Big Prawn Noodle : a better Prawn Noodle in Ang Mo Kio

A friend on Facebook mentioned this particular stall in quite a remote part of Ang Mo Kio, serving prawn noodle in Ang Mo Kio. I went with my dining companion on a Monday for lunch. There were just another 2 customers in front of us at that time. Bryan, the owner, came from Tanjung Piandang, Malaysia. He started working in a mixed economic rice stall before starting this stall. 

We decided to order the smaller portion of Pork Ribs Prawn Noodle for $5, went for the dry and also the soup option. There is a larger portion for $6. For $5, each bowl is served with 3 pieces of halved average-sized prawn and 3 pieces of pork ribs then topped with fried shallots, served with bean sprouts and kang kong. The prawns tasted relatively fresh. The chill though looked fiery, it was not spicy as expected. 

My dining companion said, "It tasted as good as Joo Chiat Prawn Mee at Ayer Rajah Food Centre, more value for money too." This is definitely better than the once-popular Sumo Big Prawn at AMK 628 Food Centre. 

We went back the second time within a week. After trying the dry and the soup prawn mee, my dining companion said, "I actually prefer the dry one more." I enjoyed the soup one a bit more though. I would think the soup is pretty good, it has an intensified prawn flavor with a slightly sweet taste. It did not taste as good when I was there for the second time. 

This is easier one of the better Prawn Noodles in Ang Mo Kio. I took notice that the coffee shop is usually quiet even during lunchtime. 

BIG PRAWN NOODLE

Block 443 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10 AMK 443 Eating House SINGAPORE 560443

Operating Hours: 6.00 am to 8.00 pm

Joo Chiat Prawn Mee : Lost & Found

This stall used to be at 15 Crane Road in Joo Chiat but closed in January 2015.  Madam Lee Xiu Chun, the owner, is running the stall with her son-in-law. Mr Lee Pi Duan, her father, started Beach Road Prawn Mee in the coffee shop opposite Blanco Court in 1936 after a friend from Xiamen, China shared the recipe and taught him in cooking it. Her was likely to be the first to serve this unique Singapore style hawker dish. He was also the one that taught the founder of 545 Whampoa Prawn Noodles to cook the dish. Mr Lee Seng Hoon, her eldest brother took over the stall after her father passed away in 1956 before moving to Beach Road. He created the dry version of prawn mee and John Lee, his eldest son, started Beach Road Prawn Noodle House at East Coast Road. The same recipe is supposedly also used by the other family members, the Jalan Sultan Prawn Mee in Jalan Ayer by the son of her older sister and Blanco Court Prawn Mee in Jalan Kayu by the other sister. 

I ordered the medium portion of Pork Ribs Prawn Mee for $5 and opted for yellow noodles, the kway teow was already sold out and so the other option is bee hoon. The smallest portion is for $4 and the largest portion is for $6. There are also Pork Rib Pig's Tail Mee ($5/$6) and Pig's Tail Prawn Mee ($5/$6) on the menu.

My dining companion tossed the noodles and had his first mouthful followed by another then said, "It is nice. It would even be better if there are crispy lard added." I did not get to try when they were at their previous location so this would be my first time eating at this stall though I have tried the other prawn noodles that mentioned earlier. It was quite enjoyable, the level of spiciness was manageable and it complimented the nicely cooked yellow noodles well. The pork ribs were of the right texture, tender enough but not overly so. The prawns were of medium-sized and it tasted relatively fresh. It was topped with fried shallots. 

The soup tasted of a slight hint of prawn flavor, nicely flavored. 

This stall is a worthy option for lunch if you happen to be here. 

JOO CHIAT PRAWN MEE

Block 503 West Coast Drive #01-35 Ayer Rajah Food Centre SINGAPORE 120503

Operating Hours: 7.30 am to 3.00 pm (Closed on Tuesdays)

545 Whampoa Prawn Noodles : the alluring old school taste

Li Ruifang, 34, affectionately known as Hai Mee Soh (Prawn Mee Auntie), is the owner of this unassuming prawn mee stall at Tekka Food Centre. This stall opened on 1 January 2014 and has recently passed their 5th anniversary, it is one of the popular stalls in that food centre. It has been featured in the "Parts Unknown", a show by the late Anthony Bourdain. She is running the stall with the assistance of her parents. Ruifang, a university graduate, decided to leave the corporate world to start this stall as she is hoping to preserve the family recipe. His grandfather started selling pawn noodles in Whampoa in the 1950s before handing over to her father in the 1970s. Their original stall in Whampoa Food Centre is manned by her auntie. 

