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Most retirees ease into life’s relaxing path — travelling, taking things slow, or finally indulging in what they love. But 67-year-old Mr Ng? He clearly didn’t get that memo and went on to become a hawker for the very first time. He’s now the proud owner of Canton Steamed Rice located at Chinatown Complex Market & Food Centre, which opened in Oct 2025.
He shared, “During the COVID-19 pandemic, I was in retail and thinking of opening my own hawker stall, but it didn’t happen.” It was only after he retired and hadn’t been working for some time that he finally decided to go for it. When asked whether he cooks at home, the eloquent and friendly Mr Ng replied with a smile (and giggle), “I’m the ONLY one that can cook in my household!”
Working as a one-man show, Mr Ng does all the preparation, including crafting his in-house chilli. At 67 years of age, no matter how healthy he is, it’s surely not easy. Mad respect for you, Mr Ng!
His menu features 9 steamed rice options with meats like beef, pork ribs, chicken and pork patties. I don’t know about you, but I’ve always assumed that steamed food is too ‘healthy’ and might come across as bland and boring. But as you grow older, your eating habits tend to stage a personality change. Would Mr Ng’s cooking resonate with my taste buds? Let’s find out!
What I tried at Canton Steamed Rice
I kickstarted my steamed dishes galore with the Steamed Scallions & Ginger Chicken Rice (S$4.80). Resting on the mound of white rice were big pieces of chicken covered with a generous amount of sliced scallions. When asked if I would like chilli, I shamelessly obliged and he proceeded to drop a tiny dollop of his homemade chilli by the side.
The chicken was succulent, tender and perfumed with the light fragrance of the scallions as well as ginger.
The texture of the homemade chilli was rough and resembled the sambal that’s usually served with Indonesian ayam penyet. It looked like it was hand-pounded using a mortar and pestle. The taste was rather unique and tasted almost like a fragrant belacan. It also contained black beans that were slightly crunchy, which gave it a subtle savouriness. However, if spice isn’t your strong suit, take it in small doses or you’ll be dealing with its nuclear aftermath. Now I know why Mr Ng gave it sparingly!
When all the elements came together in a single spoonful, the experience made me close my eyes for a moment to savour the various layers of flavour. It felt like a comforting home-cooked meal, to say the least.
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I moved on to the priciest item on the menu, the Canton Style Steamed Beef Rice (S$6) — still very reasonable, if you ask me. There were about 6 to 7 decent-sized pieces along with green vegetables and rice.
Upon picking up the beef chunks, I saw that they were considerably thick, and one might think they could possibly be tough… right? Wrong! Each succulent piece was as soft as a down feather pillow. It was also perfectly seasoned.
The rice wasn’t the short-grain Japanese variety, but classic jasmine rice. It was cooked perfectly, with each fluffy grain soaking up the rich flavours of the meat sauce.
Mr Ng switches the vegetables every now and then, depending on market availability. I got cai xin, which still maintained its crunch and added a fresh element to the whole dish.
My final dish was the Steamed Pork Patty with Preserved Vegetable (S$4.80). Maybe I haven’t been exposed to this combination, but I found the introduction of mei cai to be rather unique, particularly coming from someone like me, whose experience mostly revolves around salted egg or Chinese sausage.
The pork patty came as a giant slab, nearly hiding the rice beneath it. Fine bits of chopped-up preserved vegetables were embedded within the pork patty, giving it a special but yummy flavour that was foreign to me. You know what? This might just become my new favourite meat combination!
Final thoughts
Overall, even though the dishes were steamed, they were actually flavourful without overwhelming the palate. Just think of it as heading to a Cantonese household for a humble home-cooked meal that’s actually good.
Mr Ng’s story tells you that it’s never too late to do anything if you set your mind to it! Come show the pleasant and smiley Mr Ng some support and visit Canton Steamed Rice at Chinatown Complex Market.
Expected damage: S$4.80 – S$6 per pax
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