Carrot Cake

The carrot cake, commonly known in Singapore as Chai Tow Kway is a very popular dish in Singapore that can be found in most hawker centers island wide. It is made with radish cake which has been stir-fried with eggs, preserved radish and other seasonings. A popular variation of the dish includes one that is cooked with sweet dark sauce. The dish originated from Guandong, Southern China and is created by the Teowchew people. The carrot cake is available cheaply and conveniently to anyone and can be enjoyed by anyone for any meal, which makes this dish so unique to Singapore. Its popularity among Singaporeans has caused it to be regarded as one of Singapore’s best dish. The dish is enjoyed by Singaporeans of different races and dialect groups. Not only is the dish extremely delicious, it is also easily available to the public as it can be found in almost any hawker center. The Holland Village food center provides one of the best of this dish. However, it is just one of the many places where carrot cake can be found. It also has a wide price range from an affordable two dollars to ten dollar variations from expensive Chinese restaurants. However, the dish’s quality is not to be judged by its price as carrot cake from the simplest hawkers can be of unmatched quality. In conclusion, with a dish that is delicious, affordable and convenient, what more can we ask for?

By: Caleb Lew

Ya Kun Kaya Toast

 Ya Kun Kaya Toast, a place that many people different ages all visit for a sumptuous breakfast or just a simple tea break. This place has been in Singapore since 1926! That's a very long time back. Now this place is a very iconic stall in Singapore. It has many different outlets in all different parts of Singapore. Many people from overseas visiting Singapore most definitely will step foot into this place to get a taste of the fantastic and mouth-watering breakfast filled with soft-boiled eggs and kaya toasts. Even though some might think that this place does not have much to offer since it is just a place that sells simple breakfast items. However, their menu is just as rich as their history. I believe this place shows the spirit of Singapore as it portrays a modern yet at the same time shows the history of Singapore where in the past food were mostly sold by street vendors. Although this place is usually very crowded as many gather here to relax and chitchat, it does not deter the locals from not patronising the stall as it is just too good to pass out on. Even though this stall is located in shopping malls and busy streets , it still gives off the vibe and atmosphere of a simple coffeeshop and that in itself is also what makes this place special. I myself, often end up deciding breakfast meetups here to either catch up or just relax with a good friend. This place holds many memories for me i believe that others will never forget their experience here too. Therefore i believe, that if you're looking for a nice and chill place to relax and have a nice cup of coffee, this place is for you.

Char Kway Teow

What is Char kway teow? Char kway teow is another signature dish of Singapore made with flat rice noodles accompanied by dark soy sauce. Stir-fried with egg, pork lard, Chinese sausages and fish cake, Char kway Teow was intentionally made to be high in fats because labourers in the past needed a cheap source of energy. Cockles are also usually added in, as there were plenty in Singapore’s port.

From a few feet away, you'll be able to smell the delectable fragrance of the noodles, as it is being stir-fried over very high heat with light and dark soy sauce, chilli, a small quantity of belachan(shrimp paste), whole prawns, deshelled cockles, bean sprouts and chopped Chinese chives. The dish is commonly stir-fried with egg, slices of Chinese sausage and fishcake. At some stores, you can also opt for a side of fried chicken wings, ngohiong(similar to spring rolls) and vegetables to go with your Char kway teow!

Usually I would go for a fried chicken wing and slices of cucumber to accompany my plate of Char kway teow. The succulent chicken wing coated in a crispy batter and  the crunchy texture of the cucumber, goes really well with the springy noodles which are not too chewy. I would also get a glass of refreshing sugarcane juice to cut through the slight oiliness of the noodles.  

While Char kway teow is not the healthiest meal to have on a daily basis, it is one of the typical breakfasts which locals enjoy as not only is it affordable, it is also scrumptious! I think that it reflects a unique Singapore spirit as it signifies how the tradition of this noodles has been carried on from when Singapore was a fishing village, to the bustling city it is today. 

I am grateful for Char kway teow as it is a dish that can always satisfy my hunger while not burning a hole in my pocket. Do try this dish as Char kway teow is almost accessible on the whole island, and it will leave you craving for more!

