Soya Beancurd + Sultan King Newton Food Centre has seen things back to the usual buzz ever since the lifting of most of the safety management measures that were implemented due to COVID-19; this also means that there are stalls that seemingly have taken over those that had folded during the pandemic. A recent addition to Newton Food Centre would be Durian Desserts by Tiong Bahru Durian; taking over one of the stalls in the same row of stalls which Pu Xin (the only stall serving up Putian / Heng Hua fare in Newton Food Centre) is located, Durian Desserts by Tiong Bahru Durian serves up local durian-based desserts — think various forms of Durian Mousse as well as a rather inventive Durian Beancurd; all featuring different varieties of durian such as the Sultan King and the Musang King. Patrons would also be able to pick and choose between the various toppings which are available to add on to their order of the Durian Mousse or Durian Beancurd.
Opting for the Soya Beancurd + Sultan King, the Soya Beancurd + Sultan King comes in the form of the all-familiar Tau Huey; yes, the traditional type that one would usually have for breakfast, with a dollop of durian flesh that is scooped and placed above the beancurd. As with how the traditional beancurd is typically served up, it does seem to come with some sugar syrup as well. Having the beancurd on its own, it is noted that the beancurd is pretty smooth and silken; there is a bean-y flavour that comes along but it is interesting how the addition of the sugar syrup doesn’t seem to have much impact on the overall level of sweetness of the dessert — a good thing considering how there is already the durian flesh being included here. Surprisingly, it was more of the overall texture of the entire dish that got us rather than the flavours — no doubt the Durian Beancurd does taste mostly on the pungent flavours of durian; that body of sweetness with a hint of bitterness which hits in its finish, but what was more impressive was how the consistency of the durian flesh and beancurd could so easily meld together as one without being overly rich and creamy nor jelat. Quite an eye-opener on its own.
Having tried both the Durian Mousse — Musang King and the Soya Beancurd + Sultan King, our preferences was for the latter; we felt that the Durian Mousse was somewhat lacking in a few ways from the lack of mousse in proportion to the amount of flesh, as well as how the mousse was served a little frozen with icy bits all embedded within — probably something attributed to the temperature of the freezer that it was stored in. As such, we also felt that the Durian Mousse didn’t carry a punch in terms of its flavour as well. The Soya Beancurd + Sultan King stood out being a rather fresh take on how a durian-based dessert could go, though we can also foresee other stalls serving up traditional beancurd following suit on this idea. Durian Desserts by Tiong Bahru Durian could possibly explore on how to further refine their offerings — that being said, they do make for a great option for some local durian-based desserts at Newton Food Centre that would also get tourists exposed to the King of Fruits!
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