Red bean pancake – a crispy, brown crepe hugging a layer of sweet, velvety red bean paste – is one of the desserts I like to order at Chinese restaurants. It’s the perfect balance of sweet and savoury, and a great way to end your meal at a Chinese restaurant. Of course, yam paste will be another … Read more
Radish cake is probably more commonly known as “carrot cake” in Singapore, although there’s no carrot in the dish. In Mandarin, radish is known as 白萝卜 (bai luo bo) where ‘白’ means white and carrot is known as 红萝卜 (hong luo bo) where ‘红’ means red/orange. Radish cake is therefore called 萝卜糕 (luo bo gao) in … Read more
Just a few years back, I hated tomatoes, until I ate a juicy, roasted tomato at The Coffee Connoisseur. From then on, I was a convert. I still don’t particularly like raw tomatoes, but I love tomatoes that are cooked to a soft, juicy state. A few months back, I had my first taste of … Read more
Claypot brinjal with minced pork is my all-time favourite dish to order at Tze Char! Brinjal, if done well, should not be oily, but instead boast a creamy flesh that has absorbed all the delicious flavour of the sauce it has been braised in. Sometimes the beautiful purple hue of the brinjal skin can turn … Read more
When we think of Chinese cuisine, I believe one of the first few things that come to mind will include fried rice. As I was growing up, I disliked fried rice perhaps because the ones I had all had mixed vegetables (carrots, peas and corn) in them. As I grew older, I realised that fried … Read more
Prawn tang hoon is a Chinese dish consisting of tang hoon (also known as glass noodles or mung bean vermicelli) and prawns traditionally braised together in a claypot with a fragrant mix of herbs and spices. It may be more popularly recognized as a Thai dish called goong ob woonsen, which is a must-eat if you’re … Read more
Fried chicken is such a ubiquitous dish that almost every cuisine has their own style of fried chicken. As for Singapore, it is indisputable that Prawn Paste Chicken (Har Cheong Gai) is the iconic Singapore-style fried chicken. As its name suggests, prawn paste chicken is essentially chicken marinated in prawn paste and thereafter, deep fried. … Read more
Crab rangoons are deep-fried wontons stuffed with cream cheese and crab meat filling, and are apparently classified as Chinese cuisine. But I’ve to admit that I’ve never heard of them until recently. I found out that these crab rangoons are actually an American invention and are commonly sold in Chinese restaurants in America. No wonder … Read more
Apart from its shrimp fried rice, Din Tai Fung is also highly exalted for its xiao long bao (Chinese soup dumpling). Xiao long bao is a steamed dumpling filled with luscious pork stuffing and some marvellous soup broth. It is usually paired with black vinegar and ginger, and is the epitome of the idiom “good things come … Read more
Bak Kut Teh (肉骨茶), literally translated as ‘meat bone tea’, is a pork rib soup dish commonly found in Singapore and Malaysia. This peppery, refreshing soup is something I crave especially on cold, rainy days, but also enjoy on any other day. Bak Kut Teh also comes in a mellow herbal version, but I’ve always … Read more