Porridge for dinner ($6.80)!
Thursday porridge dinner $6.80 — substantial congee bowl with multiple toppings. The proper sit-down porridge format with upgraded ingredients.
Thursday porridge dinner with BB — substantial congee bowl at $6.80. The upgrade tier of the porridge format with multiple toppings.
We ordered:
- Porridge with mixed toppings — $6.80
The $6.80 porridge tier is the sit-down or premium hawker version, distinct from the standard $3 lunch porridge. The upgrade comes from the topping spread — more ingredients, more variety, plus the larger bowl size.
Toppings probably included some combination of:
- Sliced pork
- Pork liver
- Pork balls or fish balls
- A century egg (the black preserved duck egg with the slight ammonia tang)
- A salted egg
- Chopped scallion, ginger, fried shallots
- A drizzle of sesame oil and a sprinkle of white pepper
The century egg is the headline upgrade. Black-jelly outside, dark-green semi-soft yolk inside, with the distinctive funky ammonia-sulphur flavour that defines preserved eggs. Some eaters love it, others can’t get past the smell. Properly paired with porridge it adds the deep umami depth that fresh ingredients can’t provide.
The pork liver provides the iron-and-mineral depth. Properly cooked, the liver pieces should be slightly pink in the centre (the medium-rare for liver), with the firm texture and the rich earthy flavour. Overcooked liver goes chalky and bitter.
Pork or fish balls add the textural bounce. The handmade hawker versions have the proper QQ chew with real meat or fish flavour, distinct from the factory-made commodity balls.
The porridge base had the proper texture — velvety thick, with the rice grains nearly invisible after the long simmer. The chicken stock or pork bone stock came through underneath, providing the depth that distinguishes proper hawker porridge from quick-cooked rice congee.
At $6.80 for the upgraded format, this is fair pricing — about double the basic chicken porridge tier, with double the topping variety.
Porridge for dinner is the small comfort meal at the end of a long day. Easy to eat, gentle on the body, properly warming.
Overall: 4.3 / 5. 😋👍🏼 Solid porridge dinner — would re-order.