(photo credits: jimbocyberdoc.wordpress)

By: Yue Qi

Category: Food

Yuan Chun Lor Mee

Located in the south of Singapore, the Amoy Street Food Centre, home to the famous Yuan Chun Lor Mee shop selling their delectable namesake, the best lor mee in Singapore. As time has passed, the recipe of good traditional lor mee  has slowly been lost. However, even with the few places in Singapore who know the recipe, the Yuan Chun Lor Mee is undoubtedly the best in Singapore. With the variety of different ingredients inside ranging from delicious pork belly meat to mackerel fish, it is also one of oldest lor mee shops in Singapore and the shop's chef being one of the most experienced at making the iconic dish. 

Fishball Noodles

Fishball noodles is a favourite among locals in Singapore, it commonly comprises  of  “Mee Pok”, a Chinese noodle characterized by its flat and yellow appearance served with toppings of fish balls, sliced fish cakes, minced meat, meat balls and lettuces or beansprouts.

Found in most hawker centres, fishball noodles are one of Singapore’s best as it has been served for many generations but yet many people still enjoy eating it. I eat it every week in Chinatown when I go marketing with my parents but I still do not get bored of it and still like the taste of it. The fishball mee pok there has just enough sauce and chili to give the mee pok a nice taste, the fishballs have a nice springy and smooth texture while the mee pok was not too soggy or undercooked. The portions are also quite generous with enough to fill your stomach but would not make you feel bloated.

It reflects a unique Singapore spirit as fishball noodles has been served for many years but the newer generation still likes eating it. This shows that the newer generation still respect things of the past and do not think that they are old and obsolete but instead still think they are important.

I am grateful for fishball noodles as it gives me something that is not too expensive and delicious when I am hungry and it is also available almost everywhere. It is also one of my favourite local delights.

Katong Laksa

Looking for some Singaporean delicacies to satisfy your tummy? Look no further as this mouth-watering dish of spicy slurping noodle soup is all around! This dish is one of the most popular delicacies in Singapore, known as Laksa.

Also commonly found in Malaysia and Indonesia, laksa can be cooked in various ways. For example, the Asam Laksa and Laksa Lemak in which are fish-based soups and lastly Singapore’s favourite, the Katong Laksa. Katong Laksa is most commonly found and eaten in Singapore; many Singaporeans enjoy the spicy coconut-based soup and noodles. This dish consists of many other ingredients such as bean sprouts, cockles, and sambal chilli. The noodles are often cut into small pieces for customers to enjoy it with a simple scoop of a spoon!

Laksa displays the Singapore spirit as majority of Singaporeans enjoy spicy food. It is spicy yet sweet at the same time, satisfying many. It is even said that anyone who had not try laksa has not tasted the true taste of Singapore!

A stall that I highly recommend would be the “328 Katong Laksa”.

328 Katong Laksa consists of a total of 4 outlets, they are considered Singapore’s best as they are very well-known and even competed with the famous Scottish celebrity chef, Gordon Ramsay! They defended our hawker heritage when they won him at the recent showdown when he came to visit Singapore. 

I am very grateful for this simple this of noodles as this is our local delicacy and it is simply delicious! What other better stall to visit other the 328 Katong Laksa? Head down to any of these locations today! 

Outram Park Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh

Bak Kut Teh is one of Singapore’s famous delicacies. “Bak Kut” means meat bones in Hokkien. However the dish generally uses pork ribs as the meat. “Teh” means tea. The pork ribs are simmered in a complex broth of herbs and spices, which is gives the broth a peppery taste. You Tiao (strips of fried dough) is also commonly eaten with the pork ribs as a condiment. To complete the whole meal, tea is being served together with the pork ribs and You Tiao. Why are tea and pork ribs being associated with each other? Well, it is believed that the tea helps to dissolve the amount of fat on the pork-laden dish. 

