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Growing up picky, my diet was ruled by the beige, deep-fried likes of nuggets and fries. Of the handful of things I’d gravitate to, few things had a grip on me like an indulgent plate of chicken cutlet rice did.
Now that my repertoire has expanded (and my childhood go-to stall sadly shuttered), it’s been a minute since I last crunched into that goodness. But nostalgia found its way to me — in the form of a golden fried fix at Nanyang Fried Chicken Rice.
Fried chicken rice isn’t exactly a groundbreaking concept. It’s far from forgotten too, with plenty of run-of-the-mill Western stalls frying it up alongside several ‘greats’ known specifically for the dish. Nanyang Fried Chicken Rice has been making waves regardless, and my feed certainly thinks so. Just look at the features plastered across its Hong Lim Food Centre stall — all in a little over a year since opening, no less!
What I tried at Nanyang Fried Chicken Rice
Stoked to see if the plates would live up to the buzz and, of course, my fond memories, I went straight for the Cutlet Meal (S$7). It’s as straightforward as it sounds: a hefty slab of chicken thigh laid alongside a mound of rice, which I zhng-ed with a Lava Egg (S$1.20). Completing the ensemble is a small pile of delicate sliced pickled cucumbers — or ‘CCB’, in their words.
Then came the real deal, and boy, did it deliver. The cutlet was clad in a blistered, audibly crunchy crust that gave way to juicy meat that was well-seasoned all the way through. The portion was properly generous, and what impressed me most was how it had none of that greasy heaviness but retained a crisp, satisfying indulgence. You’d think “guilt-free” would be the last adjective for a dish like this, but here we are — and I loved every crackle.
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The rice was no afterthought either: each fluffy grain was steeped in chicken broth, carrying the mellow savouriness you’d expect from a solid plate of Hainanese chicken rice. Aromatic and comforting in all the right ways, this made for an easy partner to the cutlet.
No chicken rice is complete without its chilli, and Nanyang Fried Chicken Rice’s rendition leaned zesty with a respectable heat. It did, however, skew a little flat for my liking, and I thought it could’ve been punched up nicely with a touch more acidity or ginger. But while it stopped short of being a knockout sauce, it worked well as a fiery complement to the dish.
The soy-marinated Lava Egg was a tidy little side, its silky white meshing well with its soft, jammy core. No complaints here; just a well-executed bonus to the plate all around.
The only other main on Nanyang Fried Chicken Rice’s menu was the Wings Meal (S$5.50), which swapped out the cutlet for 2 whole wings. Yeah, the stall’s name couldn’t be any more straightforward.
The batter was just as crisp and well-seasoned like I’d come to expect, though the experience played out differently. The drumlets gave a juicy bite with a hearty meat-to-batter ratio, while the mid-wings leaned fiddlier but rewarded me with tender flesh tucked snug against the bone.
Eating this was far from glamorous, as I took to peeling, gnawing and going hands-on — which I think we can all agree is part of the fun with wings. They felt more like something to savour on their own before heading back to the rice, so the cutlet still gets my vote for a more fuss-free option.
The Coleslaw (S$1.20) I tacked on was a neat palate cleanser, starring crunchy vegetables tossed in light, creamy mayo dressing with sweet hints of onion. Refreshing and balanced, it added a welcome contrast to the fried mains.
I don’t usually think much of the side soup that comes with chicken rice, but Nanyang Fried Chicken Rice’s Chicken Melon broth fully deserves a shout. Deceptively unassuming, this clear soup was clean yet deeply flavourful, carrying savoury chicken notes without any MSG buzz. Soft slices of wintermelon floated lazily within, adding a delicate sweetness that gave the broth a sweet edge.
Final thoughts
Nanyang Fried Chicken Rice doesn’t try too hard to reinvent the wheel by any means, but it certainly delivers where it counts: crackly cutlet, crispy wings and fragrant rice that whisked me right back to the days when they’d rock my world. All in all, it’s a worthy fix for anyone craving a crisp, nostalgic spin on chicken rice.
And hey, where we’ve got Southern fried chicken, Korean fried chicken and Thai fried chicken, surely there’s room for Nanyang fried chicken, too. Feels like a pretty neat way of staking our own little corner in the fried chicken universe, don’t you think?
Expected damage: S$5.50 – S$8.20 per pax
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