Our early morning food hunt took us to this corner chicken rice shop in the rustic back streets of Kulai (off Jalan Besar, the main street).
These fried chicken hanging enticingly in the window caught my attention as I passed. On checking with the boss, my suspicion that these chicken were charcoal roasted before they were deep fried were confirmed. Yipee! I love roast-then-fry chicken because of their superior flavour and texture, so we decided to stop and check this out.
Inside Heng Heng, it is bright, airy and clean. The bare bones décor and laid back atmosphere inside made me feel like I am back in the good old 1970s. The friendly staff was attentive and service was very efficient.
This old style hand carved wooden plaque hanging high and prominently in the shop stated that Heng Heng Hainanese chicken rice was founded in 1977.
Heng Heng has 4 outlets scattered across Kulai town and the second generation boss, Ah Kang 亚康 is here helming the founder's shop. Ah Kang's family is related to the family that runs Tian Tian chicken rice in Singapore.
The roast-then-fry chicken was juicy, sweet and tender inside. The fried skin outside was so tasty, I just ate it together with the meat, throwing cholesterol wariness to the wind :D
The fragrant rice is tender yet firm, and the grains separate easily. The grains are coated with chicken broth, yet they are not greasy.
Drizzle a dribble of dark soy sauce - an old habit of mine when I was addicted to strong flavouring - a habit I need to kick.
Heng Heng's freshly ground ginger sauce is a winner. Only mildly spicy, creamy and full bodied, it's so good, I ate a few spoonfuls on its own.
Heng Heng's founder (Ah Kang's dad) said we must come back to try their siew yok (roast belly pork) and char siew (roast pork) as Heng Heng's claim to fame includes their Hong Kong roasts. I shall definitely be back.
Restaurant: Heng Heng 兴兴 Hainanese Chicken Rice Address: Junction of Jalan Ibrahim and Jalan Ismail, Kulai, Johor Map: http://goo.gl/maps/HYhlp GPS: 1.660393,103.603354 Hours: 6:30am to 3:30pm (closed on alternate Thursdays) Non Halal
Date visited: 22 Nov 2013
Our early morning food hunt took us to this corner chicken rice shop in the rustic back streets of Kulai (off Jalan Besar, the main street).
These fried chicken hanging enticingly in the window caught my attention as I passed. On checking with the boss, my suspicion that these chicken were charcoal roasted before they were deep fried were confirmed. Yipee! I love roast-then-fry chicken because of their superior flavour and texture, so we decided to stop and check this out.
Inside Heng Heng, it is bright, airy and clean. The bare bones décor and laid back atmosphere inside made me feel like I am back in the good old 1970s. The friendly staff was attentive and service was very efficient.
This old style hand carved wooden plaque hanging high and prominently in the shop stated that Heng Heng Hainanese chicken rice was founded in 1977.
Heng Heng has 4 outlets scattered across Kulai town and the second generation boss, Ah Kang 亚康 is here helming the founder's shop. Ah Kang's family is related to the family that runs Tian Tian chicken rice in Singapore.
The roast-then-fry chicken was juicy, sweet and tender inside. The fried skin outside was so tasty, I just ate it together with the meat, throwing cholesterol wariness to the wind :D
The fragrant rice is tender yet firm, and the grains separate easily. The grains are coated with chicken broth, yet they are not greasy.
Drizzle a dribble of dark soy sauce - an old habit of mine when I was addicted to strong flavouring - a habit I need to kick.
Heng Heng's freshly ground ginger sauce is a winner. Only mildly spicy, creamy and full bodied, it's so good, I ate a few spoonfuls on its own.
Heng Heng's founder (Ah Kang's dad) said we must come back to try their siew yok (roast belly pork) and char siew (roast pork) as Heng Heng's claim to fame includes their Hong Kong roasts. I shall definitely be back.
