Kent Thong Turtle Soup Chinatown: A Dying Tradition in Singapore

Turtle soup is a disappearing food that deserves more attention.

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Turtle soup, the mention of anything like that and we start shying off, thinking it’s rather inhumane to have. Truth is, turtle soup has been around for the longest time and it was fairly popular back in the older days.

What happened to this old tradition then? As with the times, it gets increasingly harder to get hold of turtle meat itself and well, there’s not a lot of people left who bother themselves with the arduous preparation process of the turtle soup.

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Ten years ago, Kent Thong, the owner of Kent Thong Turtle Soup nestled inside Chinatown Market Food Complex, decided that he wanted to continue this dying tradition. So he quit his job, set up the stall and it has been running ever since.

In order to continuously serve the crowd and possibly get more on board the turtle soup bandwagon, they’ve revamped their stall recently to give it a cleaner and modern outlook, inviting anyone and everyone to come have a try.

Ladies listen up, you’ll be damned to know just how rich in collagen turtle soup is and yes, it is also high in protein, making this bowl of delicacy a thoroughly nutritional one to have. Not only that, turtle soup is said to have multiple health benefits such as the detoxification of blood, lowering blood pressure, increasing blood circulation and many more.

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Claypot of Turtle Soup ($20). With so many benefits and also highly tempted by the collagen factor, I decided to have a go at this turtle soup. I’d recommend having it in the claypot because it helps to keep the soup warm throughout while you slowly make your way through every nook and cranny of this bowl.

If you prefer more collagen, you can request for less meat when placing your order. I personally love collagen and I wasn’t disappointed with the amount in this soup. There’s a mix of albeit gelatinous-like and fish maw texture, while the meat tastes like chicken, only more tender.

The broth is boiled with chinese herbs and it is exceedingly comforting without being overly rich in the herbal department. The light and hearty broth will definitely warm your heart up. With so many health and beauty benefits, I’m definitely jumping onto the turtle soup bandwagon.

Other than the turtle soup, they serve herbal black chicken soup and herbal mutton soup as well. So why not head down and give it a try yourself.

Yes some might find it unethical to eat turtles, but tradition does have its place too.

Expected damage: $20 per pax

Kent Thong Turtle Soup: Smith Street, Chinatown Complex Food Centre #02-188, Singapore 050335

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