8 Top Spots For Thunder Tea Rice Or Lei Cha In Singapore
If you're on the hunt for the best lei cha in Singapore, here's the tea
By Michelle Lee SM -
Thunder tea rice or lei cha is one of those polarising dishes that has most people split into two camps: you either love it or hate it.
The traditional Hakka dish comes as a bowl of rice usually topped with a melange of chopped vegetables, fried beancurd (tau kwa) as well as preserved radish (chye poh), peanuts, and sometimes anchovies (ikan bilis)for a satisfying crunch. Then there's the accompanying green broth that you pour in, with a distinct herbaceous flavour thanks to a pulverised mix of tea leaves, and herbs like Thai basil, coriander and mint. Some stalls also offer toppings or sides such as fried tofu with minced meat filling or omelettes to make it a more substantial meal.
For a healthy meal option or to get your fix of the wholesome dish, keep scrolling.
Quite simply named Thunder Tea Rice, the eatery has four outlets at Lau Pa Sat Festival Market, Joo Chiat, Toa Payoh HDB Hub, and Thomson Plaza.
We tried the stall at Lau Pa Sat, which serves up a hefty bowl (from $5.90) with vegetables like choy sum, long beans, cabbage as well as tau kwa and anchovies, all fresh and crunchy. Interestingly, there's also the addition of chicken floss for an extra dash of umami. The tea brew is a bit thinner but well-balanced and flavourful.
Have it on its own or go for the Thunder Tea Special ($8.90) that comes with a choice of chicken patty, fish fillet, or prawn meat roll. Not big on rice? You can also opt for chickpeas (from $6.90 per bowl) as an alternative.
Thunder Tea Rice is at multiple locations, including Stall 25 Lau Pa Sat Festival Market and 328 Joo Chiat Road, #01-04, Singapore 427585. Visit its website for more information and opening hours.
Those in the West can check out vegetarian cafe Sunny Choice, which has three outlets at The Rail Mall, Bukit Batok Central, and Alexandra Village.
At $10 for a bowl, its thunder tea rice is pricier than most but the serving's generous and you can count on ingredients of a higher quality — pure non-GMO rice bran oil with heart-healthy properties is used for its cooking, for instance. It comes with brown rice and a thick dark green broth, as well as cashew nuts and fried mushrooms in place of peanuts and anchovies.
Sunny Choice is at multiple locations including The Rail Mall, Blk 630 Bukit Batok Central, #01-154, and Blk 125 Bukit Merah Lane 1, #01-158. Visit its website for more information and opening hours.
The bowls at Living Wholesome Vegetarian come served with organic brown rice, and crowned with fried beancurd, diced long beans, cabbage, choy sum and adzuki beans (from $6.30). And if you're not in the mood for rice, it also serves up the dish with steamed beehoon or sans the carbs. The broth might look pale, but it's smooth and slightly creamy with a savoury flavour.
It has two outlets, one at Fortune Centre, and the other at Bukit Timah Market And Cooked Food Centre.
Living Wholesome Vegetarian is at #02-188 Bukit Timah Market And Cooked Food Centre, and #01-23 Fortune Centre, 190 Middle Road, Singapore 188979. Visit its website for more information.
Previously at Tanglin Halt Food Centre which has now closed, the famous Hakka Thunder has relocated to Margaret Drive Hawker Centre. Priced from $5 a bowl, choose from brown or white rice, which is then topped with a crunchy mix of stir-fried cabbage, spinach, tofu, chye poh, anchovies and peanuts. It comes with a broth that leans a bit more watery but has a pleasant herbaceous flavour.
What makes it stand out is the freshly fried yong tau foo, a crowd-favourite with options of bitter gourd, ladyfinger and eggplant at $1.20 a piece. But be prepared to wait in line.
Hakka Thunder is at #02-34, Margaret Drive Hawker Centre, Singapore 142038. Opens daily from 10am to 7pm.
If you like your thunder tea thick and luscious, you'll enjoy the one here, made fresh on the daily with a combination of dried tea leaves, Thai basil, mint, sesame seeds, and peanuts.
The rice ($4 for white rice or $4.50 for brown rice) is heaped with an aromatic combination of ingredients like long beans, cauliflower, choy sum, pickled radish and dried shrimps. Apart from lei cha, the stall also serves up Hakka snacks, from fried meatballs to steamed tofu with a meat filling.
Traditional Hakka Rice is at #02-21 Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market & Food Centre, Singapore 081006. Opens Mon to Sat, 9.30am to 1.30pm. Closed on Sun.
Thunderbolt Tea at Geylang and Boon Lay Hakka Lui Cha (located within Boon Lay Place Market and Food Village) are helmed by the same family, with the former operated by the son and the original Boon Lay stall by the father.
Both use a tea paste made with a recipe that's apparently a century old, with a robust and aromatic fragrance. At Thunderbolt Tea, you'll get a bowl piled with leeks, white cabbage, long beans, sayur manis (sweet leaf), firm tofu, pickled radish and dried shrimps on top of a choice of white or brown rice.
Amp it up with Hakka fried pork ($2), with chunks of pork shoulder marinated in a fermented beancurd marinate using a secret family recipe.
Thunderbolt Tea is at 129 Geylang East Ave 2, #01-100, Singapore 380129. Opens daily from 9am to 2pm. Visit its website for more information.
Boon Lay Hakka Lui Cha is at #01-96 Boon Lay Place Market and Food Village, 221B Boon Lay Place, Singapore 642221. Opens daily from 6am to 2pm.
Housed within Chinatown Food Complex, this stall on the second level is run by a young couple, who also snagged a Promising New Hawker Award from the National Environmental Agency (NEA) in 2019.
There isn't just the choice of white or brown rice here — there's also puffed rice, which imparts a crisp toasty texture. The broth is a dark green hue, with a stronger, earthier flavour thanks to a higher ratio of leaves and herbs. Prices start from $4.50 for white or puffed rice, and from $5 for brown rice. To go with your lei cha, there's also an array of Hakka-style yong tau foo, at $0.80 per piece.
There are no fixed rest days here, so check out its Facebook page for updates lest you make a futile trip.
Hakka Fun HamCha & Yong Tau Fu is at #02-123, China Town Food Complex, Blk 335 Smith Street, Singapore.
Got a lei cha craving late at night or there's no stall near where you are? You can head to your nearest 7-Eleven. The convenience store chain has a Thunder Tea Onigiri ($2 each), with peanuts, tofu, diced long beans and preserved radish enveloped within Japanese short grain rice, all neatly packed in a palm-sized seaweed package.
The tea broth made with tea, Thai basil and mint has been infused within the rice itself, with a distinct earthy aroma. Not quite the real deal, but consider it a convenient option.