History of Bak Kut Teh:

Bak Kut Teh was actually founded during the pre-wars! Back then, there were lots of Chinese coolies who would work till dawn carrying sacks of rice and other goods. Hence they drink soup made from boiling pork bones with garlic and pepper to boost their energy. This humble dish was then evolved to a rich-man dish where instead of just pork bones; it is served with pork meat. Hence, it was a dish where Towkays (boss) would eat and talk over business. It was also served during breakfast.
There are 2 versions of Bak Kut Teh, the Teochew version and the Hokkien version. (Teochew and Hokkien are dialect groups most common in Singapore) The most distinctive difference between the two is that the Teochew version of Bak Kut Teh uses light soy sauce in the soup, while the Hokkien version uses dark soy sauce, hence the soup base is dark in colour as compared to the Teochew version.

Outram Park Ya Hua Rou Gu Cha (pork ribs in Chinese)  at Keppel Road

Personally, I prefer the Teochew version due to its stronger flavour in the broth as it adds more garlic and pepper. My personal favourite Bak Kut Teh stall would be Outram Park Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh. It is raved by many celebrities like Gurmit Singh, one of Singapore’s famous

Photographs of famous celebrities eating at Ya Hua

host and actor. Not only that, this stall had won numerous awards and was featured in countless of newspapers report and television series!  

A little history about Outram Park Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh, it was originally located at Outram Park however it removed to Keppel Road. In 1987, Frankie Gwee had let him blinded in his right eye due to a motorcycle accident, a broken spine and had to go through operations for over three years. In a bid to help Frankie, his two sisters set up a Bak Kut Teh shop in Outram Park since 2001. I was honoured to meet Mr Frankie and took a picture with him while I had my meal! 

Bak Kut Teh with You Tiao and Chinese tea

The Bak Kut Teh was excellent! The broth was not too peppery and has a tinge of sweetness to it. I then realised that the sweetness came from the marrow of the pork bones, hence there wasn’t any added sugar to it. The meat was very tender and it was also able to retain its spiciness of the pepper from the broth. The You Tiao was fresh from the fryer and not stale unlike some Bak Kut Teh stalls I have tried from. It complements the pork ribs really well as it gave a little crispiness to the dish. Overall, I felt really satisfied by the Bak Kut Teh as it was executed really well by the chefs! Due to its mouth-watering Bak Kut Teh, the stall was also one of the top 12 nominees to represent Singapore in competing against Gordon Ramsay. Furthermore, the stall is also opened 24 hours! When Donald Tsang, former Chief Executive of Hong Kong, came to Singapore and wanted to try the Bak Kut Teh from Ng Ah Sio, another famous Bak Kut Teh stall, he was not able to find a seat. However, Ya Hua specially opened at night to provide him a bowl of Bak Kut Teh, hence showing how hospitable this stall is! My family had gone to Ya Hua several times, during the wee hours of morning after watching a midnight movie. Surprisingly, there were still people seen eating Bak Kut Teh during that time! After all the compliments about this Bak Kut Teh stall, I can safely say this should be considered as Singapore’s best!

Braised pig trotters is also one of their signature dish

 Ya Hua Bak Kut Teh show a unique Singapore spirit as it brings Singaporeans together regardless of what time, during the wee hours of mornings or late at night. It is also able to bond with long lost friends and families over a bowl of Bak Kut Teh with a cup of piping hot tea. I am grateful for having Bak Kut Teh existing in Singapore. Because of the Towkays who had poured out their compassion in helping the needy, building schools and hospitals back then, Singapore would never be the same without our forefathers. Hence, Bak Kut Teh helps Singaporeans to reminisce back in the olden days and be grateful for the Towkays who contributed so much to the society.

  

Chicken Rice

Whenever I am required to recommend a Singapore delicacy to anyone, the first thing that appears on my mind is the mouth-watering, tender and juicy chicken rice! Chicken rice is one of the most famous local dishes in Singapore, priced from a range of a cheap SGD3.00 to an expensive SGD27.00. This dish is not only found in our various hawker centres but also in many prestigious restaurants.

