In last week's post, I mentioned I attended a public speaking seminar where I had the opportunity to hone my oratory skills as well as meet local students. One of the local students I met is a bubbly and friendly girl who is in her freshman year at NUS. This week, she took me on a journey through Singapore's food at one of the largest Hawker centers near one of the metro stations stops called Lavender. This Hawker center is three stories tall with food stalls located in every direction. The diversity of the food makes it almost impossible to decide what to eat. With the help of my local friend, I tasted new dishes and experienced new flavors from combinations of foods that I have never previously thought could go together.
1. Milo Dinosaur
This is an iced drink that is made from a powder called Milo. Milo is a combination of sugar, chocolate, and malt powders and is usually mixed with milk or water. I would describe the taste of a hot milo drink similar to that of hot chocolate. What makes Milo Dinosaur different from regular iced Milo is the addition of Milo powder added to the top of the cup. If you have a sweet tooth, this will be the perfect drink for you.
2. Goreng Pisang
While Americans might be used to the U.S. being the capital of deep fried dishes, Singapore also has its own twist on deep fried food. One of them is called Goreng Pisang which means "fried banana" in Indonesian. While consumed as a snack, this sweet dish is made from slathering batter on bananas and deep frying it.
3. Claypot Chicken Rice
This dish is quite literally served in a claypot and contains rice, vegetables, and different kinds of meat. As I was eating this dish, I bit into a chunk of meat that slapped my tastebuds with a wave a salt. That is when I discovered the salted fish hiding amongst the pork and chicken in the dish. If you are not a fan of extremely salty food, I would suggest taking out any of the fish chunks as they will cause you to gasp with shock and then want to wash it down with a drink.
4. Ice Kachang
Imagine taking a chunk of fresh snow during the winter and pouring different colored syrup and coconut milk over it. This is ice Kachang. The dish isn't simply ice and multicolored syrup, however. In the bottom of the bowl under the mountain of ice are a pile of red beans, grass jelly, cubes of agar agar, and even sweet corn! When it comes to Ice Kachang, there is quite literally more to the dish than meets the eye.
5. Hokkien Mee
On first sight, Hokkien Mee looks like a simple pile of noodles with a few prawns thrown in. However, upon taking a bite, the intricate flavors of the dish start seeping through and you can't help but devour the entire dish within a few minutes. Hokkien Mee is made with two kinds of noodles: a yellow egg noodle and a whiter rice noodle. It is served with a type of chili sauce called Sambal sauce and with a lime on the side for an extra kick of flavor.
6. Rojak
You might not be believe it when you first look at the plate of mysterious sliced chunks smeared in a brown sauce and drizzled with peanuts, but Rojak is typically a vegetarian dish made with tofu, fruits such as pineapple, and vegetables like cucumber. The sauce is sweet and tangy and the crunch of the peanuts adds greater dimension to the dish. Because the fruits, vegetables, and tofu are smothered in the sauce, taking a piece and discovering which one of the three you just ate is a surprise every bite!