Peace of My Mind: Flavours of Singapore Part 3

Finally, what most Singaporeans lament they miss most when they travel or live overseas - the food. Singaporeans have been spoilt rotten with the variety of good food and goodies, and I am honestly surprised that we are not amongst the fattest people in the world, thanks to the relatively smaller servings and the size of the Asian stomach.

Since we tend to eat less at every meal (okay most meals), snacks like fishballs, chicken wings, peanuts and all other varieties of Malay and Chinese tidbits help pepper our appetite all throughout the day, and in a most bizarre manner, keep the metabolism up.

So, what are the foods that I miss most, and are must-haves when I go back to Singapore. Having been in Australia for almost ten years (give or take a few days now from my 18th Feb anniversary), I have gotten used to not having them in my life ever since I gave up the idea of replicating them at home, because read this: It is impossible.

In no particular order, these are my loves ...

(1) Hokkien Prawn Mee - the best I have tasted is in the "Food Republic" foodcourt on the 4th Level of a shopping mall called "Wisma Atria", just above Orchard MRT Station. Wrapped in banana leaves and cooked with prok, calamari and prawns, this is a delicious concoction of flavours. The other version, which is the Prawn Noodle Soup is also just as divine! You must not miss this because it is to die for, and one major regret that no one sells it here in Australia or comes close to replicating this heavenly creation.

(2) Fried Carrot Cake - comes in "black" or white versions, with prawns or without. The white version is without the addition of sweet soy sauce, which sweetens the "black" version. Though called carrot, it is actually made of radish and in my opinion, beats the carrot cake any day hands down.

(3) Char (Fried) Kway Teow - basically translates into Fried Soy Sauce Noodles. Similar to the Thai Pad See Yew, but cooked with Chinese sausages , fish cake, beansprouts and cockles instead. Since I am not a big fan of cockles and oysters, I usually make a special request for them to remove it. I like the Pad See Yew better but this is still very nice.

(4) Mince Pork and Fishball Noodles - Cooked with Shitake mushrooms, pork slices and mince, fish cake and fishballs (not testicles of fish - just fish meat rolled up into balls) and a slice of lettuce, this is a very popular breakfast item, along side the plain fried noodles, roti prata and coconut rice. Opt for the "Dried" version which comes with a bowl of soup. I usually ask for them not to include pig's liver, because I hate it, but you may like it.

(5) Roti Prata and Murtabak- mentioned in 1st Post, these are Indian pancakes served with dipping curry sauce. The former is a popular breakfast and supper dish while the murtabak filled with mutton or chicken is a hearty meal in itself. Beware that the murtabak is rather spicy and can sting. ;-)

(6) Nasi Lemak - Coconut rice with a small piece of omelete. fried anchovies or fish, slice of cucumber and its famous chilli. Wrapped traditionally in banana leaves, this is a popular breakfast item. With the passage of time came the "glamorisation" of this simple dish with curries, fried chicken, beef, mutton etc.

(7) Nasi Goreng, Mee Goreng and Nasi Briyani - I am not a big fan of the former two because they are just simple dishes of Malaysian fried rice and noodles, but I love Nasi Briyani, which is yellow ginger rice and its accompanying fried chicken or curries.

(8) Chicken Rice - quite similar to what is served in Chinatown but Singapore is famous for its Hainanese Chicken rice (I believe there is a very good stall at Lucky Plaza Shopping Mall. The chicken is boiled, but it is tender, juicy and flavorsome.

(9) Claypot Chicken Rice - Chicken rice cooked in a claypot with shitake mushrooms, Chinese spinach, chicken and a little garnishing of salted fish adding flavour to the dish. I prefer to this to the former, but it is not as famous.

(10) Fish Soup with Rice or Noodles - Comes in fried or boiled, fish fillets or fish head, it is one of the healthier options. I prefer the noodles but I know it is not for everyone.

(11) Oyster Egg - Cooked with small oysters, eggs have never tasted this good and I dare you to disagree. I'm not a big fan of the oysters, but then again, it has never stopped me from devouring the eggs.

(12) Popiah - The Chinese version of pancakes packed with eggs, peanuts, bean sprouts, Chinese sausages, and turnip wrapped up like a small kebab.

(13) Stingray with chilli - I know this killed Steve Irwin, but if only he knew how good it tastes. One of my absolute favourites.

(14) Famous Singapore Crabs - I know they market it here as Singapore famous chilli crabs, but if you want to try it in Singapore, you must have either the pepper crabs or crabs with salted egg. For someone who is not used to salted egg, the former is a safe choice. The best place to have it is at Jumbo Restaurant at East Coast Seafood Centre

(15) Beef Noodles with thick gravy - Much better than the Vietnamese ones that you find here, if you ask me.

(16) Assorted Chinese, Malay or Indian Rice - pick from an assortment on dishes served on white rice, you get to taste a variety of typical dishes that we have at home

(17) Yong Tau Foo -An assortment of mainly tofu and fish cake combinations served on noodles. Comes with a sweet based sauce or chilli.

(18) Hor Fun - Thick flattened rice noodles cooked with seafood and a delicious gravy. One of my favourite nooodles

(19) Satay - beef, chicken, pork or mutton on stick with a a side of cucumber, raw onion or order of rice cakes with peanut gravy. Divine!!!!

(20) All the other food on sticks - ToriQ (Japanese yakitori - chicken on sticks), Old Change Kee (curry puffs, prawn and fish cakes, cuttlefish balls and squid heads) and the Nonya cakes. Mouth-watering goodness.

(21) Goreng Pisang - Fried Bananas, tapioca, sweet potato. One is enough to last me for weeks.

(22) BBQ Pork - The aroma of the thin pork slices on barbecue are enough to drive me in every single time. I remember it being a luxury item that we could savour only during Chinese New Year when we were young, but it is now everywhere. The famous Bee Kim Heng brand is the best with their crisp and fresh produce.

(23) Desserts - cold or hot. Sorry, no muffins. The cold ones usually go better with foreigners because they are usually made of ice with different sorts of syrups.

There is just too much to eat and if you ever feel like trying, don't let me stop you just because it is not on this list. There is just too much for me to remember. I am attaching the photos below which will correspond to the above order. With all these food, I am sure you will leave Singapore craving for more time to savour all these goodness and more. You will truly understand how lucky Singaporeans are, to be able to have the best of most worlds with this multi-cultural cuisine. If you think I have missed something here that is worth recommending, please feel free to add or review.