A reason why chicken rice is favourable to many is due to its fragrant and distinctively different rice. The chicken rice contains pandan leaves, chicken stock and sometimes even coconut milk, this is to create its great tasting aromatic rice instead of the usual white rice consumed.

After talking about how delicious it is, you must be wondering where you can get one. One of my personal favourite stalls is “The Big Bird”.

This stall is not very well-known as it is located at Balmoral Plaza which is not visited by many. Why do I recommend such a stall instead of the famous Boon Tong Kee? This is so as The Big Bird has so many unique points to offer! After 10 years of experimenting chicken rice and its chilli, Mr Derek Chen and his wife established The Big Bird in 1998. 10 years of hard work paid off as Big Bird’s selling point is their famous chicken rice chilli, many customers even make their way down to their shop just to purchase the chilli. Chilli is an essential condiment in the Singapore dish, Singaporeans enjoy spicy food and since it is our culture, visitors definitely have to try their fantastic chilli to display the unique Singapore spirit!

Of course not only do they have chicken rice and chilli, they serve many other dishes such as lotus root soup, popiah and lala, these are all other famous local delicacies. The lotus root soup quenches your thirst while the popiah contains many ingredients such as vegetables and peanut powder wrapped up in popiah skin. The lala is a dish of clams which are cooked and served in spicy sauce with garlic. Fragrant rice, spicy chilli and other various local dishes as add-ons are the reasons why one should eat chicken rice, especially Big Bird’s as it is Singapore’s best!

I am very grateful for chicken rice as this dish is always able to satisfy my tummy and it is a famous local delicacy here in Singapore! What are you waiting for? Make a trip down today!

The Big Bird
271 Bukit Timah Road
#01-07 Balmoral Plaza
Singapore 259708

Satay

Satay is a dish of seasoned, skewered and grilled meat served with a sauce. Satay may consist of diced or sliced chicken, goat, mutton, pork, beef,fish and other meats, or tofu. They are grilled  or barbecued over a wood or charcoal fire, then served with various spicy seasonings.

Although satay isn't originated from Singapore but since Singapore has many races and malays and indonesians are examples of them, we can kind of say that satay is a Singaporean dish right? 

When you order satays, they are often served with dip made of spicy and sweet peanut sauce, and is usually accompanied with chopped onion, cucumber and ketupat (Malay rice cakes wrapped in a weaving pattern of coconut leaves).


After hearing about all the information about satays and looking at the mouthwatering pictures of satays, you wonder, where to get them? I have a great place to recommend! It will be Clementi 448 Market and Food Centre. There is a chinese stall there that sells really great satays and there are normally many people queuing up for the delicious satays! They do not only taste great, they are affordable too! If you have a barbecue party coming up, you can also get their non cook satays and barbecue them during your party!

Name of the stall: Chai Ho

Never ending line of people queuing up

In Singapore, if you see a line, you HAVE to join the line too! This means that the place sells really awesome items and in this case awesome satays! Now, are you convinced that the satays are awesome? I hope you are!

I am grateful for satay especially when i am craving for something salty with a tinge of spice and also with some texture (the peanut in the sauce) in it! So, if you are craving for really nice satays and dips too, why not check out Clementi 448 Market and Food Centre? GOGOGO!!!

Where: 448 Clementi Avenue 3, Singapore 120448

By: Valerie Koh

Category: Food

Roti Prata

Roti prata is a favourite food among Singaporeans. Roti means “bread”, and prata means “flat”, but it is actually more similar to a pancake than bread. Evolved from the original pancake, its subtly sweet dough makes it a gratifying meal, especially in the mornings.

Prata is commonly served plain with dhal or curry, or simply eaten with a sprinkle of sugar. However, in recent years, local menus have introduced a variety of unconventional variations such as durian, ice cream, cheese, chocolate and banana. They are all worth a try.

I feel that Roti Prata is best of Singapore as Singaporeans’ fascination with it is not just limited to its taste. The prata maker tossing the dough rapidly, complete with vigorous slaps and smacks just prior to serving, is a sight close to our hearts. In fact, this act of prata making accompanied the Singapore team in its successful bid to host the World Orchid Conference in Dijon in 2006.