Restaurant: Heng Heng 兴兴 Hainanese Chicken Rice Address: Junction of Jalan Ibrahim and Jalan Ismail, Kulai, Johor Map: http://goo.gl/maps/HYhlp GPS: 1.660393,103.603354 Hours: 6:30am to 3:30pm (closed on alternate Thursdays) Non Halal
Today, I found a good ayam penyet place in Setia Tropika thanks to the invite from JJ, one of the partners of Penyet World Express which serves delicious Indonesian street food in a simple yet comfortable setting.
Restaurant name: Penyet World Express Address: 14, Jalan Tropika 1/1, Taman Setia Tropika, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/z1YzL GPS: 1.544679,103.710669 Hours: 11:30am to 10:00pm Halal cert in process
Inside Penyet World Express (PWE), it is comfortable, air conditioned, clean and neat. I like the colour theme here because apple green is my favourite colour :) It's such a calming and cheerful colour.
Ayam Penyet Traditional RM8.90
My friends will tell you that I am a crazy fan of ayam penyet. I can have ayam penyet everyday for a week for lunch at my favourite stall in Singapore near my old office.
Ayam penyet is made by smacking the deep fried chicken during the last stage of the dish's preparation, hence the name ayam penyet which is "flattened chicken" in Indonesian.
At PWE, chicken is coated with a crispy golden brown batter that keeps the inside of the meat moist and tender. We can taste the chicken's sweet natural juices.
PWE's ayam penyet comes with the usual tempeh and raw crunchy vegetables which are very clean and fresh.
PWE's sambal chili really kicks butts. It's an interesting blend of spiciness but it is not overly sharp or hot. It is made with a combination different varieties of chili peppers blended together.
The rice is a key element of good ayam penyet and yet the dish is often let down by use of poorer quality rice that are starchy and stuck together in wet clumps. PWE uses quality long grain fragrant rice.
I really love PWE's ayam penyet. It is actually better than my old favourite in Singapore which I used to eat nearly everyday.
Sotong Penyet RM8.90
Sotong penyet is the second top seller at PWE. At PWE, we can choose to have either the traditional raw vegetables or potato wedges and fries to go with our main dish. For our sotong penyet, we opted for the fries and wedges.
Ikan Penyet RM7.90
Besides ayam penyet, I am a big fan of ikan penyet. PWE's ikan penyet is excellent. JJ told me that customers often finish everything on the plate, leaving only the fish's backbone. JJ said that even the head is often eaten :)
Actually, that doesn't surprise me at all as that is also how I eat my ikan penyet :) The fish is so crispy, it is like keropok.
Fried eggplant or brinjal. PWE's signature batter does magic with every ingredient. The fried eggplant is crunchy crispy outside and soft and savoury inside. It's like a pisang goreng made with eggplant. I like this.
Fried bakso (beef balls).
Whole spring chicken RM17.90
PWE's popular spring chicken.
Coconut Shake RM4.90
This coconut shake is a "must try". Made from fresh fragrant coconuts, the creamy cold refreshing drink goes very well with fried and spicy food.
Bandung Soda RM3
I like this Bandung soda which is a slightly fizzy drink with real pandan flavour.
If you have an Indonesian Tehbotol craving, you can get your fix here at RM2 a pack.
PWE is an excellent place for a simple yet delicious lunch or dinner.
Date visited: 17 Oct 2013
Today, I found a good ayam penyet place in Setia Tropika thanks to the invite from JJ, one of the partners of Penyet World Express which serves delicious Indonesian street food in a simple yet comfortable setting.
Restaurant name: Penyet World Express Address: 14, Jalan Tropika 1/1, Taman Setia Tropika, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/z1YzL GPS: 1.544679,103.710669 Hours: 11:30am to 10:00pm Halal cert in process
Inside Penyet World Express (PWE), it is comfortable, air conditioned, clean and neat. I like the colour theme here because apple green is my favourite colour :) It's such a calming and cheerful colour.
Ayam Penyet Traditional RM8.90
My friends will tell you that I am a crazy fan of ayam penyet. I can have ayam penyet everyday for a week for lunch at my favourite stall in Singapore near my old office.
