Char Kway Teow

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Char Kway Teow

 Char kway teow, literally "stir-fried ricecake strips", is a popular noodle dish in Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and Indonesia.

 
The dish is considered a national favourite in Malaysia and Singapore.

 
There is no stopping Singaporeans from indulging in this high-fat hawker favorite. Flat rice noodles stir-fried with lard (for best flavor), dark and light soy sauce, chilli, de-shelled cockles, sliced Chinese sausage, bean sprouts, Chinese chives and sometimes prawns and egg. Essential to the dish is good “wok hei” or breath of wok, the qualities and tastes imparted by cooking on a wok using high heat. Many now choose to omit the cockles but char kway teow will always be incomplete without the sinfully rich fried pork lard pieces.


As the dish has become increasingly popular, many cooks have come up with their own interpretations of the same basic main ingredient of ricecake strips/flat rice noodles fried with anything from eggs (chicken or duck), onions, garlic, prawns, cockles, Chinese sausage, chives, etc.



In the past it was usual to stir-fry char kway teow in pork fat without eggs (which were, however, available on request). More recently, ordinary cooking oil is commonly used for health or religious reasons, and eggs have become a standard ingredient in the dish.


In Singapore, some of best 'old school' char kway teow can be found in hawker centres. There are also healthier versions with more vegetables and less oil. Furthermore, the greens and bean sprouts gives off a fresh, crunchy texture that makes the dish taste even more unique from other dishes of the cuisine.

Curry Puff

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Curry Puff

Curry puff is a Bruneian, Malaysian, Singaporean, and Thai snack. It is a small pie consisting of specialised curry with chicken and potatoes in a deep-fried or baked pastry shell, and it looks like the Portuguese stuffed bread called Empanada.


The curry puff is possibly the country’s favorite tea-time snack. Deep-fried like samosas, these are generally filled with curried potatoes, chicken and a slice of egg.

 
 The popularity of the curry puff has spawned puffs with other fillings like sardines, black pepper chicken, tuna and sweet yam.


Curry puffs are commonly seen in Singapore's Pasar Malams and other stalls in shopping centres. Additionally, the aforementioned epok-epok is a popular variation in some of Singapore's hawker centres, usually amongst Malay stalls.

 
 Alternatively, the more common type of curry puff has a thick or flaky English-style crust, with a mixture of Chinese and Indian styles in the filling.

 
They may also be categorized into hand-made or mass-produced machine-made puffs. Both variations are popular in Singapore, although some might argue that the former is typically more delicious.


 
Other puff snacks modelled on the curry puff concept have also been introduced. For example, 1A Crispy Puff also sells puffs with yam, durian, corn, red bean, nata de coco, grass jelly, bird's nest and even custard fillings.

 

 Sardine

Besides the more "exotic" fillings mentioned, there are also more conventional flavours which are quite popular with the locals. These puffs are readily available in Singapore, which include sardine, black-pepper chicken and tuna fillings. For example, Pie Connection sells these hand-made puffs.

 
In Singapore, Old Chang Kee has been selling curry puffs for over 70 years and now has outlets all over Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines. Other well-known brands include 1A Crispy Puff and Sim Sun Pastries. Polar Puffs and Cakes introduced a version of the curry puff that uses Western puff pastry, which has a different taste and shape. This version of the curry puff can also be found at Delifrance in Singapore as Curry Chicken Feuillette.

Fish Head Curry

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Fish Head Curry

Waiter, there’s a decapitated head in my soup! Well, that’s the highlight. A whole large head of red snapper stewing in curry gravy.


Fish head curry is a dish in Singaporean cuisine with Chinese and Indian origins and also popular in Malaysia and Nepal.

 
 The head of a red snapper is semi-stewed in a Kerala-style curry with assorted vegetables such as okra and eggplants.

 
 It is usually served with either rice or bread, or as a shared dish.


Surprisingly, there’s a lot of meat to be had on the bony head, but the best (and most tender) part is the cheeks.

 
 This dish is purely a Singapore creation. About 30 years ago, an Indian restaurateur here decided to use fish head (not an Indian delicacy) in his curry to please Chinese customers. It became a runaway hit, spreading even across the Causeway to Malaysia.


Visitors can either have it with rice or as the Chinese would sometimes do it - wipe the curry gravy clean with a soft bun. The sweetness of the dough helps to neutralize the spices in the curry - a great way to enjoy the dish even if you have a low tolerance for spice. 


