Shun Xing *not bad*

Shun Xing
Bukit Merah Central Food Centre
Blk 163 Bukit Merah Road S(150163)
#02-46
- Fried Fritters
- Butterfly biscuits
- Hum Chee Peng (I think its more right to call it Hum Chin Peng as it should be cantonese to begin with?)
   - comes in traditional flavours (salted, sweet) and their own flavours (coffee, pandan bean, red bean etc)

How do you like your you tiao?
Do you like it crispy?  Hard?  Soft?  Oily?

How I like mine?  I like it a little crispy on the outside, generally soft on the inside, with a little of the flour taste.  Of course, freshly fried ones will definitely fare better than those that have been kept for a while.  Thats a given for most for 99% of the foods available.

And how do you eat it?  Dipped into soya bean?  Add to your porridge?  Or add to your kopo-i?  Or with your bak kut teh?

I used to dip into my soya bean, until my dad said the best way to eat it is to dip into your kopi-o.  Back then, I never appreciated coffee, so I paid no attention.  But during the first few seasons of makansutra, the host said it was the best way to eat you tiao.

And some 4 years ago, I realised I needed coffee to not fall asleep during work, thus my preferences had changed.


Anyways, the whole food centre only had one stall selling you tiao, and this was it.

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First thing I noticed was the peppery looking thing in the middle of the you tiao.  Now, I'm not sure if it was done on purpose, but I'll probably go back there soon enough to find out.

Unfortunately, the you tiao was crispier than what I'd like.  Perhaps it was freshly made.  It also lacked the dough/flour taste that I like.

The thing about the crispy-ness was that after dipping the you tiao into my coffee, the whole thing just didnt taste right.  I mean, dipping it into liquid was to make it soggier, let the you tiao absorb the liquid, and then consume it, appreciating the you tiao, the sogginess, and the liquid flowing out from the you tiao.
This, unfortunately, did not feel that way.  The outside was still crisp, and it felt like the you tiao was unable to absorb the liquid.

The hum chin peng fared much much better!!  It was definitely salty!!  And had the taste of the dough!  Hum chin pengs don't need to be crispy in my opinion, and this held true for this stall.

Oh, the stall owners did not ask if I was taking away or having it here, so they just put their food into the plastic bag.  I don't think it mattered much, though I'd definitely have preferred the traditional brown bag hehe.

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Overall, it's not bad!  While the fried fritters aren't what I like, the hum chin peng fared much better, and I'm thinking if the hum chin peng is where the strengths of the stall is, given that they have so much unique flavours for their hum chin peng.