Mee Hoon Kueh has never been jazzier, as it now comes in five stunning hues at this up-and-coming food stall run by a group of millennial hawkers who are old-time friends. And although it looks flamboyant, it is truly wholesome food made by hand using healthful plant extracts, and served with a lip-smacking collagen-filled thick broth that will leave you craving for more!
I always admire creativity when it comes to food. While some age-old hawkers thrive on serving up their old-school flavours that form important parts of our food heritage, some budding ones are actually pushing the envelope with bold moves to reinvent classic hawker dishes to bring them to an unprecedented level.
霸婆手工面 (otherwise known as 'Madam Tyrant Handmade Noodles') is a case in point.
To me, it's really heartening to see the group of millennial hawkers coming together to build this business using grandma's recipes, while building on the recipes with their own creative twists — which, by the way, worked out impressively, both in terms of looks and flavours.
Lovely comfort food
Above: Made with natural plant extracts, the Mee Hoon Kueh here comes in five vibrant colours that will surely whet your appetite!
The Mee Hoon Kueh here is a treat for the tummy and the eyes.
Sporting five distinct colours, these handmade and hand-torn noodles have an amazing texture, and they are served with generous portions of minced pork, deep-fried ikan bilis, and cekur manis — all in a bowl of a deliciously thick collagen-filled broth.
"We started off making the multi-colour Mee Hoon Kueh purely in the spirit of fun and experiment. But as it turns out, this became really popular with our customers. And so it's now a mainstay on our menu," says Wei Yang who's head chef of the stall, with a sparkle in his eyes.
Above: Generous portions of ingredients and a thick broth full of collagen
He goes on to reveal that, among other ingredients, the broth is made with pork bones and chicken feet. And chicken feet is the key reason why it's bursting with collagen, given that more than 70% of its total protein content is collagen.
"One customer even told us that the texture of our broth is similar to a tonkotsu ramen broth," he beamed.
Instant noodles taken to a whole new level
Above: Made with non-fried Koka instant noodles and comes with two fresh Ang Kar Prawns, a whole egg cut into halves, a special-recipe chilli paste, and other ingredients, this is one instant noodle dish that's too good to be missed
I'll be honest: the two vibrant-coloured Ang Kar Prawns are what truly caught my eye in this dish. But when I realised that they are served with instant noodles instead of handmade ones, I was kind of disappointed.
But I soon discovered that this noodle dish packs a lot more flavours that I thought.
Despite being just instant noodles, they were perfectly cooked and springy, and totally soaked up the stall's delicious signature chilli paste, which is both sweet and tongue-numbingly spicy. The noodles went so well with the chilli paste.
And although the chilli paste was a tad too sweet for my liking, it was divinely aromatic and gave the noodles a fantastic spicy kick! My scalp was sweating the whole time when I was excitedly slurping the noodles...
Besides the instant noodles and signature chilli paste, I also love the Ang Kar Prawns, which were so fresh and sweet! There's also a whole egg cut into halves in the bowl of noodles, plus generous amounts of other ingredients.
Fried sides you can't miss
Above left: The deep-fried meatballs are a must-order!
Above left: The well-marinated Hakka deep-fried pork belly's delicious too, but I'd prefer the deep-fried meatballs anytime
If you're someone who absolutely need a side dish with your main dish — like me — you may not want to miss their deep-fried meatballs. Made with ingredients that are slightly different from those cooked in broth, these meatballs are filled with fresh pork, diced onions and water chestnuts, and are super flavourful. A must-order, if you ask me!
The Hakka deep-fried pork belly was yummy too. But I'd choose the deep-fried meatballs over them anytime. And that shows how good the meatballs are!
A breath of fresh air in the hawker scene
It's heartening to see the creativity of our new-generation hawkers bloom into higher-quality food. And 霸婆手工面 is one such breath of fresh air that has brought new life to age-old dishes, which worked out tremendously well.
In fact, I'm now adding these dishes to my personal list of comfort food.
So swing by to try these yummy dishes, and you'll know why I see them as lovely comfort food!
Locate it
Address:
霸婆手工面
(Madam Tyrant Handmade Noodles)
153 Tyrwhitt Road
Singapore 207566
Operating Hours:
Opens daily, 11 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Call:
8181 9417
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