Super low-cost $2.50 kway chap set with costs unchanged since 2012

While people had been on their option to work at 8am on a weekday, there I used to be, becoming a member of the ten pax-long queue for a bowl of kway chap. Let me simply say this primary— I’m not a morning particular person (and I don’t suppose I’ll ever be), however Feng Ji Kwap Chap is alleged to promote out by 11am, so I knew I needed to be early as a way to attempt its famed S$2.50 kwap chap units.

Yes, you learn me proper. This hawker stall sells kway chap units for as low-cost as S$2.50. And I’m penning this whereas Singapore’s inflation charge simply hit a 14-year excessive!

Feng Ji Kway Chap might be present in Jalan Batu Hawker Centre, a quiet however well-loved hawker centre in Mountbatten. As its identify suggests, this hawker stall specialises in a single factor: kway chap.

It opened in 2012 and is run by a husband-and-wife workforce, Mr Wong Seng Hong and his spouse, Hong Choi Peng. The former does all of the cooking whereas the latter assists with taking orders and serving clients. 

Upon reaching the comparatively small hawker centre, I didn’t even have to search for Feng Ji Kway Chap’s storefront; like a moth to a flame, I headed straight for the stall with the longest queue.

With 10 individuals ready in line for a bowl of tasty kway chap, I used to be shocked to see that the queue was so prolonged that it stretched throughout the span of the hawker centre and even reached the other stall!

Despite the alarming queue, it moved deceivingly quick. By the time I knew it, nearly 25 minutes had handed, and it was time to position my order.

Apart from promoting numerous braised elements of the pig à la carte, similar to Large Intestines (S$2.50 per piece) and Pig’s Stomach (S$1), Feng Ji Kway Chap is most well-known for its S$2.50 kway chap units, that are excellent for single diners in search of a fuss-free and reasonably priced meal.

I struck up a dialog with the girl boss, intrigued by its low costs. “We’ve had these prices ever since we opened 10 years ago,” she shared. 

Cheekily, I replied: “But what about inflation?”

With a chuckle, the girl boss replied: “管它啦!”, which might be translated as ‘Heck it!’.

What I attempted at Feng Ji Kway Chap

Of course, I needed to get Feng Ji Kwap Chap’s Kway Chap Set (S$2.50).

It got here with a bowl of kway (flat rice noodles) swimming in a darkish braised gravy, and a plate of innards and meat similar to small intestines, tau pok, pork stomach and braised eggs.

The very first thing that I did was to take a sip of the lusciously darkish soup.

As with most kway chap stalls, I had totally anticipated to be hit by its attribute pungent aroma. Instead, I used to be pleasantly shocked and extremely impressed by how savoury and aromatic the soup was. 

I might style a wealthy robustness to every sip, which was full of fragrant notes from herbs and spices, in addition to a deep umami from the soy sauce. In some odd sense, the full-bodied dark-coloured broth was nearly candy to me. 

I liked that Feng Ji Kway Chap had topped off every bowl of kway with an excellent quantity of coriander and garlic chips, which did a unbelievable job at balancing out all of the savoury nuances within the soup. More importantly, there was not a single trace of that iconic gamey “smelliness” that got here with most kway chap stalls. 

The kway soaked up all that gobsmackingly yummy sauce, such that every strand of flat, slippery noodle had been stained a stupendous mild brown.

Thick and shiny, the person items of flat rice noodles had been cooked excellent. It held its personal weight and didn’t tear after I picked them up with my chopsticks, and but, after I slurped them up, it took such little jaw work to chunk via. 

To some extent, Feng Ji Kwap Chap’s kway jogged my memory of expertly skinny sheets of chee cheong enjoyable soaked in soy sauce. Absolutely scrumptious.

I moved onto the small serving of innards and meat. 

For S$2.50, I used to be tremendous proud of the quantity that had been served. I counted six items of small intestines, one sq. piece of tau pok that had been minimize into 4 quarters, 4 lengthy stripsof pork stomach, and one whole braised egg minimize into quarters.

Once once more, I used to be tremendous amazed at how clear the whole lot tasted. Seriously. There was no trace of smelliness from Feng Ji Kway Chap’s small intestines. Instead, it was springy, properly braised, and oozed savoury and mildly candy braised juices the minute I bit into it.

This was so positively addictive that I chowed down three to 4 items at one go.

I had excessive expectations for Feng Ji Kway Chap’s tau pok, as a result of if it was something like the skinny flat sheets of rice noodles that had soaked up all that superb gravy, this might’ve been spot on.

Unfortunately, the tau pok was firmer and drier than I had anticipated. If I used to be laborious pressed to explain it utilizing a metaphor, I’d liken it to a sponge as soon as all of the liquid had been wrung out. Don’t get me fallacious— it was nonetheless comparatively yummy, nevertheless it undoubtedly wasn’t my favorite ingredient out of the whole meal.

The pork stomach, then again, was one in all my favourites. It tasted as if it had been roasted previous to being doused in braised liquid, because it was succulent and tender, with a pleasant meaty sweetness.

The final merchandise on the plate was the braised egg. 

I’ve a pet peeve in terms of braised eggs (or hard-boiled eggs utilized in soupy dishes like lor bak and laksa). More usually than not, the egg yolk doesn’t find yourself soaking the yummy soup or gravy sufficient and seems as dry because the Sahara Desert.

Thankfully, Feng Ji Kway Chap’s braised egg ticked off all of the packing containers in my imaginary listing. The yolk was so saturated with sauce that it grew to become tender and mushy, which is simply the best way I favored it, and the salty braised liquid had seeped into the outer layer of the egg, making every chunk an actual delight.

While each single portion of Feng Ji Kway Chap’s Kway Chap Set was so scrumptious by itself that it hardly wanted the assistance of the sambal belacan on the aspect, I made a decision to attempt it for good measure.

My solely recommendation to you is to not underestimate the sambal belacan. Sharp and spicy, it hit the roof of my mouth nearly instantly, and the new spice sat on the tip of my tongue for the whole meal. Despite the preliminary ache, it added a well-needed kick of vivid sourness to enhance the darkish, savoury roasted notes from the kway and innards.

Final ideas

I’m not a morning particular person, however I polished off my whole bowl of kway chap and regarded it a morning properly spent. 

Not solely was I floored at how each single ingredient of the meal had been expertly cleaned and had none of that smelly pungent aroma, the whole lot was so savoury and attractive that I’d gladly pay extra than simply S$2.50 to come back again for a bowl of delectable kway chap once more. 

This easy but undeniably scrumptious bowl of kway chap from Feng Ji Kway Chap was price waking up at 7am for, and sure, I’d do it yet again. 

Expected injury: S$2.50 – S$7 per pax

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