The preparation work starts as early as 2.30 am for about 2.5 hours before it is ready to serve the first bowl of prawn mee. And, she works averagely 15 hours per day. She insists in using only the sea-caught prawns like Ang Kar and Sua Lor as the farmed prawns would not have brought forth the same flavor. The broth is simmered for a relatively long timing using the pork bones and the shells of those peeled prawns. 

I was there on the first day of the new year and there were just another 2 customers in front of me. There are 3 different sizes for selection, the $4, $5 and $6. I decided to go with $5 for both orders. My dining companion opted for the yellow noodles. I went for a mixture of yellow noodles with kway teow and requested for an extra amount of chilli to go with it. 

The noodles were expertly cooked by the elderly Uncle before adding in slices of lean meat and few pieces of halved prawns and garnished with dried shallots and lard to serve. The spiciness of the chilli is toned down by the sweetness of the tomato sauce. I was asked whether I want it with tomato sauce when ordering earlier. A good bowl of prawn mee does not need premium ingredients like big prawns and even lobsters to truly stand out actually. This simple prawn mee is amongst the better ones that I enjoyed. 

The prawn broth though light but it was quite flavorful. The customer in front of me ordered 3 bowls of soup prawn mee. 

She has recently announced the change of the regular off-days from Wednesday and Saturday to Saturday and Sunday in order to have more family time. 

545 WHAMPOA PRAWN NOODLES

665 Buffalo Road #01-326 Tekka Food Centre SINGAPORE 210665

Operating Hours: 6.30 am to 2.00 pm (Closed on Saturdays & Sundays)

祥仔虾面 : by a Gen Y hawker

Eu Siang, 30, started this stall at a coffee shop in Ang Mo Kio Avenue 4 in March before moving to the current location. His family used to run a stall in a food centre at Hougang Avenue 7 and he used to help out there. He used to be a specialist with the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) before starting the stall. 

The menu includes basic Prawn Mee ($3), Big Prawn Noodle ($6), Prawn Noodle with Clams ($5), Prawn Noodle with Pork Ribs ($5), Pork Noodle with Pig Tail ($5), Jumbo Big Noodle ($8.80), Pork Ribs Noodle ($4), Pig Tail Noodle ($4) and Jumbo Prawn Soup ($6/$8/$12). I decided to go with the Prawn Noodle with Pork Ribs. The broth for their Prawn Noodle is simmered for at least 2 hours using a secret recipe that has been handed down, part of the ingredients are prawn shells and pork bones.

While waiting for my order to be ready, I asked, "Why did you move from the coffee shop at Ang Mo Kio Avenue 4 to here? I got to know about it from your Facebook that you moved to here." He said, "This coffee shop is owned by a friend. We decided to set up the stalls together. The Famous Zhou and Ah Lee Curry are run by my friends."

It was ready in a bit. He handed the bowl of noodles to me with a smile. I helped myself with the dried chilli powder and the cut chillies at the counter. It consists of a good portion of yellow noodles with 3 peeled prawns and a few pieces of pork ribs with blanched bean sprouts and kang kong. The noodles were cooked well to the desired texture and it was tasty when tossed well with the chilli though the spiciness was quite mild. The texture of pork ribs was soft and not too chewy. The soup was flavorful, with a subtle prawn flavor and a hint of natural sweetness.

祥仔虾面

Block 421 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10 SINGAPORE 560421

Operating Hours: 8.00 am to 3.00 pm (Closed on Mondays)

Prawnaholic : the fusion Prawn Mee

Alan Choong, 24, the owner, started this stall serving Prawn Mee, his favorite hawker dish. He ventured into the Food & Beverage industry about 5 years ago, working in hotels and restaurants before deciding to start this hawker stall. There are only 5 items on the menu, the Special Prawn Noodle ($6.50), King Prawn Noodle ($8.50), King Prawn Udon ($12.50) and 2 side dishes, Prawn Balls & Salted Egg Mayo ($6.50) and Salmon Skin & Salted Egg Mayo ($6.50). There used to be Lala Prawn Noodles at $4 but it has since been removed from the menu.

The first step to ordering is to select the type of noodles and the choices are yellow mee, thick bee hoon, kway teow or a mixture of those. There is the dry and soup version but their signature is the dry one. There are choices to add $1.00 for either lala, prawn, pork or an onsen egg. I ordered through Alan and I decided to have Special Prawn Noodle. Alan asked, "Do you want to add an egg?" I nodded. The total amount was $7.50. The Special Prawn Noodle came with a small portion of noodles, 2 pieces of large prawns, a homemade prawn ball and the torched Kurobuta Pork that replaced the usual pork ribs and sliced meat.

