of the usual ChaoZhou Porridge. The meatball is a mixed of different ingredients such as pork and vegetables. The slightly salty pork and vegetable brings an extra dimension to the subtle taste of the porridge. 


The meatball is really HUGE!


潮打冷
Big Sotong with Homemade Sauce
[大苏东+潮粥将]
$6.90 

Next up, we had this big sotong as the appetiser. The pillowy squids are first steamed and then chilled, making this a cold appetiser. It goes well with the artisanal sweet-sour sauce tinged with a spicy note.


潮打冷
Cold Bean Curd with Preserved Radish
[菜脯拌豆腐]
$4.80 

This is one of my favourite dish. It's a perfect combination of tender white bean curd with preserved rashish, spring onions and a savoury sauce. Simple dish that is brims with so much flavour. 


潮打冷
Clams (Soy Sauce)
[蛤]
$6.90

Tried one clam reluctantly as I really hate the taste of calms. Luckily, the fishy taste was covered up by the dark soy sauce with garlic and chili. The clam was fresh and chewy so if you are a fan of clams, you may wish to order this. 


潮蒸
ChaoZhou Steamed Mullet
[潮蒸黑鱼]
Seasonal Price

The Mullet is chosen for its meatiness. The whole fish is steamed in the pot first before having its gut removed. This step retains the juicy and original taste of the fish oil. Vegetables are then added for a crunchy bite. 


潮热
Preserved Radish Omelette
[菜脯蛋]
$2.50 (S), $4.50 (L)

Another of my favourite simple dish that is full of flavours. The egg is skillfully fried to a resplendent golden and filled with radishes for the crunchy bite.


潮卤
Braised Delight Platter (Duck, Pork Belly, Large Intestines, Egg, Bean Curd, Tau Pok)
[卤味拼盘]
$16.90

This dish reminds me of eating kway chap. The duck meat is tender and fragrance. I enjoy eating this platter.


潮热炒
Crisp-fried Taro Rolls
[香芋煎卷]
Minimum 3 pieces: $2.30/piece

Inside the crispy exterior is the soft taro paste. Each bite into its piping hot luscious flesh is thrilling.

Some additional dishes we ordered for sharing.


Boasting the right proportion of fat and lean pork meat, the Braised Pork in Soy Sauce [酱香五花肉] promises juicy tenderness. The process of marinating and cooking the meat over a small fire takes more than a day. 


The Braised Duck with Ginger [子姜焖鸭] is expertly stewed with various spices and ginger. Because of the long cooking process, the duck simply falls apart when bitten into, and it melts in the mouth.


Baby Squid, Briased Tau Kee, 3-eggs vegetables. The guys at our table loves the braised tau kee so much they ordered extra individual bowls! 


So, the next time, if you feel like having some comfort food, why not head down to ChaoZhou Porridge. Their operating hours is from 10.30am to 5am daily. 

Address: 221 River Valley Road, Singapore 238279
Telephone: 6268 6763

XOXO

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