Ayam penyet is made by smacking the deep fried chicken during the last stage of the dish's preparation, hence the name ayam penyet which is "flattened chicken" in Indonesian.
At PWE, chicken is coated with a crispy golden brown batter that keeps the inside of the meat moist and tender. We can taste the chicken's sweet natural juices.
PWE's ayam penyet comes with the usual tempeh and raw crunchy vegetables which are very clean and fresh.
PWE's sambal chili really kicks butts. It's an interesting blend of spiciness but it is not overly sharp or hot. It is made with a combination different varieties of chili peppers blended together.
The rice is a key element of good ayam penyet and yet the dish is often let down by use of poorer quality rice that are starchy and stuck together in wet clumps. PWE uses quality long grain fragrant rice.
I really love PWE's ayam penyet. It is actually better than my old favourite in Singapore which I used to eat nearly everyday.
Sotong Penyet RM8.90
Sotong penyet is the second top seller at PWE. At PWE, we can choose to have either the traditional raw vegetables or potato wedges and fries to go with our main dish. For our sotong penyet, we opted for the fries and wedges.
Ikan Penyet RM7.90
Besides ayam penyet, I am a big fan of ikan penyet. PWE's ikan penyet is excellent. JJ told me that customers often finish everything on the plate, leaving only the fish's backbone. JJ said that even the head is often eaten :)
Actually, that doesn't surprise me at all as that is also how I eat my ikan penyet :) The fish is so crispy, it is like keropok.
Fried eggplant or brinjal. PWE's signature batter does magic with every ingredient. The fried eggplant is crunchy crispy outside and soft and savoury inside. It's like a pisang goreng made with eggplant. I like this.
Fried bakso (beef balls).
Whole spring chicken RM17.90
PWE's popular spring chicken.
Coconut Shake RM4.90
This coconut shake is a "must try". Made from fresh fragrant coconuts, the creamy cold refreshing drink goes very well with fried and spicy food.
Bandung Soda RM3
I like this Bandung soda which is a slightly fizzy drink with real pandan flavour.
If you have an Indonesian Tehbotol craving, you can get your fix here at RM2 a pack.
PWE is an excellent place for a simple yet delicious lunch or dinner.
Mr. Yong, the boss at Sam Kong restaurant, invited me to try their Guangxi Three Treasures 广西三宝.
I was really excited that Guangxi chicken rice is one of the Guangxi Three Treasures (the other two are Guangxi stuffed toufu and braised belly pork). Good chicken rice is not that common in Johor Bahru. Even more rare is Guangxi style chicken rice as most chicken rice here are either in the Hainanese or Cantonese style.
Guangxi Chicken Rice RM22 for half RM40 for whole bird.
Guangxi chicken is poached in the same way as Hainanese or Cantonese chicken. The same smooth, tender, juicy and naturally sweet flavours of fresh chicken. At Sam Kong, the chicken is chopped into small bite size pieces in the same way as the chicken rice stalls in JB and Singapore. The chicken is drizzled with a soy and sesame oil based sauce. Mr. Kong said that the traditional Guangxi way is to chop the chicken into just a few large pieces. LOL actually I prefer to eat chicken by tearing it apart in large pieces.
This is nam, the sauce that differentiates Guangxi chicken rice from all others. The sauce is a complex blend of fried garlic and onions, parsley, chopped ginger, spring onions, Chinese chives, dark soy sauce, and sesame oil. Nam is savoury and fragrant, and really enhances the natural sweetness of poached chicken.
The chicken is eaten with the savoury and fragrant nam (dip). This is a unique and delicious way of eating tender poached chicken other than with the usual chili, ginger and soy sauce dips. Eating chicken with nam is a must try.
Mr. Yong said that the traditional way is to drench and smother the chopped chicken with the nam. Next time, I shall ask to eat my Guangxi chicken in the old fashioned way.
For those of us who still want our chili sauce, Sam Kong's fresh ground chili sauce is very good too. The dip tastes hot and tangy as it is made with fresh chili pepper, ginger, lime and lime peels. It's a great dip for the chicken.