The prawn ball did not taste too special as I have eaten a similar one at Bai Nian Yong Tau Foo. The relatively fresh prawns were not deshelled and so making it rather difficult to eat without dirtying your hands. The Kurobuta Pork was quite a pleasant surprise and I would not mind paying for extra pieces but not for the onsen egg. Though the onsen egg has given the noodles a textual difference but not quite worth paying $1.00 for it. There was some pork lard added but was rather soggy and with a slightly burnt taste and bitterness. The accompanied chilli tasted strange though, it was a bit too sweet and lacking in spiciness. The bowl of soup that served along with the noodle was quite flavorful. 

There is also a traditional Prawn Mee stall at the first level of this food centre by another young hawker serving equally good prawn mee at cheaper prices. 

PRAWNAHOLIC

Block 110 Pasir Ris Central #02-12 Pasir Ris Hawker Centre SINGAPORE 519641

Operating Hours: 11.30 am to 3.00 pm / 5.30 pm to 9.30 pm (Closed on Mondays)

Ming Nam Pork Ribs Prawn Noodle at Tiong Bahru Food Centre

This stall has been in this food centre for a long while and when Ah Leng, the owner, took over from his father, the business was declining. He participated in the "Buzzing Hawker" (抢摊大行动) series that was aired on Channel 8 years ago. A mentor chef was assigned to help the stall that eventually revived their business and it has been doing well since then. Apparently, most of those stalls that participated in that TV show were already closed and this stall is likely to be the only surviving one. There is usually a queue during lunch. They serve Prawn Noodle ($3.00/$4.00), Pork Ribs Prawn Noodle ($4.50/$5.50) and Pig Tail Soup ($4.00/$5.00). I have been patronizing on quite a regular basis and their standard has been consistent so far. 

There was still a few people in the queue after 2 pm on a weekday. I waited for a few minutes before ordering and I decided to go with the bigger portion of Pork Ribs Prawn Noodle. 

It consists of a good portion of noodles with 3 pieces of prawns as well as pork ribs together with a handful of Kang Kong and bean sprouts then garnished with crispy fried lard. I will usually request for an extra amount to be added and the friendly owner usually obliged. It was served along with a bowl of tasty soup that has a concentrated flavor of prawn. I was amazed that the prawns were de-shelled, left with just the head and the tail parts. Most stalls would not be bothered to do it as it can be quite laborious and definitely time-consuming. The pork ribs were also nicely cooked to the desired tenderness. 

While eating, one of the elderly aunties sharing the table asked, "This looks really good. Which stall did you order it from?" I pointed to the corner and said, "That one, right at the corner". It is not the taste of the noodles but the politeness of the owner that has actually left an impression. He actually made an effort to say "Thank You". That might be one of the likely reasons to keep his customers return. 

MING NAM PORK RIBS PRAWN NOODLE

30 Seng Poh Road #02-31 Tiong Bahru Food Centre SINGAPORE 168898

Operating Hours: 10.00 am to 3.00 pm / 5.00 pm to 9.30 pm (Closed on Thursdays)

Lao Li Pig's Viscera Pork Ribs Prawn Noodle

This is one of the popular stalls in this food centre that often has a queue, particularly during lunch. Most of the customers go for their signature Viscera Pork Ribs Prawn Noodle and that is my usual order too. I will go for the large portion at $4.50 and added $1.00 for pork liver. There are also choices to add the small intestines and kidneys as well as meatballs to the noodle. There are fried lard and red-cut chilli available for self-service. 

The noodles were nicely cooked with a handful of bean sprouts and garnished with fried shallots. It did not have much sauce underneath that pile of noodles. The fried lards were a bit too soggy and oily to bring forth the flavor when added to the noodles. 

The lightly flavored soup was served with ingredients like prawns, pork ribs, prawns and a generous amount of pork liver. The ingredients tasted quite fresh.

The pork ribs were cooked to the right texture, soft and not too chewy. 

Those thinly sliced pork liver were slightly undercooked so as not becoming tough when soaked in the hot soup for too long. 

Other than this stall, Teo Kee Mushroom Minced Pork Noodle is another must-try in this food centre that often has a long queue. 

