Dry Bakuteh @ Kim Hock Food Court

It looks disgusting, dark, and almost burnt in respect but Kim Hock Food Court has been selling these for years. For the life of me, I have no idea that such a dish existed nor did I even care to find out about its existence but when it comes to something this strange, someone has to write about it.

First, Bakuteh, or Meat Boat Tea as it is known in Chinese circles is a dish cooked for laborers who worked on the docks and construction sites in Singapore and Malaysia. This highly potent soup and meat mix was what fueled the laborers to soldier on and to be fair, it does not taste like what you normally find today. Both the Malaysian and Singaporean version differ in their use of White Peppers. Singapore loves the use of heavy white peppers to flavor the soup while the Malaysian version does with a lot less.

When it comes to fragrance, Chinese herbs and spices dominates this dish. The meat is infused with these flavors when boiled in the soup and you'd eat it with rice. That said, it's not very palatable for Westerners.

There are two different preparations for this soup. One has a darker soup base and then there is the lighter one, which is supposedly from Teochew chefs. The Hokkien version of course is much darker. The Cantonese on the other hand has reinterpreted the recipe to make it more soupy, fragrant and true to taste and the version sold here at Kim Hock Food Court is just that, a lighter soupier Bakuteh.  Everything is balanced, making it an invigorating liquid when you are on the look out for a pick me up.

The dry version? Well I have no idea who came up with the idea but it taste very different. Gone are the subtle herby taste of the broth and instead, you have dried Cephalopods as the dominant and detectable ingredient. I suppose the goal here is to preserve the color of the dish rather than taste.

Now I would like to point out that Kim Hock Food Court is not really a food court. It serves up a variety of dishes which are mainly pork based. The pork trotters in vinegar (too little vinegar), Bakuteh and the dry bakuteh are all made in small portions but don't get me wrong. Their portions are big even when classified small and with a few dishes  ordered, there were so many chunks of meat that even Lions would eat there if they could. To feed four, we only spent US$20, and this included the Yam rice and pot of tea.

For value for money, there is no denying this place shines. Unfortunately I didn't take to the dry Bakuteh like duck to water and preferred the soupy version. Maybe I am a traditionalist? I'll let you be a judge of that.

Dry Bakuteh @ Kim Hock Food Court