Hainan Chicken Rice Ball Review: Old-School Chicken Rice Ball Stall Opposite Sim Lim Tower

Chicken rice is undoubtedly one of our hawker staples and my friends from overseas would pester me to bring them to a good chicken rice stall when they are here on vacation. I used to take a long time to decide on where to bring them to, but this will no longer be a problem.

Serving traditional Hainanese chicken rice balls and braised pork belly, Hainan Chicken Rice Ball stands out from the usual chicken rice stalls and will tug on both Singaporeans’ and tourists’ heartstrings. Hainan Chicken Rice Ball - Old-school Chicken Rice Balls Opposite Sim Lim Tower Food at Hainan Chicken Rice Ball We got Chicken Rice Set Meal ($5) , which came with two chicken rice balls, Hainanese steamed chicken, braised pork belly and tau pok (beancurd puff) soup.

He even demonstrated how compact and well-made it was by throwing a chicken rice ball down from a height to have it land firmly on the plate with a thud. As much as I couldn’t bear to ruin the perfect sphere, I dug into the rice balls with my spoon.

The rice was not overly greasy, and had hints of fried garlic and shallots. I particularly liked how the flavour of the chicken stock was not too overpowering.

As contradicting as it sounds, the grains of rice were both sticky and dry at the same time, and broke into clumps and then separate grains in my mouth. The portion of chicken was quite generous, considering that this meal costs just $5.

I’m not a big fan of spicy food and would usually leave the chilli at chicken rice stalls untouched. But I got desperate for more flavour here so I turned to their chilli, which is made with a variety of chilli peppers, ginger, lime and sesame oil. I thought it wouldn’t pack much of a punch due to its watery texture and pale colour, and dunked the entire piece of chicken into the saucer – wrong move.

I found myself more attracted to their braised pork belly, which was simmered in chicken stock, soy sauce and herbs. The pork belly had a good proportion of fats to meat, and was so tender that minimal effort was needed to chew the meat – it melted in my mouth nearly instantly.

Eat it with rice to mask a bit of the saltiness and even out the flavours. I was slightly taken aback when the stall owner scooped a ladle of dark soup into a bowl. Placed it on my tray, as the soup I’m used to at chicken rice stalls is always clear and occasionally topped with chopped spring onions.

The soup was comforting and had a light peppery taste, reminding me of my favourite herbal bak kut teh soup. Pro-tip: Pour some soup over the chicken rice balls to soften and add more savour to the rice.

Ambience at Hainan Chicken Rice Ball Hainan Chicken Rice Ball is located in Shin Boon Hwa Food Centre, which is tucked at a corner along Dickson Road, opposite Sim Lim Tower. The verdict Although I’ve had better chicken rice, I would still revisit Hainan Chicken Rice Ball for traditional chicken rice balls, a dish that is slowly disappearing in our hawker scene.