PIG'S VISCERA PORK RIBS PRAWN NOODLE

137 Tampines Street 11 #01-43 Tampines Round Market & Food Centre SINGAPORE 

Operating Hours: 7.00 am to 2.00 pm (Closed on Mondays)

Fully Good Food : Prawn Noodle with Pork Ribs

Poh Chee Eng, 28, the owner, was a former civil servant and he is a first-time hawker. He used to help out at his parents' stall at Chong Boon Food Centre in Ang Mo Kio before starting this stall at the newly opened hawker centre. He wants to continue the legacy of his family's recipes through this stall. He is under the "hawker-preneurship" programme by NTUC Foodfare, which aimed to attract and nurture new-generation hawkers by lowering their start-up costs with guidance provided. He started preparation as early as 2 am and left the stall as late as 8.30 pm.

There was just another customer in front of me when I was there for an early lunch. Their menu includes Prawn Noodle ($2.80), Prawn Noodle with Pork Ribs ($4.50), Pork Ribs Noodle ($3.50) and Mee Rebus ($2.80). I decided to go with Prawn Noodle with Pork Ribs. While waiting for it to be ready, I helped myself with those red-cut chillies. 

It is served with a good portion of yellow noodles with kang kong, 2 pieces of pork ribs and 4 pieces of small prawns, garnished with a stalk of coriander. I tossed the noodles a little but it did not have much sauce underneath thus it was slightly dry. Though I asked for an extra amount of chilli to be added, it was not as spicy as I expected it to be. Those pork ribs were lovely though, its texture was desirable falling-apart. Overall, it might not be the one of the best Prawn Mee now as there are still opportunities for enhancement. 

FULLY GOOD FOOD PRAWN MEE . MEE REBUS
110 Pasir Ris Central #01-14 Pasir Ris Central Hawker Centre SINGAPORE 519641

Wen Wen Pork Rib Prawn Noodle at Geylang Bahru Food Centre

Uncle Richard started this stall with his wife at Geylang Bahru Food Centre about 5 years ago when he was 49 years after he left the printing industry. They moved to Old Airport Road Food Centre temporarily when this food centre was undergoing renovation. Their stall is famous for their prawn noodle but also the seafood hotpot, a popular choice amongst their customers, it is served with ingredients like pigtails, pork ribs, prawns, la la, crab and even canned abalone. Customers are also allowed to bring their own ingredients to add it in. 

There was no queue when I was there for lunch. I stood back a little, took a picture of the stall before proceeding to order. Uncle Richard seated at the table in front of the stall and he smiled at me when he saw me taking the pictures. I pointed at the picture of Big Prawn Noodle on their menu board and said, "This one". Auntie replied, "That will be $12. Is it okay for you?" It is indicated as $10 and $12 beside the picture of the Big Prawn Noodle on their menu board. This is probably charged accordingly to the size of their available prawns, these prawns were fresh and not frozen. The regular Prawn noodle is priced at $4 with ingredients like average-sized prawns and sliced pork. Cold crab is a unique dish that is on their menu at a seasonal price. 

The friendly Uncle cooked those prawns and pork ribs in a pot over an induction stove. He then poured it into the bowl of yellow noodles. When Uncle handed it to me, he said, "If the prawns are not good enough, come back and tell me." He said, "I gave you 2 big pieces of pork ribs."

I did not like the soup as much when I first tasted it but I began to like it more and more along the way. The soup though was lightly flavored but it had a pleasing notable natural sweetness. I could not help but compared it with the supposedly popular Sumo Big Prawn Noodle at Ang Mo Kio which I tried only once and did not like it as the sweetness of their soup was kind of artificially enhanced.

Those big prawns were relatively fresh and the pork ribs were cooked to desired tenderness and there were also a few pieces of la la with a good portion of nicely cooked yellow noodles. It was an enjoyable bowl of prawn noodle.

WEN WEN PORK RIB PRAWN NOODLE

Block 69 Geylang Bahru #01-22 Geylang Bahru Food Centre SINGAPORE 330069

Operating Hours: 12.00 pm to 2.00 pm / 5.30 pm to 10.00 pm (Closed on Mondays)

JJ Prawn Noodles at Yishun Park Hawker Centre

Pang Che Chyi and Maggie Bhet, his wife, started this stall serving prawn noodles, in dry and soup version, together with braised pork tails and soft bones. They first started it at Beo Crescent Food Centre and is still having a stall there. Che Chyi used to work in the kitchen of Crystal Jade, a Cantonese restaurant for more than a decade. Their current recipes are the result of experimenting with different recipes and cooking techniques as well as ate their way through countless bowls of prawn noodles across Singapore. The broth is made with fresh sea prawns, pork bones, dried prawns, and herbs for a rich and complex flavor. They are trying to recapture the flavor of the yesteryear that Singapore adored. 

