4 days ago
Ah Yi Lao Huo Tang: $5 double-boiled Chinese soup to cleanse the palate and soul
When the guilt of last week's fried food galore creeps up on me, I start looking for traditional healthy meals. That's when I found Ah Yi Lao Huo Tang (阿懿老火汤) at Pasir Ris Central Food Centre. I'm talking boiled dishes, minimal seasoning and natural flavours.
Double-boiled soup, also known as dun in Cantonese, involves submerging a specially crafted ceramic pot in a larger pot of boiling water. This results in the gentle extraction of the flavours of the ingredients within for a delicate, light broth.
The time required to fully cook double-boiled soup is 5 to 6 hours. I can't imagine when the owners of Ah Yi Lao Huo Tang start cooking since they open at 11.30am. When I got there at 10.45am, the boilers were already bubbling behind the half-open shutters.
There were 9 types of soup featured on the menu, leaving me spoilt for choice. I was also impressed by the affordability of these soups, as 4 out of the 9 items cost just S$5.
The 2 most expensive dishes are only S$7.50, and you can even get half a black chicken for S$6.50 with the Herbal Black Chicken Soup.
I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of ingredients packed inside the Lotus Root Peanut Pork Ribs Soup (S$5). In the ceramic pot were 5 thick slices of lotus root, a generous handful of peanuts and 3 chunks of pork ribs.
For the S$5 price point, I'd say that this was certainly a steal!
The soup had this milky translucency due to the pork ribs, much like bone broth. The peanuts and lotus root gave it a subtle sweetness that lingered on my tongue. Yet, with all these contrasting flavours, the soup managed to have depth without being overly seasoned.
Just look at that pork rib. You can barely see the tip of the large bone because of all that meat. Now that's what I call chunky! While the meat itself wasn't as soft as I'd like it to be, it still pulled apart easily and was by no means tough.
Glistening in the soup, the pork has absorbed all that sweetness and combined it with its own umami. Let me tell you, this was an absolute delight with the White Rice (S$0.50).
As a child, I wasn't a fan of boiled lotus root. Was it because I had never had Ah Yi Lao Huo Tang's soup yet? Probably.
The lotus root was cooked to fork-tenderness, breaking apart with a light push of my chopsticks. It had this gentle nuttiness to it, a mellow partner to the rich pork. As I picked it up, I could see the silk-like strands of sap which contribute to the lotus root's smooth mouthfeel.
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If you were drawn in by the Lotus Root Peanut Pork Ribs Soup, you'll like this Fujianese delight. The Buddha Jumps Over the Wall (S$7.50) presents 3 slices of abalone as wide as 3 of my fingers.
Together with 4 long rolls of fish maw, juicy shiitake mushrooms, 2 hunks of chicken and a whole chicken drumstick, I'd jump over a wall for that too.
The best way to describe fish maw is probably tau pok's atas brother. Made from the dried swim bladder of large fish like sturgeon, fish maw is rich in collagen and protein. Its structure resembles that of tau pok, with little pockets of air that collect the soup and unleash it on your tastebuds with every munch.
Because fish maw is also included in shark fin soup, this bowl of Buddha Jumps Over the Wall had a similar fragrance. I felt extra boujie as I sipped it like a rich tai tai, much to the amusement of my mum.
I've been really into mushrooms lately, mostly because of the juiciness of their flesh and how well they absorb flavour. And the shiitake mushroom in this bowl of Buddha Jumps Over the Wall? Impeccable. Biting down releases the slight smokiness of the mushroom alongside the clean sweetness of the abalone-enriched broth.
Call me a commoner for saying this but the chicken was the actual highlight of this soup. The meat was so tender that it slid off the bone in 1 swipe. I was caught off guard by how succulent and moist it was, without any bits of meat caught on the cartilage.
When you're just about done decimating these gorgeous ingredients, pour in your leftover rice. Trust me on this one, because you end up with this soupy goodness that reminds me of dashi-style ochazuke.
You'll have this savoury, crisp broth bursting with seafood flavour and rendered chicken fat seeping into individual grains of rice. If you get the golden Pumpkin Rice (S$0.80) in there? Oh my god. You'll be coming back every day.
The gentle warmth of Ah Yi Lao Huo Tang's double-boiled soup just flows right into your bones. If you eat it on a slightly cloudy morning, you'll be experiencing peak comfort food energy.
Honestly, I wouldn't mind coming down to Pasir Ris just for a bowl of this as a slow weekend brunch. The delicate flavours of meats and vegetables meld together in a concoction of delicious nostalgia. Also, these bowls of soup were filling and so affordable.
If you're not planning a trip right now, what are you even doing?
Expected damage: S$5 – S$8 per pax
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