However, Guangxi chicken rice is not served with soup unlike the Hainanese or Cantonese style.
Guangxi Toufu RM8
Well, in place of the soup, we can separately order the Guangxi toufu which comes with a savoury soup made with anchovies and soy beans.
Guangxi chicken rice is served with plain steamed white rice (not the oily flavoured rice eaten with Hainanese or Cantonese chicken).
Give Sam Kong's Guangxi chicken rice a try for a change in style from the usual.
Restaurant name: Sam Kong Restaurant 三江 Address: 8-H, Jalan Ungku Mohsin, Kampung Ungku Mohsin, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/N8BmU GPS: 1.514005,103.740173 Hours: 11:00am to 11:00pm (Monday closed) Non Halal
Date visited: 14 May 2013, 16 Jul 2013
Mr. Yong, the boss at Sam Kong restaurant, invited me to try their Guangxi Three Treasures 广西三宝.
I was really excited that Guangxi chicken rice is one of the Guangxi Three Treasures (the other two are Guangxi stuffed toufu and braised belly pork). Good chicken rice is not that common in Johor Bahru. Even more rare is Guangxi style chicken rice as most chicken rice here are either in the Hainanese or Cantonese style.
Guangxi Chicken Rice RM22 for half RM40 for whole bird.
Guangxi chicken is poached in the same way as Hainanese or Cantonese chicken. The same smooth, tender, juicy and naturally sweet flavours of fresh chicken. At Sam Kong, the chicken is chopped into small bite size pieces in the same way as the chicken rice stalls in JB and Singapore. The chicken is drizzled with a soy and sesame oil based sauce. Mr. Kong said that the traditional Guangxi way is to chop the chicken into just a few large pieces. LOL actually I prefer to eat chicken by tearing it apart in large pieces.
This is nam, the sauce that differentiates Guangxi chicken rice from all others. The sauce is a complex blend of fried garlic and onions, parsley, chopped ginger, spring onions, Chinese chives, dark soy sauce, and sesame oil. Nam is savoury and fragrant, and really enhances the natural sweetness of poached chicken.
The chicken is eaten with the savoury and fragrant nam (dip). This is a unique and delicious way of eating tender poached chicken other than with the usual chili, ginger and soy sauce dips. Eating chicken with nam is a must try.
Mr. Yong said that the traditional way is to drench and smother the chopped chicken with the nam. Next time, I shall ask to eat my Guangxi chicken in the old fashioned way.
For those of us who still want our chili sauce, Sam Kong's fresh ground chili sauce is very good too. The dip tastes hot and tangy as it is made with fresh chili pepper, ginger, lime and lime peels. It's a great dip for the chicken.
However, Guangxi chicken rice is not served with soup unlike the Hainanese or Cantonese style.
Guangxi Toufu RM8
Well, in place of the soup, we can separately order the Guangxi toufu which comes with a savoury soup made with anchovies and soy beans.
Guangxi chicken rice is served with plain steamed white rice (not the oily flavoured rice eaten with Hainanese or Cantonese chicken).
Give Sam Kong's Guangxi chicken rice a try for a change in style from the usual.
Restaurant name: Sam Kong Restaurant 三江 Address: 8-H, Jalan Ungku Mohsin, Kampung Ungku Mohsin, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/N8BmU GPS: 1.514005,103.740173 Hours: 11:00am to 11:00pm (Monday closed) Non Halal
I heard a lot about a popular kampung chicken rice stall in Taman Sri Tebrau and finally tracked down Ah Lee Kampung Chicken Rice 亚李菜园鸡饭 today.
The key man at the stall is Ah Fei who does all the cutting and cooking.
Ah Fei worked at his dad's chicken rice stall when he was a boy and he worked at a chicken rice stall in Jurong (Block 505), Singapore for many years before returning to Johor Bahru. This stall is named after his partner, Ah Lee 亚李.
