Eating well in Spring: Putien

Spring is often viewed by our friend living in temperate countries as the emergence of life. For those of us in always sunny Singapore, spring is less meaningful, except that some restaurants, especially those who specialize in ensuring seasonal delicacies, roll out their spring menus. Putien is one such jewel, whose menu changes to reflect the seasons. Chef Larry Li has created an interesting menu, which I tasted today, and which will be offered from March 1.

The tidbits as appetizer shown above is deep fried Putian seeweed served with roasted peanuts. Quite addictive, and truly excellent. Though deep fried, the seaweed shows no sign of grease, and is light and very crispy with a beautiful flavour.

We began the tasting with fresh, chilled abalone:

Abalone from the Putian area is air flown, and is one of the region's delicacies. Nutritious, succulent, the abalone is reputed to be untouched by pollution in the province's deep waters.

The abalone is tender...very tender and sweet tasting. The rubbery texture one often encounters is totally absent. The fresh abalone in its shell is braised in a rich chicken stock. And served chilled. Very refreshing, and delicious.

Next course was the spring sprouts with enoki mushrooms

This is an interesting dish. I don't think I have ever eaten spring sprouts before. Also known as toon sprouts, it is bright green and has an ever so slight bitter foretaste which melts into a sweetness in the palate. The enoki mushrooms were nicely cooked, still a bit crunchy and full flavoured.

An interesting soup was served:

The fragrance of the soup, hinting at a sourness within hits the nostrils early. But this is not a pungent sour note which assaults the nostrils, but a gentle, sweet sour-ness which permeates into a refreshing taste in the mouth. The dish doesn't look good at all, but served cold, it is delightfull in cutting grease and opening up the appetite. Tender shoots of newly harvested bamboo with picked mustard greens complete the soup.

Pockets of treasure, as it is literally translated was served next:

This is a home made bean curd skin, stuffed with fish paste, chives and an oyster, deep fried to a crisp perfection. I found this dish to be absolutely wonderful. The bean curd skin, being home made by Putien is light, and crisp, though slightly oily through the deep frying, but retains the flavour and taste of bean without the characteristic saltiness one often gets with commercial factory made skins.

Next, the interesting, almost molecular styled braised chicken with dou miao

If the dish does not look like a chicken dish, I don't blame you. I couldn't tell either. Chicken fillet and egg white are blended into a puree and boiled with dou miao. The chicken is the white dusting on the vegetable, and looked like snow on the greens. Tastewise, I can hardly taste the chicken. The dou miao was excellent. Well cooked, and the broth which accompanies is bursting full of flavour.

We next had braised bamboo clam with mustard green.

I am not a big fan of mustard greens...especially the stems they used in this dish. And though this serving did not change my mind on mustard greens, I kind of liked it for its simple flavours. The clams were braised and very sweet, and the stock used was delicious. I understand, when available, instead of clams, they will use mantis prawns.

Their famous Putien Lor Mee rounds the lunch

Unlike the typical lor mee with a dark sauce, this was light, and the chef told us that the base was made from at least 10 hours of boiling pork bones to produce the thick, rich stock. As there were more than 15 ingredients used in the mee, each mouthful brings forth a different taste...as the mix of ingredients show themself with each spoon. One of my favourites.

And for desserts, Putian loquat in herbal jelly

Loquat, a fruit which is indigneous to Putian, is most tender and juicy in spring. The loquat sits on top of a home made herbal jelly fortified with a bit of Putian honey to sweeten the concoction. I found it to be very agreeable. The loquat provides a sweet, tinge of sourness to the bitter jelly. And of course the honey making everything sweet.

I think an admirable new menu from chef Larry Li of Putien. Commendable.

p.s. This is an invited tasting. My thanks to Geri of Linea for the invitation and to Ringo and Melissa of Putien for hosting us.

Putien
127 Kitchener Road, but also at many locations around the city
http://www.putien.com

Pu Tien: hidden treasure in Kitchener

with Larry, Prof. Horolographer, SJX
Larry suggested we have lunch at one of his favourite restaurants...Pu Tien at Kitchener Road...a veritable temple of Heng Hua cuisine in Singapore. But beware, there is more than one restaurant advertising themselves as Pu Tien...but only one original...at 127 Kitchener Road.

