H O O K E D - Timeless Singaporean Food Galore

Timeless Singaporean Food Galore

Written by Lee Wei Fen

One only has to google ‘Singapore Food Blog' to get an idea of the number of local food blogs that have popped up over the internet in the past few years.

This, along with the famous Singaporean trait of being willing to drive from Jurong to Bedok just to satisfy a craving for good Ampang Yong Tau Foo, are just a few manifestations of Singapore's obsession with food.

HOOKED brings to you a comprehensive guide that would satisfy your gluttony.

        To the uninitiated, Singaporean delicacies are often categorized the only way we've been taught - Chinese, Malay, Indian, Others. These lines are blurring more so now than ever, with the sight of a Malay auntie manning a Japanese food stall or a Chinese family running a Nasi Lemak stall becoming common; a true mark of timeless food transcending race barriers.

        So what is it about Singaporean food that withstands the test of time so brazenly, and considering the diasporic nature of Singapore, which can be even considered our own?

        Let's begin with drinks:

Bandung
bandung

        Unrelated to the Indonesian city, this drink consists of condensed milk with rose syrup, and perfect in pink. It probably has its roots in Malaysia, and rumored to be inspired by an Indian drink made out of rose extract.

        Place to try: Glutton's Bay at the Esplanade has a fantastic version with the right amounts of condensed milk and rose syrup.

        Timeless factor: Simple, easy to make, and increasing variations of Bandung-cino (Bandung layered with milk, with whipped cream on top) invented in recent years.

Kickapoo Joy Juice

        Unique to Malaysia and Singapore, this is as old-school as a carbonated drink can get.

        Citrus flavoured, yellow and bubbly, it can still be found in smaller coffee shops dotting Singapore.

        Timeless factor: The Monach Beverage Company's first drink. Everyone knows Kickapoo.

Marching on to food. Local food brings to mind...charkwayteowrotipratachickenricewontonmeehokkienmeelaksaorlua...all in one breath.

Best of all, the list is long and spans across all cuisines. For practical purposes, here are a selected few:

Chili Crab

Singapore's unofficial national dish, it's even got its own annual festival in Singapore, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and most recently in London's Brick Lane.

Made by drenching steamed crabs in oh-so-good chilli based thick gravy, it is usually eaten with man tous (steamed or fried buns). Its founding is claimed by Roland Restaurant along Kallang River, in 1956.

Another example of its fame - the Singapore Tourism website shares its recipe on the world wide web:

Ingredients
1 lb (450g) mud crabs or soft shelled crabs
4 tbsp plain flour if using soft shelled crabs
3 tbsp vegetable oil*
8 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
8 fresh red chilli, roughly chopped
1 egg
2 spring onions (scallions), cut into finger length
1 tsp freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice
1 small bunch coriander plant (cilantro)
*For soft-shelled crabs, oil for deep frying

Mix together for Sauce
1 cup of water, 5 tbsp tomato catsup, 1 1/2 to 3 tbsp sugar, or according to taste, 1 1/2 tsp cornflour, 1 tsp pounded brown preserved soya beans or dark miso (optional), 1/4 tsp salt

Method
Heat the oil in a wok or shallow saucepan over high heat. Add garlic and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the chilli, stir-fry till fragrant. For mud crabs, add at this stage. Fry well till shells start turning red, add sauce ingredients stir well, cover with lid and simmer till shells are red. Break eggs into the wok and streak with a fork, simmer till cooked. Squeeze lime juice over and stir in scallions. For soft-shelled crabs, cut each crab into four, dry well, dredge in flour and deep fry till golden brown and crispy. Make the sauce as above, but omit the mud crabs. Toss soft shelled crabs in sauce just before serving.

Place to try: Jumbo Seafood Restaurant (East Coast Parkway, or Clarke Quay) & Bayshore Delicious (39 Macpherson Road, Jackson Center Kopitiam).

Timeless factor: As a relatively young dish, there's still time to tell, however, its immense international popularity bordering on cult following bodes well for it!

Char Kway Teow/Hokkien Mee

Hawker stalls usually specialize in both, thus they are often thought of together at the same time.

Char Kway Teow originated in Penang, and is relatively unchanged in Singapore. Usually served with cockles and fishcake, and fried with flat noodles in generous sweet brown sauce. Definitely a cholesterol upper.

Hokkien Mee is another Penang dish. It consists of yellow and white noodles, fried with egg, small cubes of fried pork, fishcake, and prawns.

