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Singapore Ultimate Hawker Fest 2014. Tian Tian Chicken Rice 天天海南雞飯

Singapore Ultimate Hawker Fest 2014 will be held on 22 Nov and Tian Tian 天天海南雞飯, a famous name in Singapore chicken rice will again feature their special Anxin chicken 安.

Tian Tian Hainanese chicken rice founded in 1986 in the old Maxwell Road food centre made it's mark in Singapore chicken rice with their succulent tender poached chicken bathed in their signature savoury, sweet sauce. Tian Tian's simple chicken rice won the praise of  Anthony Bourdain and represented Singapore at the cook-off with Gordon Ramsay in 2013, which Tian Tian proudly won.

Regular Tian Tian chicken rice is cooked with American Broiler breed of chicken. Since the inaugural Singapore Ultimate Hawker Fest charity event in 2012, Tian Tian together with their chicken supplier Toh Thye San Farm has participated with their special Anxin chicken  which is a French breed. 

Tian Tian's Anxin chicken 雞 is only available at the annual Singapore Ultimate Hawker Fest (charity food fair in support of Touch Community). 

(Note: Anxin chicken 雞 is certified Halal.)

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The Tian Tian mother and daughter team. Mdm Foo Kui Lian and her husband founded Tian Tian chicken rice at Maxwell Road food centre in 1986. Today, daughter Ms Loi Mui Yin helms the famous chicken rice shop with outlets in Maxwell Road, Clementi, Joo Chiat and Simpang Bedok.

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I had the privilege to preview Tian Tian's Anxin chicken 雞 at their Joo Chiat outlet together with bloggers Miss Tam Chiak, SG Food on Food, and Silver Chef who are organising Ultimate Hawker Fest 2014.

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Hanging in the window at Joo Chiat are Tian Tian's star poached and deep fried chicken. These were their staple American Broilers. Tian Tian also serves a variety of well executed side dishes like Thai style toufu, stir fried greens, bean sprouts, and so on to go with the chicken.

We tasted 2 Anxin chicken, 1 poached Amercian Broiler, 1 deep fried American Broiler, and a variety of side dishes :D 

burp! Burp!! BURP!!!

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A staff at Tian Tian deftly cutting an Anxin chicken for us to taste. 

I love to watch how the chicken is cut. So much skill is involved. Knife work 刀工 actually affects the texture and flavours of the chicken. (My personal preference is for Cantonese style big, bold and chunky cuts 砍.)

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Tian Tian's special Anxin chicken poached chicken only available at the Singapore Ultimate Hawker Fest.

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Anxin chicken skin looks glowingly yellow as the bird is purely corn fed. Anxin chicken meat is tender with a nice bite and slightly firmer compared to softer American Broilers. There was a slight spring and nice chickeny flavour in the juicy meat which are more or less absent in American Broilers.

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We also tasted regular Tian Tian chicken made with American Broiler breed. I like how Tian Tian's signature sauce lifted the flavour and taste of the (industry standard) Broiler which sets it apart from average chicken rice stalls in Singapore.

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American Broiler, the deep fried version. The chicken was tender and moist though less so than the poached version. The fried version also had a robust saltiness.

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Tian Tian rice was nutty and the good quality grains separate easily (粒粒 liap liap as we say in Hokkien). There was a nice savoury chicken flavour enveloping the rice grains which were not overly greasy.

We also took a road trip to one of the Toh Thye San farms in Simpang Rengam about 1.5 hours drive from in Johor Bahru :D

Being a food blogger is so fun right? :D

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A chicken coop. There were 10 of these coops at each farm.

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These Anxin chicken  were imported from France as chicks and raised till they are at least 2.2 kilos before they are sent to the market. The naked neck is a characteristic of Anxin chicken.

Unlike American Broilers which are sent to markets at 30 days old, Anxin chickens are raised till they are 60 to 120 days old (depending on customer requirement on weight).

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Ms Loi Mui Yin, the daughter of Tian Tian's founders now directs the chicken rice business.

Miss Tam Chiak at Toh Thye San Farm in Simpang Rengam. Kenny was sharing with Miss Tam Chiak more about what makes Anxin chicken special compared to standard American Broilers.

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A happy and successful partnership. The owners of Toh Thye San Farm, Alex and Kenny, with owners of Tian Tian chicken rice have supported each other for many years.

Toh Thye San Farm and Tian Tian chicken rice are again doing their part for the Singapore Ultimate Hawker Fest (charity food fair in support of Touch Community). Get a taste of Anxin chicken 雞 and over 20 other Singapore hawker food at:

Singapore Ultimate Hawker Fest 2014
Venue: SUNTEC Convention Centre & Exhibition Centre Halls 401/ 402
Date: 22 Nov 2014 (Saturday)
Time: 11:00am to 5:00pm.

Get you Singapore Ultimate Hawker Fest 2014 coupons here.

Thank you Tian Tian and Toh Thye San for your hospitality.

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Restaurant: Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice 天天海南雞飯
Address: 443 Joo Chiat Rd, Singapore
Maphttp://goo.gl/maps/NhABY
GPS: 1.307114,103.904150
Hours: 10:30 am to 9:30 pm
Phone: +65 6345 9443
Halal cert in process (expected in Dec 2014)

Restaurant name: Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice 天天海南雞飯 
Address: #01-10/11 Maxwell Food Centre, Maxwell Road, Singapore 
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/TQZZC
GPS: 1.280412,103.844286 
Hours: 11:00am to 8:00pm (Closed on Monday) 

No pork, no lard, no Halal cert 

Date visited: 1 May 2014, 3 Oct 2014

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