Where Burmese Eat in Little Myanmar Clementi · Shwe Kant Kaw Myanmar Cuisine · Mohinga & Lahpet Thoke

Mohinga, a noodle soup dish from Myanmar is considered its national dish. I tried a few mohinga in Singapore, and like this by Shwe Kant Kaw Myanmar Cuisine - a humble, low profile hawker stall run by three Myanmese aunties at block 325 Clementi.

Stall name: Shwe Kant Kaw Myanmar Cuisine

Address: 325 Clementi Ave 5, Singapore 120325

Nearest MRT: 10 minute walk from Clementi station

Tel: 9183 3546

Hours: 9:00am - 9:00pm

In Singapore, there's "Little Myanmar" in Peninsula Plaza, and to some people, here at Clementi is the other "Little Myanmar". There are only two Myanmese food stalls here - Shwe Kant Kaw Myanmar Cuisine at block 325 and Little Myanmar stall at block 328.

Little Myanmar stall at 328 is media famous whereas Shwe Kant Kaw Myanmar Cuisine has no media mention. When you go to their Facebook page, it is in Myanmese language. During lunch, Shwe Kant Kaw Myanmar Cuisine is actually the busiest stall at Clementi's "Little Myanmar" - I mean it is busier than even local Singapore food stalls. Most of the people in the queue were Burmese.

Shwe Kant Kaw Myanmar Cuisine is like our local "economic rice" or chup chai png stall. They have various Myanmese style chicken, pork, mutton, fish and vegetable side dishes. They also have various salads, Myanmese laksa, etc.

I ordered mohinga and lahpet thoke (fermented tea leaf salad) - everything here for $10 in total.

Although very different in many aspects, the closest thing I can think of is Penang laksa. The mohinga soup is made with mashed fish (traditionally catfish) and julienned banana stem. Other ingredients in the soup include turmeric, lemongrass, ginger, garlic, shallot, paprika, fish sauce, etc. It's a complex dish. The soup is poured over blanched rice vermicelli and served with hard boiled egg, split pea crackers and coriander.

The soup tastes savoury in layers with subtle spicy heat and sweetness. The skinny sweetish rice noodles were done till soft (apparently Myanmese like their noodles soft). The split pea crackers provided some texture and taste variation with its crispness and savoury sweet nutty flavours.

I enjoyed this Myanmese staple even though it tastes nothing like any Singaporean noodle dish.

Fermented tea leaf salad is another Myanmese food icon. It is a mound of shredded cabbage, fermented tea leaves, various nuts, sesame seeds, dried shrimp, tomato, fried garlic, raw garlic, chili pepper, fish sauce, oil, etc.

Each mouthful is crunchy, nutty, with lots of umami from the dried shrimp, savoury tangy taste from the pickled tea leaves, hot spicy kick from raw garlic, and chili pepper.

Nice.

I enjoyed my lunch at Shwe Kant Kaw Myanmar Cuisine today. I will come back again to try other dishes, especially their chup chai png sides which look delicious.

                  

Written by Tony Boey on 21 Jun 2022