Aeons ago, on my first day of work at my second ad agency, I discovered colleagues who were as mad about food as myself. Now, do note this was during the time when dinosaurs roamed the earth and food apps like Burpple didn't exist. So, encountering like-minded people was a godsend. It became the norm that whenever we did not have a deadline to rush for, we would pile into the car of the one guy who drove (thank you Steven Chin!) and go hunting all over Singapore for a kickass lunch. Our united passion for great hawker food led me--via the most ardent of meat-lovers in the group--to the terrifically tender "ter kah" (or pig trotters) at "Han Jia Bak Kut Teh Pork Leg" at the East Coast Lagoon hawker centre.
In those days, this venue was nothing like the stylishly designed, resort-inspired structure you presently see. Instead, we sat under flat zinc roofs in the midday heat, sweating profusely as we snuffled in the deliciousness of wobbly fat, gelatinous tendon and the token lean meat - the result of hours and hours of intense braising. In between me coming up for air from all that porky perfection, I remember catching snatches of conversation about the hawker using pork legs imported from Germany, which probably explains their massive size. Not that I had any trouble polishing off a whole one by myself back then or even now.
After my recent visit a couple of weeks ago, I can vouch the "ter kah" here is as phenomenally fall-apart-tender as I've always known it to be. Thus reinforcing its top-of-the-list position for my choice of epic indulgences. Just be prepared to leave with your mouth a little gummy. 😝 #hawkerpedia