Yong Li: Treat your hawker nice Day!

With Cactuskit, Wahcow and smart


Well, we Singaporeans are an honest bunch. We know our faults and we openly admit them. Impatient, rude, unforgiving and downright Kiasu. We sigh in frustration when we experience graciousness in other societies and lament that we can't be the same. Hey, all is not lost. Deep inside each and everyone of us, there is that spark that just needs to be ignited. We all have it in us and it is just a matter of expressing it so that we can make a difference.

Why do I say that? Because there is still a lot of niceness and goodness out there! And it is as close as the hawker that you buy your food from everyday.

Take this little old lady selling kway chap for instance. You could go up to her, order your $3 kway chap, pay your money and sit down and eat. Or, you could do what our friend Cactuskit did and start showing real interest in the lady, chatting with her frequently and even going to the extent of inviting her to one of his church functions. It's no wonder she treats him like a son and cooks a special chilli stingray dish for him when she found out we were coming for breakfast on a particular day!

That is why I feel that if you want to see more graciousness in our society, it starts right where you are. And one of the first people you can start with is our humble hawkers who work so hard everyday to feed us but often don't get any credit and very little thanks for what they do. A big smile and a simple word of praise for their food usually gets things going and I assure you that you will go away feeling much better about life too! In fact, if I were a Director in the Ministry of Community Development, I would even declare an official "Hawkers Appreciation" Day to try to spread some goodwill around. Happy hawkers make yummier food and yummier food make us all happier.



This little stall in Haig Road Food Centre does not have any newspaper clipping or awards of any sort, but they have been cleaning out pig innards for more than 30 years. Ever since Cactuskit mentioned them in the forum, it has been winning approval from our forummers including our venerable uncle Smart who declared that the lady makes the best "Da Chang" (Large Intestines) and pig skin in Singapore.

I think the thing about their "Da Chang" is the fact that they managed to get it so clean that you don't have any "smelly" taste in it. Now, here is the secret which I immediately spotted, thanks to my years of studying histology and anatomy in Med School. (Yeah right). Notice from the picture that they stripped off the layer of mucosa (innermost layer which is in contact with the fecal matter), thus exposing the inner layer of circular muscle? That is the secret. The old lady laboriously turns the large intestine inside out and painstakingly strips off the mucosal layer. This extra step results in a clean tasting "Da Chang" which even someone (like me) who doesn't usually eat "Da Chang" can appreciate. Smart gives it a 4.75/5 and says that the texture and taste is almost perfect.



So here's the nice little old hawker Aunty who has been stripping off pig innards for 30 years. Be nice to her and to your favourite hawker Aunty and Uncle today!

Conclusion

If you like "Da Chang" and pig skin then according to our kway chap experts, you should give this stall a try real soon!

Yong Li Cooked Food
Haig Road Food Centre
Open 7am to 2pm daily
Closed on Monday




What to do next?

Read about other Kway Chap stalls by clicking here
Like to find more Mom and Pop stalls? Click here
Find out what else is there to eat at Haig Road FC. Click here
Don't miss the Putu Piring that is just round the corner! Click here


Remember to vote today! Click here