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More often than not, we identify a great, restaurant-quality dish through its impeccable plating and presentation. However, in Singapore, we have one dish that’s more delicious if it’s messy. This dish in question is none other than Hainanese Curry Rice.
There are several well-known curry rice spots across Singapore. However, I was very curious about how this one in Redhill Food Centre would stand out from the rest. So I decided to head down to find out!
Like most curry rice stalls I know, Hong Seng Curry Rice (鴻森咖喱飯) has been around for a long time, establishing in 1995.
What I tried at Hong Seng Curry Rice
In true Hainanese curry rice style, we went for the quintessential Pork Chop (S$1.50). What stood out about it was that despite the thinness of the cut, the pork was still extremely juicy.
They coat the pork with a layer of cream crackers before deep-frying too. As such, the batter had a nostalgic umami taste which reminded us of our childhood.
We also tried the Curry Chicken (S$2.50), a signature dish from Hong Seng’s Curry Rice. Unlike most curry chicken dishes out there, Hong Seng Curry Rice uses boneless chicken thigh for theirs. To our delight, it was very juicy and tender.
The Braised Pork Belly (S$2.50) is also another crowd-favourite item. Once again, they sliced the pork belly into really huge pieces. This meant that they were able to soak up the braised sauce and absorb its herbaceous flavours very well.
That said, however, the dish would have been perfect if the pork was a little more tender. It was a tad too tough for my liking, unfortunately.
Nevertheless, I was really looking forward to the Prawn Fritters (S$2.50 for 3 pieces). They were making our mouths water with its irresistible fragrance.
Hong Seng Curry Rice coats the prawns with a thick layer of batter before deep-frying. We appreciated that every bite was soft and crisp, as a result. They also seasoned the batter very well, giving it a satisfyingly salty flavour.
To balance out all the meats we were having, we got the Cabbage (S$0.80). The cabbage was perfectly soft, breaking apart easily with every bite.
It was refreshingly moist and managed to cut across the greasiness of all the meats we had. No wonder it’s one of the items which their elderly customers always order.
Of course, since we were having Hainanese Curry Rice, we had to top off everything with a load of curry sauce. What immediately caught our attention was just how thick and luscious the curry sauce was.
Relative to other curry rice stalls, Hong Seng Curry Rice serves up a starchier curry sauce. For one, I love drenching my rice with plenty of sauce. Hence, the thick curry was perfect for me as it managed to coat every single grain of rice.
Furthermore, the curry had a tolerable level of spice. There was a very nice balance of sweetness and spiciness, which we enjoyed thoroughly.
Final thoughts
With an impressive repertoire of 23 dishes, I can definitely find myself returning to Hong Seng Curry Rice to try their other dishes.
Not only that, but you also don’t have to worry about them overcharging as some cai png stalls do. Hong Seng Curry Rice displays their price list clearly in front of the stall, so you can be sure you’re getting your money’s worth!
Expected damage: S$0.50 – S$6 per item
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