We started with the classic Heng Hwa starter: Steamed cold pork belly with garlic



I found the pork (yes, the white slices are pork belly which is steamed, and chilled) to be very porky tasting/smelling, and the meat a bit rough, fibrous. The sauce was heaven sent...probably because of the garlic...This dish did not get my seal of approval, but it mattered not as the others approved...and Larry just nodded in satisfaction.

The next dish, however got my thumbs up...in fact two...the Pu Tien Century Egg...was...um...special.



It was battered, then deep fried to a crisp exterior, and then smothered with a black, sauce...Yum! The taste of the century egg was very mild, and the crisp exoskeleton provided the mouth with sufficient distraction that at first bite, it is hard to imagine this is century egg. Gone is the typical ammonia smell...however faint (OK, if you are already expecting century egg, you can barely detect a hint of ammonia), and the gorgeous creamy interior is very rewarding.

The third hor d'ourve was mini shrimp with seaweed.



This dish provided a smart contrast to the earlier ones. Devoid of any richness, it was mild and tender in its demeanour, and invites a second bite and another. The hint of grassiness of the seaweed counterpointed by the savoury, slightly pungent taste of the mini-shrimps were excellent.

We progressed to what Pu Tien in their menu calls the side dishes...the kai lan with beancurd skin.



Beancurd skin has a special place in my heart...well, beancurd is special to me...especially when it is lovingly hand made, bursting with flavour on the silky smoothness. And hand made beancurd skin...where a huge cauldron of bean curd is heated, and the top most surface, being exposed to cool air, hardens into a springy, elastic skin. As each layer of skin is formed, it is expertly peeled off, and laid to rest, exposing the liquid bean curd to form yet another skin. The skin is treasured for the fragrance, for the springy and elastic texture...and Pu Tien's offering was par excellence. The bean curd skin was very tasty, having absorbed braising liquid from what I would imagine to be a seafood and chicken stock. The kai lan, playing hide and seek below the bean curd skin was expertly fried. Lightly cooked, and still crunchy.

A Heng Hwa wanton soup was next



A light wanton skin protects a bit of pork, shrimp mix to form a delectable wanton. The wanton skin was very soft, and having fully absorbed the soup, was fragile, and tends to break. The soup had a slight tinge of sourness to cut the richness of the broth and the wanton. Excellent to wash the palate to get ready for the two gastronomic highlights to follow...

The deep fried pig's trotters with salt was an experience.



Imagine our excitement when 4 smallish (each the size of my fist) pork trotters were served on a platter...looking deep fried, crisp outer.



Indeed, the proper way to enjoy this delicacy is to get one's hands dirty (indeed Pu Tien provides plastic gloves)...pick up the trotter by the bone, and bite on! Each bite will reveal a very crispy, yet light skin, and as the teeth sink in...a soft, jelly, sticky layer of collagen sends its greetings before finally one tastes the fragrant, savoury meat. Wonderful does not begin to describe the dish. I love it. Siang Hee's ter kar...using a larger part of the pig is super crispy, and flavourful and have its own place in my heart, but this Pu Tien's trotters have a larger share (possibly a larger contribution to the cholestrol...hopefully not...I try and assuange myself that this is not so much fat as there are collagen under the crisp skin).

After that, it is rather difficult to top...but top it they did...with the famous Seafood Mee Sua.



Normally mee sua is bland, and super soft...often tired, and uninspiring. That is why this is common food to nourish the sick body. But this is no ordinary mee sua. This is mee sua which can make hair grow on your chest.

The mee sua is lightly braised in a superior stock slowly, allowing all the wonderful flavours and tastes to infuse within. And then it is lightly fried with fresh seafood...I found prawns, fish, oysters, squid amongst others, and topped with some crispy black seaweed. Pu Tien made its reputation on this dish (and the same dish, but done with bee hoon), and it retains the crown for the best of the best mee sua. I return the week after to sample this very same dish with bee hoon...the bee hoon they used is the thin wiry type from China. For me, the mee sua is the superior dish. The thin bee hoon was less capable to soak up the gorgeous sauce as was the mee sua.

ieatishootipost.sg has also reviewed this restaurant...for Dr. Tay's remarks, go here.


Address:
127 Kitchener Road
Tel: 6295 6358
www.putien.com.sg
Operating Hours:
Lunch: 12pm - 3pm
Dinner: 6pm - 11pm