Ding Feng Hainanese Chicken Rice and Noodles – Sold out by 1pm!!

We spotted a queue while we were at Blk 93 Toa Payoh Lorong 4 Market and Food Centre and got curious. It was this little stall selling Hainanese Chicken Rice! They have a few variants of chicken: Roasted Chicken, Steamed White Chicken and Soy Sauce Chicken.

This stall used to be in Hougang and it moved to its current Toa Payoh premises about 8 years ago. The owners are a couple, and they start preparing daily from 3.30am! They prepare their own chicken stock, and also roast the poultry that they sell. They seem to be rather popular! When I went back at about 1pm, they only had chicken wings available.

Luckily for us, we got there early! I ordered Roasted Chicken for 2, some of the Sio Bak and Char Siew they made on their own for just $12.

I really love all things Char Siew. Whether its the meat itself, or a Char Siew bun or bread, as long as it is Char Siew I find it hard to resist. Ding Feng’s version tasted more like the traditional old-school version. They use lean pork meat to make their Char Siew. The meat is nicely charred on the sides, and is accompanied with a thick and sweet sauce. The Char Siew was chewy and softer in the middle. I would have preferred if the cut of meat had a little more fats to give it a nicer texture. If you like lean meat, this might be a great choice for you!

I was so glad that the Sio Bak skin was crisp! The meat was tender and lightly salted. I wonder how long they roasted this meat for. The oil was almost totally gone from the layer of fats and the texture of the meat was great!

The roasted chicken was pretty well done too! I find that Roasted Chicken tends to be a little dry sometimes. However, I was pleasantly surprised by their version. I was given quite a substantial portion of breast meat which was really soft and tender. The skin also wasn’t too oily as the roasting process probably drained the oil very well. The sauce that was drizzled over the chicken had a really strong and nice fragrance, making the chicken even tastier.

What is a meal of Roasted Chicken without rice? Their rice was not sticky and did not clump together. Moist, but not oily, it also had a very nice hint of ginger. They also very generously give every customer a bowl of their chicken soup which is rather light and refreshing, and definitely a good-to-have after a meal.

If you intend to try them out, be sure to go early and expect to wait awhile in queue. The next time I head there, I will probably give the Soy Sauce Chicken Noodle a try!

MissTamChiak.com made anonymous visit and paid its own meal at the stall featured here.