The Hunt for Healthier Local Food with South West CDC

Food Centers are usually the place most of us frequent for an affordable spread of local food; and most of the time, we are left with so many options that we can’t decide what to eat. So, we make more specific choices by choosing the healthy dishes. But then again, one might ask, “How healthy can hawker food be?” OpenRice went on a Healthy Food Hunt with South West Community Development Council (CDC) and that landed us at Clementi 448 Market and Food Centre. Certified by Health Promotion Board (HPB) under the Healthier Hawker Food Programme (launched in April 2011), we brought a handful of families to savour some dishes at the top two stalls, which were chosen by our participants who signed up for this event.

Our Healthy Food Hunt landed us at Clementi 448 Market and Food Centre

The top two voted local dishes during the event registration period were the Western Food and Wanton Mee from the stalls Boon Kee Wanton Mee and Tanglin Halt Western Food. A total of five families consisting of parents of children were selected to join us on a casual Sunday meal under a tent set up by the hawker’s association. They were also accompanied by invited bloggers, who were also excited to enjoy these offerings.

Mouth-watering dishes from the popular Boon Kee Wanton Mee stall

Without much of a wait, an array of dishes from Boon Kee Wanton Mee were served including the stall’s highly popular Wanton Mee (top right). Also on the menu were the soup and fried wantons, which the children enjoyed with tender slices of char siew (lean roasted pork). The bowl of handmade Dumpling Soup (top left) by the stall’s lady boss won a number of “thumbs-up” from the participants as the portions were generous and flavourful in each bite. Aside from the pork dishes, they have a variety of other chicken items like the Shredded Chicken Hor Fun (bottom left) and Braised Chicken Noodles (bottom right) enjoyed by the Indian family we invited. The chicken slices were lean and tender; and it went well with the tasty mushroom-based sauce. After savouring the delicious noodles, our appetite went on chomp down because of the delicious local-style Western delights from from Tanglin Halt Western Food. The items here are prepared using lesser oil and the owner removes most fatty parts of the chicken before char-grilling them on a griddle. We tried their signature Chicken Chop (above) served with a generous portion of tomato beans, coleslaw, and thick-cut fries drizzled with three different homemade sauces. All of them looked so decadent when they were served that our OpenRicers could not wait to try them. The children enjoyed the chicken chop drizzled with sweet Hainanese-style sauce (top right); it had an uplifting flavour that got most of us craving for more. They do have an option of our local Satay Sauce (bottom right) which emits a nutty sweet yet mildly spicy flavour that complements the succulent chicken. Among all three of them, the Black Pepper Sauce Chicken Chop (left) won our hearts with a fiery burst of heat from the ground pepper that tickled our palate.

Families and bloggers had a great time feasting over healthier hawkers fare

It was a Sunday well-spent for the participants and bloggers as they had a great time dining together over delicious healthier hawker fare. Friendship among families was forged and most importantly, they also got to learn how to make healthier choices when dining. If you are searching for some affordable and delicious food around Clementi, do pop by Clementi 448 Market and Food Centre which offers a wide selection of mouth-watering local cuisine! See Also: Find the best Western food in Singapore Find more dining options in Jurong