I asked for a drumstick so my chicken rice set came to RM7.50. The "normal" chicken set costs RM6.50.
The drumstick was longer and more slender compared to the usual farm chicken or "meat chicken 肉鸡 " as it is known here. The meat was neatly cut and nicely presented.
The thigh meat was tender, juicy and very slightly stringier that "meat chicken". The meat has streaks of smooth gelatinous jelly in between which I love. The smooth chicken meat had a pleasant, lightly savoury flavour. I didn't pay much attention to the sauce as I wanted to taste the kampung chicken's natural flavours.
Caught a pic of another customer's order. Ah Fei obviously takes pride in presenting his food - no topsy turvy random heap of scattered bones and chicken pieces here and there.
Ah Fei told me that his stall uses good quality Thai fragrant rice to cook their chicken rice. Ah Lee's chicken rice is indeed fragrant and the loose, tender grains were lightly coated with chicken fat.
This soup may look clear and ordinary but it has body and is savoury and flavourful. It was one of those soups that I will ask for seconds, which I actually did ;)
The chicken rice was served with ground chili and ginger. I just did a dip test - both were fresh and complemented the chicken well. I didn't use the chili or ginger much as I wanted to savour the natural flavour of the kampung chicken.
If you are looking for kampung chicken rice, give Ah Lee Kampung Chicken Rice 亚李菜园鸡饭 a try.
Restaurant name: Ah Lee Kampung Chicken Rice 亚李菜园鸡饭 Address: Junction of Jalan Badik and Jalan Badik 1, Taman Sri Tebrau, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/WTb4d GPS: 1.486227,103.768959 Hours: 4:00pm to 12:00 midnight Non Halal
Date visited: 27 May 2013
I heard a lot about a popular kampung chicken rice stall in Taman Sri Tebrau and finally tracked down Ah Lee Kampung Chicken Rice 亚李菜园鸡饭 today.
The key man at the stall is Ah Fei who does all the cutting and cooking.
Ah Fei worked at his dad's chicken rice stall when he was a boy and he worked at a chicken rice stall in Jurong (Block 505), Singapore for many years before returning to Johor Bahru. This stall is named after his partner, Ah Lee 亚李.
I asked for a drumstick so my chicken rice set came to RM7.50. The "normal" chicken set costs RM6.50.
The drumstick was longer and more slender compared to the usual farm chicken or "meat chicken 肉鸡 " as it is known here. The meat was neatly cut and nicely presented.
The thigh meat was tender, juicy and very slightly stringier that "meat chicken". The meat has streaks of smooth gelatinous jelly in between which I love. The smooth chicken meat had a pleasant, lightly savoury flavour. I didn't pay much attention to the sauce as I wanted to taste the kampung chicken's natural flavours.
Caught a pic of another customer's order. Ah Fei obviously takes pride in presenting his food - no topsy turvy random heap of scattered bones and chicken pieces here and there.
Ah Fei told me that his stall uses good quality Thai fragrant rice to cook their chicken rice. Ah Lee's chicken rice is indeed fragrant and the loose, tender grains were lightly coated with chicken fat.
This soup may look clear and ordinary but it has body and is savoury and flavourful. It was one of those soups that I will ask for seconds, which I actually did ;)
The chicken rice was served with ground chili and ginger. I just did a dip test - both were fresh and complemented the chicken well. I didn't use the chili or ginger much as I wanted to savour the natural flavour of the kampung chicken.
If you are looking for kampung chicken rice, give Ah Lee Kampung Chicken Rice 亚李菜园鸡饭 a try.
Restaurant name: Ah Lee Kampung Chicken Rice 亚李菜园鸡饭 Address: Junction of Jalan Badik and Jalan Badik 1, Taman Sri Tebrau, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/WTb4d GPS: 1.486227,103.768959 Hours: 4:00pm to 12:00 midnight Non Halal
When I was at Chang Man to try out their Hong Kong dim sum, besides being impressed with their dim sum, I also enjoyed their chicken and char siew rice. Today, I went back to Chang Man 常满 again, specially for their chicken and char siew rice.
