Where To Go For Hong Kong’s Best Claypot Rice, According To A Local Chef
But the weekend is when she usually spends time with her folks. They’d drop by their favourite spots for a bite, like traditional Cantonese claypot rice at Wing Hop Sing.
No part of this story or photos can be reproduced without permission from 8days.sg.
Now, there are two kinds of fame when it comes to F&B establishments: the type pushed by TikTokers and Xiaohongshu influencers as a tourist must-go, or a closely-guarded local secret with deceptively average Google reviews.
Wing Hop Sing is the latter, with a long line of Hong Kongers patiently waiting at lunchtime for a table at the cash-only, no-reservations establishment.
It gets its name from the coarsely-chopped beef slices arranged in the shape of a nest on rice, with a raw egg cracked on top just before serving. It continues cooking as you work it into the sizzling mountain of beef and crusty grains.
‘Moonlight’ claypot rice
“You have moonlight hor fun in Singapore, you should know lah!” chef Archan chortles as she deftly coats the hot rice with runny golden egg yolk. (Chef’s pro tip: drizzle some of the savoury-sweet dark soy sauce provided in a bottle at every table, for extra flavour).
There’s an umami, faintly fermented funk to the succulent chicken, which is cooked with a dash of fermented beancurd. The warm fluffy rice under the chook catches the rich fat dripping from the meat, so no tasty part of the dish goes to waste.
It’s served with nothing else and nothing else is needed except freshly-cooked rice; these are some of the nicest lup cheong you can savour in the city. “Add only a little soy sauce for this, otherwise it’s too salty,” chef Archan cautions.
The heat-retaining claypot softens the chewiness of the preserved meat and breaks down the decadent fatty juices, so it becomes a tasty, unctuous sauce for the rice.
One of the best milk teas in the city too
But the most random foodie find here has got to be the restaurant’s proprietary iced milk tea. We ordered it to quench our thirst from the hot, salty claypot rice, and were surprised to find it more than serviceable — the robust nai cha boasts a silky creaminess and fragrance that can rival famous shops like Lan Fong Yuen.
We eagerly ordered another beverage, yuan yang milk tea, to chase it down, but it was sadly not as good. So don’t say bo jio: load up on the claypot rice and iced nai cha at this hidden gem. Just go before lunchtime to avoid the long queue. Oh, and thank chef Archan Chan if you see her there.
Wing Hop Sing is at 360 Des Voeux Rd West, Shek Tong Tsui, Open Mon-Sat, 7am-4pm. Cash-only, no reservations.
Photos: Yip Jieying
No part of this story or photos can be reproduced without permission from 8days.sg.
8days.sg is now on #tiktok! Follow us on www.tiktok.com/@8dayseat