I ordered the smaller portion of Pork Ribs Big Prawns Noodle for $5.00, the larger portion is at $6.00. It consists of a good portion of yellow noodles with 2 medium-sized prawns and a few small pieces of pork ribs, garnished with fried shallots before serving. 

The prawns tasted relatively fresh, they actually made an effort to devein the prawns and removed the shell of the center part, leaving the tail and head on. The level of spiciness of the chili is not to be underestimated but it added flavor to the noodles.

JJ PRAWN NOODLES

51 Yishun Avenue 11 #01-21 Yishun Park Hawker Centre SINGAPORE 768867

Operating Hours: 7.00 am to 7.00 pm (Closed on Mondays)

Prawn Village : affordable prawn noodle for a satisfying experience

Anson Loo, 30s, started this stall on 1 December 2016 and prior to this, he was in nursing for about 16 years, worked in the NUH, the Navy and also private emergency medical services before entering hawker trade. Tom Loo, his brother, the owner of Tom's Citizoom Mee Pork Tar at Ghim Moh Food Centre is another prominent Generation Y hawker.

It happened years ago when he was in Penang for a holiday where he chanced upon a particular stall that serves good Penang style prawn noodle. He actually asked the boss there to consider imparting the skills and sharing the recipe, he never quite expects to receive a yes as an answer. He spent about 2 weeks there to learn the required skills to set up this stall. He has been adjusting the recipe while cooking for his family and his friends through the years and it ended up tasting like the Penang style prawn noodles though not quite like it. 

There is the dry and the soup version available at the standard price of $4.00 with different types of noodles like yellow noodles, kway teow, bee hoon and thick bee hoon to choose. Their homemade fish cake is available at $1.40 each and it is handmade by Tom daily. 

A standard bowl of prawn mee comprises of 2 medium-sized prawns with slices of fish cake and lean meat with kang kong then topped with fried lard before serving. The prawns are only blanched upon order and Anson actually made the efforts to de-shell the prawns, left with just the head and tail. The prawns are deveined as well though it is rather time-consuming. These prawns tasted relatively fresh. The broth is prepared using ingredients like pork ribs and chicken bones slow-cooked for hours to bring out the flavors though light bodied but with a notable robustness. 

Those fresh-tasting fish cakes were fluffy with a noticeable tenderness and bounciness. This is one of the key factors that set this particular prawn noodle apart from the others. 

And, there is no need for the addition of chilli powder as it is already spicy enough as commented by my dining companion. 

Anson was not there when I visited. Overall, the prawn noodle was nice though not quite memorable as yet but do support this passionate young hawker if you happen to be in this food centre. 

PRAWN VILLAGE

505 Beach Road #01-97 Golden Mile Food Centre SINGAPORE 199583

Operating Hours: 9.00 am to 5.00 pm (Closed on Saturdays)

Ming's Prawn Noodle by a Gen-Y Hawker

Cai Jiaming, 26, started this hawker stall after graduated from At-Sunrice Global Chef Academy serving prawn noodle. He heads to Jurong Fishery Port almost every day as early as 3 am to select the freshest prawns before proceeding to the wet market to get the pork ribs then to his stall to start preparing the master stock to be used for the prawn noodle. Their menu is kept simple, there are prawn noodle and pork ribs noodles at $3.50 each, for dry and for soup version. There is also an option to have both the prawns and pork ribs at $5 per portion. 

I decided to go with the Pork Ribs Prawn Noodle. It was ready in just a bit, and I was asked to help myself with the fried lard, ground chilli powder, and the sliced red chilli. A packet of wet tissue was placed together with the bowls of noodles and soup on the tray. I requested for an extra amount of chilli to be added, and I topped it with 2 spoonfuls of the ground chilli powder together with a handful of fried lard.

The soup served hot, it tasted light and even so it was still flavorful with a slight prawny taste. As for the prawn noodle, it came with a good portion of yellow noodles that were cooked to the right texture, with 3 pieces of medium-sized prawns and 3 pieces of pork ribs together with bean sprouts and kang kong. The pork ribs were not as fatty, it has a thin layer of meat that was cooked to the desired tenderness. The prawns were rather plump and it tasted really fresh. 

It is heartening to see such a passionate young hawker in doing his part to contribute and preserve our hawker culture. 

MING'S PRAWN NOODLE

120 Bukit Merah Lane 1 #01-01 Alexandra Village Food Centre SINGAPORE 150120

Operating Hours: 7.00 am to 3.00 pm (Closed on Wednesdays)