Chang Man included chicken and char siew in their menu to appeal to a wider customer base. Furthermore, Kok Weng, one of the partners is skillful in roast meats as he had worked in one of Kuala Lumpur's top roast meat restaurants for nearly 20 years.
As chicken and char siew rice is not the main business of Chang Man, the amount made each day is quite small - only five chickens and half a dozen strips of char siew.
Chang Man's staff goes to the wet market to buy the fresh chicken everyday.
We had this plate of mixed chicken and char siew. This set for two persons came with two bowls of rice and soup, and costed RM13.
The poached chicken was made with ordinary farm raised chicken. The thick flesh was tender, sweet and savoury.
Some parts were slightly rare as in the Cantonese style of poached chicken. I like this style and make it the same way at home - slightly rare, retaining more of the chicken's natural juices. I learnt how to make this style of poached chicken from my Hong Kong school mates when I was studying in Canada in the 1980s.
The char siew I had today had quite a bit of fat attached... but I didn't worry too much about it :P
The char siew was irresistibly tender, sweet and savoury.
The tender rice was fluffy and very lightly coated with fragrant oil. I didn't take a picture of the tasty soup.
The chili sauce was average - a blend of chili, garlic and ginger.
We also shared this RM6 chicken hor fun soup. The same succulent chicken was served in a savoury seafood broth with pleasant umami flavour. The hor fun rice noodles were average.
Give Chang Man's chicken and char siew a try if you are around the Nusa Bestari and Bukit Indah area.
Restaurant name: Chang Man 常满 Hong Kong Dim Sum Chicken Rice Hor Fun Address: 24G, Jalan Bestari 5/2, Taman Nusa Bestari, Skudai, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/DfrpV GPS: 1.481122,103.665189 Hours: 8:00am to 8:00pm (Closed on alternate Fridays) Non Halal
When I was at Chang Man to try out their Hong Kong dim sum, besides being impressed with their dim sum, I also enjoyed their chicken and char siew rice. Today, I went back to Chang Man 常满 again, specially for their chicken and char siew rice.
Chang Man included chicken and char siew in their menu to appeal to a wider customer base. Furthermore, Kok Weng, one of the partners is skillful in roast meats as he had worked in one of Kuala Lumpur's top roast meat restaurants for nearly 20 years.
As chicken and char siew rice is not the main business of Chang Man, the amount made each day is quite small - only five chickens and half a dozen strips of char siew.
Chang Man's staff goes to the wet market to buy the fresh chicken everyday.
We had this plate of mixed chicken and char siew. This set for two persons came with two bowls of rice and soup, and costed RM13.
The poached chicken was made with ordinary farm raised chicken. The thick flesh was tender, sweet and savoury.
Some parts were slightly rare as in the Cantonese style of poached chicken. I like this style and make it the same way at home - slightly rare, retaining more of the chicken's natural juices. I learnt how to make this style of poached chicken from my Hong Kong school mates when I was studying in Canada in the 1980s.
The char siew I had today had quite a bit of fat attached... but I didn't worry too much about it :P
The char siew was irresistibly tender, sweet and savoury.
The tender rice was fluffy and very lightly coated with fragrant oil. I didn't take a picture of the tasty soup.
The chili sauce was average - a blend of chili, garlic and ginger.
We also shared this RM6 chicken hor fun soup. The same succulent chicken was served in a savoury seafood broth with pleasant umami flavour. The hor fun rice noodles were average.
Give Chang Man's chicken and char siew a try if you are around the Nusa Bestari and Bukit Indah area.
Restaurant name: Chang Man 常满 Hong Kong Dim Sum Chicken Rice Hor Fun Address: 24G, Jalan Bestari 5/2, Taman Nusa Bestari, Skudai, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/DfrpV GPS: 1.481122,103.665189 Hours: 8:00am to 8:00pm (Closed on alternate Fridays) Non Halal
