Chao Zhou 潮粥 Teochew Fish Soup – Fish Soup in Traditional Chaozhou-Style Claypots in Ang Mo Kio

Nothing quite hits the spot like a bubbling pot of Teochew fish soup on a rainy day. It just so happened to be raining on the day that I made a visit to a coffee shop in Ang Mo Kio Ave 1 which has recently seen long queues, thanks to the opening of Hong Kong Style Fried Rice and my target of the day, Chao Zhou 潮粥 Teochew Fish Soup. 

The stall is run by a young hawker, Edwin Kang, who’s in his twenties. Edwin was trained by his friend Dee Chan, who was the former head chef of contemporary Cantonese restaurant Mott 32 in Marina Bay Sands. All recipes are crafted by Edwin himself, using a wholesome broth base of old Nanyang chicken, Spanish pork ribs, and fish head and bones that have been simmered for at least 16 hours. 

The menu offers options of Sliced Fish ($5.90), Double Fish ($6.90), Seafood ($7.90) and even Pumpkin and Taro Fish Soup (both $6.90), all served in black cauldron-like claypots with wooden ladles. There’s also Wok-Fried Beef Rice with Scallions ($6.90), which is a breath of fresh air amongst its fish soup brothers and sisters. 

I decided to get the Pumpkin Fish Soup with porridge because it reminded me of the ones served at Teochew porridge stalls. It was completely different though, as white rice is added into the broth instead of being properly simmered in it for an extended period of time. The result was slightly firm grains that weren’t too mushy in a thick, starchy broth. 

I can’t say I’m much of a fan of the consistency, but it might have hit differently if I had ordered noodles to go with it instead. Flavour-wise, the pumpkin broth was delicately sweet and comforting. 

The batang fish was nice and firm. Pair it with the spicy-sour chilli and it gets even more moreish with every bite. It certainly added a punch in flavour to the mild pumpkin fish soup meal! 

As for the supposed dark horse on the menu, the Wok-Fried Beef Rice won in terms of flavour. The simple, unassuming rice bowl was topped with angus ribeye beef slices, sautéed onions, shiitake mushrooms and a fried sunny side up egg. 

The well-marinated beef slices were super-duper tender and emitted a smoky, black pepper aroma, which was was further brought out by the sweetness of the onions. The beef slices are best eaten with the rice as some folks might find them too salty on their own. It wasn’t the best looking dish, and would have been better if there were more shiitake mushrooms but it still made for a decent meal. 

I would be making a return trip so that I can savour the original fish soup in all its glory, and the Wok-Fried Beef Rice which is actually quite the addictive dish. Be prepared to arrive earlier than the time you intend to chow down though, as it seems like the queues aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. 

MissTamChiak.com made an anonymous visit and paid its own meal at the stall featured here.

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