Teochew fishball noodles ($5)!
Tanjong Pagar hawker plain-style Teochew fishball noodles: dry mee pok with minced pork, bean sprouts and coriander, with a fishball and meatball soup side. $5.
Lunch at Tanjong Pagar: Teochew fishball noodles, $5. π
What was on the tray:
- Dry mee pok: the flat yellow noodles, lightly dressed, with bean sprouts and a tuft of coriander
- Minced pork: the seasoned crumble over the noodles
- Side soup: a clear broth with four fishballs and a pork meatball
This is the plain (ζΈ ζ±€) style Teochew fishball noodles, the stripped-back version that some stalls and purists prefer: no chilli-vinegar drowning the noodles, no mushroom or fancy toppings, just lightly-dressed mee pok with minced pork and a clear fishball soup on the side. It is the quieter, cleaner end of the bak chor mee / fishball noodle family, where there is nothing to hide behind.
The mee pok is the foundation: flat egg noodles, springy and slightly alkaline, dressed lightly (a touch of oil, soy, maybe a little chilli) and tossed the instant they hit the bowl so they stay separate. With minimal dressing, the noodleβs own quality and spring carry the dish, which is exactly why the plain style is unforgiving of mediocre noodles. These had the bite.
The fishball test: the soup fishballs are the protein and the marker of quality, a proper hand-made or well-sourced fishball is springy, bouncy and clean-tasting, made from fresh fish paste beaten until it bounces. The fishballs here had the right bounce, and the clear soup let their flavour show.
The minimalist appeal: at its best, plain-style Teochew fishball noodles is a quiet pleasure, the spring of the noodle, the bounce of the fishball, the clean broth, nothing more, nothing distracting.
At $5 for a plain Teochew fishball mee pok with soup in Tanjong Pagar, this is honest hawker value.
Overall: 4.2 / 5. πππΌ The springy mee pok and the bouncy fishballs in the clean soup were the standout. Plain-style hawker comfort, would re-order.