Place to try: Glutton's Bay at the Esplanade for both, Hainan Hokkien Mee (No. 34 Golden Mile Food Center), Margaret Drive Food Center for Char Kway Teow (Blk 40-A, Margaret Drive #02-480).

Timeless Factor: Well loved and relatively unchanged since its Penang days, and will probably remain so for some time to come. Health factors might pose as a concern to some.

Roti Prata

        Directly translated as ‘flat bread', roti prata is Singapore's answer to India's paratha; beautifully oily and normally ordered as ‘kosong' (plain) or fried with eggs.

        The difference between roti prata and parathas? The former has been experimented with here in Singapore, resulting in pratas served with ice cream, fruits, cheese and mushrooms...the list is probably inexhaustible.

        Place to try: Near NUS, Fong Seng (just behind Eusoff Hall) & New Hawa Restaurant (Simpang Bedok, next to the MRT, Bedok Road).

        Timeless Factor: As long as Singaporeans go for supper, the roti prata supper favourite will surely be sticking around.

        What's a main course and drink without a local dessert?

        Most local dessert stalls have a large variety of local desserts to choose from, and here is the most common and pervasive:

Ice Kachang

        Found in both Malaysia and Singapore, this colourful icy dessert hides a wealth of treasures beneath: red bean, atap chee (palm seed), corn, chendol pandan jelly, and other varieties of jelly.

        In Singapore, durian or mago topping is sometimes drizzled on top, and most recently, ice cream on top of ice kachang has been introduced.

        Place to try: Annie's Peanut Ice Kachang (Blk 6 Tanjong Pagar Road, #02-36 Tanjong Pagar Mkt and Food Centre).

        Timeless factor: With ice kachang immortalized in local band Kopi Kat Klan's ‘Ice Kachang' (you are my ice kachang/in this tropical heat/you are my favourite dessert/so inviting so sweet), there's no way we'll be forgetting about this popular dessert anytime soon.

        Time-defying food doesn't only have to be good and span across cuisines, it is also usually cheap and accessible as proven above. Perhaps that is the true formula to timeless food?

        Whilst we speculate, let's appreciate the fantastic choice of food around us - in the melodramatic words of yet another Singapore food blogger, ‘everything is a façade, only good food is a reality.' HOOKED

Pictures courtesy of:

Singapore Tourism Board:
http://www.visitsingapore.com/

BevNet: Source for Beverage News and Reviews:
http://www.bevnet.com/reviews/kickapoo/
http://www.penang-vacations.com/char-kway-teow.html

Singapore Food Blogs:
http://ieatishootipost.blogspot.com/
http://timelessfacade.blogspot.com/

The InnCrowd Hostel:
www.the-inncrowd.com/.../images/IMG_1094_jpg.jpg

Comments
Written by Guest on 2008-03-12 02:00:03
i think you may have left out the power-pakced Oh-Lua from newton circus
Written by Guest on 2008-03-12 02:45:41
Hmm could you have found more food unique to Singapore rather than most of them originating from Malaysia? And the prata shop at Fong Seng is pricey and not all that great
Written by Guest on 2008-03-12 07:38:04
Fantastic. I think food will never fail to be a source of attraction to Singaporeans.
(Especially Singaporeans stuck in the United Kingdom with unbelievably bad and overpriced food)
Written by Guest on 2008-03-13 00:14:48
i personally do not find the prata @ fong seng platable. DO NOT GO THERE! -synne
Written by Guest on 2008-03-13 00:40:18
Don't go to Fong Seng.

Just.. Don't. All that hype about that place is a lie.

A fecking lie.
Hokkien Mee is Singaporean in origin
Written by Guest on 2008-03-13 07:49:30
I don't think Hokkien Mee originated in Penang. Hokkien Mee, aka Rochor Mee originated in Singapore when the Hokkien workers congregate around the Rochor area after work and cooked this particular dish. After a while it became known as Hokkien Mee. I don't think you can find this particular dish in Penang even.
Written by Guest on 2008-03-13 12:42:54
you forgot economy rice.

this magazine is so damn unprofessional. it's just a school magazine.
Written by Guest on 2008-03-13 12:44:25
great article! really enjoyed reading it. keep it up lee wei fen.
Written by Guest on 2008-03-14 04:55:26
this magazine is "so damn unprofessional" because they forgot to include economy rice?! you have got to be kidding me! that was a damn stupid comment to make.
Written by Guest on 2008-03-14 12:20:00
Where is Chicken Rice?

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