In Kovan, there’s one particular stall that sells authentic Thai kway chap, and until the wee hours of the morning too. Called Yaowarat Thai Kway Chap, the popular eatery is certainly worth driving or cabbing for.
Wait a minute, what is kway chap?
Kway chap is a popular breakfast and suppertime dish that finds its roots in Teochew cuisine.
For the uninitiated, it comprises two components, the kway—a lightly-seasoned soy sauce broth filled with broad, flat sheets of rice noodle—and the chap, a hodgepodge of braised delights from pork belly, offal, salted vegetables, egg, fish cake to various soy products such as tofu and beancurd skin.
Coincidentally enough, the Thais also have a variation that’s similar which they also call kway chap—pronounced “kwai chup”—that sees pretty much the same components sans the braised ingredients with a peppery broth instead of a dark one.
While strikingly similar, the Thai version of kway chap differs in a few ways. For one, there isn’t a braised component to the dish, but rather, all the ingredients are served together in the same broth as the rice noodles.
Secondly, the broth is considerably more pronounced in flavour with a headier, peppery profile to it. And lastly, the rice noodles appear as rolls rather than broad, flat sheets.
Signature Thai Kway Chap: A must-try at Yaowarat Thai Kway Chap
Yaowarat’s Signature Thai Kway Chap (S$5) features a mixture of crispy pork belly, Thai pork sausage, slices of lean pork and pig stomach. A dish that brims with hearty flavours, it was no doubt easy to mop up.
The broth was peppery and savoury with a deep meatiness to it. The Thai sausages are sweet and greasy, tasting somewhat like Taiwanese sausage and while the pork belly was delicious, it did become a tad soggy especially after sitting in the broth for a while.
Deep-Fried Thai Pork Belly
To experience the full potential of the very well-cooked pork belly, order it separately. Yaowarat Thai Kway Chap’s Deep-fried Thai Pork Belly (S$6, S$8, S$10) is available in a few sizes and is served with a sweetish dark sauce infused with chilli and garlic.
The crackling was crispy, the meat was melt-in-your-mouth tender and the fat layered between melted like butter.
Braised Egg
For some added bulk, one can’t go wrong with their Braised Egg (S$1). There was nothing particularly special about it, but then again, you can’t go wrong adding an egg into anything.
Braised Tau Pok
Rough around the edges and soft in the middle, what we liked best about the Braised Tau Pok (S$2) was that it sponged up the braising liquid so well, providing every mouthful with a burst of saucy savouriness.
Definitely not something you’ll regret not having, but if you have the tummy space for it, then, by all means, give it a go.
Thai Red Milk Tea: Yaowarat Thai Kway Chap makes it from scratch
When eating Thai food, nothing truly spells authentic better than a hand-made Iced Thai Red Milk Tea ($3). We watched them make it over the counter to ensure that it was legit—and it was. The staff at Yaowarat Thai Kway Chap brew their tea fresh and prepare the entire beverage from scratch.
Disclaimer: Uncover Asia made an anonymous visit and paid for their own meal.
Address: 945 Upper Serangoon Road, Singapore 534711
Opening Hours: 11AM – 1.30AM (Daily)
Contact: +65 8822 5637
Nearest MRT Station: Kovan
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