An advocate of good food and eating nutritiously, I would be a fan of steamboat meals if it wasn’t for (1) the minimum amount of diners needed to share the meal, (2) the amount of time is takes to cook the ingredients, (3) the less than ideal ingredients of processed fishballs, etc and (4) I do not like my ingredients boiled as I felt a lot of the nutrients is lost in the stock.
Some may argue that the soup would be beneficial to consume as it has absorbed the nutrients from the cooked ingredients but no, no thanks as I rather consume my “nutrients” intact in the ingredients itself.
Besides it is not possible to drink all the “goodness in the stock” unless you are able to slurp a whole pot of soup!
The current Steam Box at Serangoon has made it possible to enjoy a fast, nutritious meal with no minimum number of diner.
So yes, it is possible to enjoy this meal on your own, but since this is such a super value deal, roping in some friends for a meal here shouldn’t be a problem!
Besides, a larger number of diners translates to the ability to order more of the 18 items featured in the Super Value Set Lunch menu.
The term “Super Value“ wasn’t abused here.
I experienced this innovative and delicious deal myself last week and came away impressed.
Considering the quality of ingredients, the service and the flavours of the food, SGD11.80++ (+ 10%, + 7%) is an excellent deal as diners will be well-fed.
This meal even includes a bowl of rice and drink.
STEPS OF YOUR MEAL
- The staff will first pour rice grains and your desired soup base to the bottom of the pot.
Here you get to select either SEAFOOD or PORK for the porridge base:
Porridge A (Top grade grain with Century Egg, Pork Rib & Parsley) OR
Porridge B (Top grade grain with Clam, Dried Scallop & Ginger Slices).
Below: The Porridge A with Pork Rib.
2. Once the grains and ingredients for your porridge are added, a steam plate will be placed over to close the pot. This plate has holes to allow the juices from your steamed food to trickle through to the pot below.
Thus in addition to the stock earlier, the grains will be cooked simultaneously with the juices of your selected steamed ingredients, resulting in more flavoursome congee.
Meanwhile the raw ingredients on the plate will be cooked via high speed, high temperature steaming which is generated from a water container under the table.
Depending on ingredients, it takes about two to six minutes for each to be cooked.
The steaming time of the different ingredients are determined by the colour of the plates so that is self-explanatory.
The machine is easily operated thus there is little risk of injuring yourself. The pot has a built-in timer with a buzzer to alert you when the food is ready.
However some things can be placed together on the tray even if they have different cooking times. You just have to remember when to take what out, or well, just use your common sense.
3. So enjoy your meal but remember that you should save stomach space for the delicious congee at the bottom pot later!
VIDEO
** I had a video ready but uploading isn’t possible for now so it will be uploaded later.
The Ingredients, The Deal
For SGD11.80 ++ with any 3 dishes (2 mains and 1 vegetables) from a choice of 18 items, I personally felt that this is a good deal.
Think about it, 3 ingredients, a bowl of rice and a drink plus the congee – that’s a filling (not to mention nutritious) meal for SGD12+!
Last but not least, get a group together if possible. Every diner gets to choose 3 DIFFERENT dishes therefore more pax equals more variety!
Marinated Ginger Chicken Thigh with Wolfberry ($4.50/$9) and Marinated Minced Pork with Premium Salted Fish ($4.50/$9).
Both of these were my favourites as I love my meat. Lightly seasoned for flavour, it was easy to just consume as it is without any need for sauces or dips.
The meat cuts were pretty lean too. However a bit of fat was present to ensure that it still juicy.
You can upgrade your meal by ordering other items from the ala-carte menu too. I enjoyed both the fresh fish and the pork slices.
As you can see, the ingredients are of premium quality and without/minimal marination, once again emphasizing on the appreciation of the natural flavours and best retention of nutrients.
For those that have a penchant for heavy and rich flavours, you might find the vegetables and mushrooms a tad bland in taste but that can easily be fixed with the variety of sauces and fresh chillies available.
Mix and match to get the sauce/dip you want!
Thanks to Steam Box Steam Hot Pot Specialist, it is now possible to savour the age-old heritage of steam cooking in a modern setting with the ease of current day convenience.
“Steambox-ing” is suitable for all-day dining as the restaurant is air-conditioned and to cater to the weekend crowd, it is open from 11 am to 11pm.
Weekdays hours are different though, so do take note of the hours stated at the end of this post.
ADDRESS/LOCATION
Steam Hot Pot Specialist
Address: 68 Serangoon Garden Way
Singapore 555964.
Phone: + 65 6281 6939
Operating Hours:
Tue – Fri : Lunch – 11am – 3pm
Dinner : 6pm – 11pm
Sat and Sun: 11:00am – 11pm
Closed: Monday.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SteamBoxSG
Nearest MRT: Serangoon (NE Line)
Alight at Serangoon MRT station. Take Exit B or E.
Take bus 315 from Serangoon Central (Stop ID 66351).
Alight 5 stops later and enjoy a 15 mins walk to Serangoon Garden Market & Food Centre.
i probably have steamboat only once a year at the most, for some of the same reasons you mentioned above … but i know there are lots of steamboat lovers out there who crave a regular fix! 🙂
I know right Sean!
My friends are always FB-ing about some steambox dinners here and there! I do wish i have the luxury of steamboxing here in KL during lunch. The ones in KL are in Sri Petaling area and I doubt I’ll be in that area anytime soon.
Besides, there is a min pax of 2-4 to dine, whereas Steambox Singapore doesn’t a min diner rule! 😀