One kind of rice feeds a hundred kinds of people, as a Chinese saying goes.
But when it comes to Hainanese chicken rice, there can be many kinds for many palates.
Do you like your rice fluffy or firm? Do you like your chicken skin crystalline or filmy? Are you the type to mind if the chicken is tender but also somewhat bland?
Leong Hainanese Chicken Rice, a one-dish wonder of a stall in Shunfu Mart, caters to those who like dramatic contrasts.
The rice is faintly overdone, such that the grains are saturated with flavour and almost crusty.
The chicken is slightly underdone, so the flesh is smooth, the skin is soft and the specks of fat in between are creamy.
A zesty sauce of lime and chilli goes with the dish (from $2.80), turning a duet of rice and chicken into an even more exciting trio.
Finally, a sip of sweet cabbage soup gives a mellow finish to the meal.