The best way to eat prata is by dunking it in the curry with your fingers, rather than using a fork and spoon. Typically, you get a choice between mutton, chicken, vegetable or fish curry.

Among the many prata stalls, you’ll also find that the texture of the dough differs, ranging from soft and chewy to super crispy, with most being somewhere in the middle. Egg lovers should also try the egg prata, a filling and savoury version that’s hugely popular with the locals.

The roti prata is ubiquitous throughout Singapore, and chances are that you’ll find a prata stall a stone’s throw away from wherever you are. So what are you waiting for? Go down to the nearest prata stall and try it now!

Prata shop along Evans Road.

Name: Milton Sia

Category: Food

Golden Mile Food Centre: Take a walk back to the good ol' days

Beach Road; Golden Mile Food Centre.

Old but Gold; (photo credits: migrationology.com)

To the unassuming naked eye, the Golden Mile Food Centre looks just like any other dilapidated old hawker centre. However, when one takes a closer look, they'll realise that this ageing hawker centre holds some of Singapore's very best budget eats. In this issue, I'll be walking you through two of the very best must-try dishes the humble-looking Golden Mile Food Centre has to offer.

Relocated here in 1997; Still overwhelmingly popular

Located at the basement of the massive 4 storey complex, unit #B1-35 houses a regional legend that has been housed here since late '97. The modestly-named Hainanese Boneless Chicken Rice has been serving up plate after plate of delectable Hainanese chicken rice for near 30 years now, in one location or another. The stall is well known for one very good reason. It serves up restaurant-standard chicken rice for amazingly good rates. Here you can get a decent meal for 3 for just  S$10.

S$7 for all of that

But really, what attracts people is not the reasonable pricing but the absolutely incredible food. The de-boned chicken, and they really give you the whole chicken, is cooked to perfection, with just the right amount of tenderness that it almost melts in your mouth. The meat is then served in one of their signature green plates before being drizzled with a specially-made "secret" chicken sauce that brings out all of the meat's potential, giving the chicken a full-bodied flavour. When eaten with rice, the chicken has that "just-right" amount of saltiness and an irresistible aroma that makes everyone keep coming back for more. Keep a lookout for the speedy yet comical serving auntie, who is always running around to deliver food to diners.

le meilleur du meilleur

Chicken rice not exactly your cup of tea? Don't worry, the Golden Mile Food Centre has more delights to offer.

In the end, nothing really beats a great bowl of dumpling noodles. Once again, the Golden Mile Food Centre doesn't disappoint. The otherwise-quiet unit #B1-39 serves up one of the best dumpling noodles in the area. Simplicity is the name of the game here, so your only choice is between a Dumpling Noodle-Soup or a "kon-loh" style Dry-Noodles with Fried Dumplings. Rest assured, neither disappoints. Whichever style you choose to have your meal in, the stringy yellow noodles are well-cooked, with just the right amount of softness and chewiness.

Combine with Fresh Sugar Cane Juice for the best lunch you'll have in a very long time...

Tempting enough?

Whilst the noodles are a class act, the real pièce de résistance here is the dumplings, which are simply splendid.  The dumplings are stuffed full of completely lean minced-pork mixed with a few cubes of diced water chestnut and a variety of spices. The result? A wonderfully crunchy yet tender texture mated to an astonishingly aromatic taste. Combine this with the beautiful noodles, and you get what is one of the best Dumpling Noodles in Singapore. And for a bargain-basement price too: a Large bowl of noodles which would stuff even the most hungry of patrons costs only S$3.00.

From decent Western cuisine to the most traditional Asian delicacies, the Golden Mile Food Centre has it all. Pay the grand old complex a visit at 505 Beach Road, Singapore 199583 for a great walk back in time to local hawkers serving up piping hot delicacy after delicacy.

Though Singapore is at the forefront of the most modern cities in the world, this hulking complex, concealing such delights, is a grand reminder of the nostalgic, good old days.