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Best Things Under S$10: Chef Terence Chee

SINGAPORE – Terence Chee of Xiao Di Hokkien Mee never intended to be a hawker. “I entered this line when I was 16,” he said. “I had just quit my sales job, and my friend recommended this position to me, so I thought I might as well learn something.

Terence Chee and his Hokkien mee.

Terence Chee and his Hokkien mee.

SINGAPORE – Terence Chee of Xiao Di Hokkien Mee never intended to be a hawker. “I entered this line when I was 16,” he said. “I had just quit my sales job, and my friend recommended this position to me, so I thought I might as well learn something.

“It was only supposed to be a back-up plan, but I just keep getting pulled back,” added the 24-year-old, whose stall celebrates its second anniversary this month. Chee is also a guest judge on MediaCorp TV Channel 5’s Wok Stars, a reality cooking competition that aims to uncover Singapore’s next hawker star.

And now, the Hokkien mee hawker doesn’t think he will be going anywhere else, even though he admits rising food costs have been forbidding. “If you see any stall that hasn’t increased its prices (in the last six months), you’ll most likely find a difference in its taste, because costs have risen sharply,” said Chee. “I’ve seen a lot of people cut costs – they change to lower cost ingredients. They have gotten into the habit of telling themselves that it doesn’t matter. All these little parts add up, and (the dish) becomes totally different.”

Chee added: “You can’t stop costs from rising, and there are still people who go for quality over price. They grumble for a bit (but) after a while they continue eating! Unless hawkers start to respect their food and themselves, I don’t think anything will change.”

 

Breakfast: I like the fish soup (about S$5.50) at First Street Teochew Fish Soup, located at Double One Kopitiam on Upper Serangoon Road. They use very fresh fish, which they marinate with corn flour and salt, so there’s a chewy texture. They also use a very generous amount of “teepoh” (deep fried flat fish bones).

Lunch: I have been eating the prawn noodles at this stall at Block 511, Hougang Avenue 10, Tai Hua Coffee Shop for a very long time. The stall doesn’t have a name – it’s just called Teochew fishball noodle/prawn noodle soup. Prices range from S$3.50 to S$5.50. The flavour of the soup is strong enough, and you can taste the ingredients in it, unlike many of the soups that you find elsewhere that are filled with condiments.

 

Dinner: I go to Jin Zhan Ji at Kovan for chicken rice. They have this special gravy that they put over their chicken, and it’s very nice. They sell out at about 7pm, and I usually order half a chicken for about S$10, even when I am there alone!

 

Wok Stars airs on Wednesdays, 8pm on MediaCorp Channel 5

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