Savour the soft chunks of meat and dig into the eyes of the fish and complement the spicy flavours with a tall glass of Kingfisher (Indian beer) or ice-cold lemonade.

 
 This is another dish you must have during your visit here, as you are unlikely to find something like this anywhere else in the world.

 
The Peranakans (Straits-born Chinese) also have their own unique version of the Nonya Fish Head Curry. In the Nonya recipe, the curry contains a richer rempah (mixed spices) and the use of dried sour fruit slices, giving the dish a distinctive tanginess.

 
The Curry Fish Head is usually served with a mix of vegetables such as eggplant (aubergine), okra (lady fingers), long beans and tau pok (fried beancurd).

Popiah

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Popiah

Popiah is a Fujian/Chaozhou-style fresh spring roll common in Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.

 
 Popiah is often eaten in the Fujian province of China (usually in Xiamen) and its neighbouring Chaoshan on the Qingming Festival.

 
In the Teochew (Chaozhou) dialect, popiah is pronounced as "Bo-BEE-a". which means "thin wafer".

 
 In variants of the Hokkien dialect, it is also commonly referred to as "lun-BEE-a", which probably explains why the spring rolls are referred to as "lumpia" in Indonesia and the Philippines.

 
 It is sometimes referred to as runbing or baobing in Mandarin, and also as bópíjuǎn. "Popiah" entered the English language from Malay by 1986.


A popiah "skin" is a soft, thin paper-like crepe or pancake made from wheat flour. The method of producing the wrapper involves making an extremely wet and viscous dough. A ball of this dough is held to the right hand, then quickly "rubbed", Hokkien: chhat jūn-piáⁿ phê, lit. "to rub a lumpia crepe") against a hot steel plate in a circular fashion, and lifted. Through this process, a very thin layer of the wet dough adheres to the plate and begins to cook.
 
 
The upper surface of the crepe is then usually cleaned of excess pieces of dough using the dough ball through a dabbing process. When the dough has been cooked to completion, it is peeled off of the hot steel plate before being removed. The rubbing is typically done over two or three plates at once, which allows the baker to continuously produce crepes and gives the proper time for each crepe to be properly cooked.

 

Sometimes lauded as the Asian burrito, this healthy snack is like a Chinese spring roll that’s not deep-fried. The name popiah refers to the soft, paper-thin skin made from wheat or rice flour. It’s smeared with a sweet sauce, chili sauce, minced garlic and is used to wrap ingredients like braised turnip or bangkuang (jicama), carrots, bean sprouts, Chinese sausage, shredded omelette, crushed peanuts and even shrimp or crab meat.

 
 In mainland China, Singapore, Malaysia and Taiwan there are "popiah parties" at home, where the ingredients are laid out and guests make their own popiah with proportions ingredients to their own personal liking which can prove to be the best entertainment at times.

Nasi lemak

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Nasi lemak

Nasi lemak is a fragrant rice dish cooked in coconut milk and "pandan" leaf commonly found in Malaysia, where it is considered the national dish. It also popular in neighbouring country such as Brunei; Singapore; Riau Islands; and Southern Thailand.


Nasi Lemak have been seen to the Southern Philippines prepared by Filipino Muslims, it is considered as one of the famous dish during Hariraya festivities.

 
 It is not to be confused with nasi dagang sold in the Malaysian east coast states of Terengganu and Kelantan although both dishes can usually be found sold side by side for breakfast. However, because of the nasi lemak's versatility in being able to be served in a variety of manners, it is now served and eaten any time of the day.


Singaporeans are in love with lemak (richness bestowed by coconut cream). The Malay breakfast dish of nasi lemak (rich rice) has rice cooked in coconut milk served with a spicy sambal, fried anchovies, fried peanuts, and perhaps an egg and cucumber slices. It’s simple but satisfying.

 
 In Malaysia and Singapore, nasi lemak comes in many variations as they are prepared by different chefs from different cultures. The original nasi lemak in Malaysia is arguably a typical Southern and Central Peninsular Malaysia breakfast, and is considered of Malay origin. However, due to the popularity of the dish, it is regarded as a national dish.

 
 The Chinese have adopted the dish and thrown in a multitude of other side dishes like sausages, fried chicken wings, luncheon meat, fish cake, and various cooked vegetables.