“Auntie, would you like to try some food?” a voice says to me.
I swing my head around and look at him with a look that says “Are you talking to me?”
This was the first time in my life that I have been called Auntie and it was during my Singapore visit. And even more flooring, it came from not the mouth of babes but a full grown adult male. And as someone that is somewhat of denial about my age and most likely to be voted “mutton dressed as lamb” in future decades, it’s a little strange but sweet.
And isn’t it funny how even though I don’t see my Singapore based cousins often (and here everyone is cousin, auntie or uncle) they intrinsically know what I want even without a word spoken. My cousin Tzan and his wife Geok Lee pick me up and take me to Takashimaya where I price a Longchamp Le Pliage bag (eek! more expensive than in Australia, who would have imagined?) and take me out to ice cream at Island Creamery as I express a desire for my beloved sweet corn ice cream. Geok Lee tells me “They’ve got very unusual flavours there-like Cendol” and I’m immediately sold.
Unbeknownst to me, Tzan is an ice cream enthusiast and when he asks the woman behind the counter for “one scoop of everything” I wonder where on earth he was when I was a child as those words are music to a child’s ears. But as I am an adult and know that I have eaten a month’s worth of food in the last few days I suggest that we limit it to trying the more unusual flavours. I know…what on earth possessed me to limit it?
We start with cendol, pulit hitam (black sticky rice), teh tarik, bandung (rosewater drink), soursop and Tiger beer sorbet. The cendol complete with the wriggly green tapioca worms and the pulit hitam with the toothsome grains of black rice are a favourite along with the tek tarik which gives me a little caffeine pick me up. The Tiger beer is strong in hops and the soursop is a refreshing and we use this as a palate cleanser as we are about to go off to lunch. Yep that’s the thing about my family and I, we can eat pretty much any time 
We’re off to lunch where there will be a table of 15 of my family members, some of whom I haven’t yet met as it has been so long since my last visit to Singapore. And Tzan tells me that he chose this restaurant because it specialises in a lesser known type of cuisine called Heng Hwa cuisine said to be a simpler cuisine related to Foo Chow cuisine (my mother’s family background). Originally from the Fujian province of China you could count on one hand the number of Heng Hwa restaurants here in Singapore. There is an emphasis on seafood as Heng Hwa is a coastal town and the style of food is said to be lighter and more home style.
Putien style century egg $7.90
Me? I’m excited to be trying century eggs. Here they are lightly savoury crumbed and deep fried. I take a bite and it is delicious, tasting like a light batter which really just gives it texture and a boiled egg. I’m not quite sure what all the fuss about century eggs is and perhaps the deep frying helps in this regards (to paraphrase Nigella Lawson, how can deep fried be anything but good?).
Braised pig intestine $13.90
I am not usually a huge fan of intestines but this braised pig’s intestine, cut into small pieces is actually very tasty. With a slightly rubbery and spongy texture but with a distinct savoury star anise flavour I actually go back for a second and third serving of these.
Iced bitter gourd $5.90
Another item that I wasn’t expecting to like was the iced bitter gourd. Here, it is very thinly shaved and comes on a plate with the ends curled up like a flower with shaved ice in the centre. It is also accompanied by a watery honey sauce to dip it in. There isn’t any bitterness to this gourd perhaps offset by the honey and the shaved bitter gourd has a crunchy, fresh texture like biting into a crisp apple.
Steamed cold pork belly with garlic $7.90
Oh the less adventurous side, the thin slices of cold pork belly was delicious soft and came edged with a garlic sauce.
Drunken cockles $9.90
Oh yes can you see how much they love garlic here? On top of these little cockles is finely diced garlic and chilli which complements the briney cockles with little morsels of meat that we dig out with our chopsticks.
Spinach with salted egg & century egg with superior stock $25.90
The kids were getting rowdy now baying for “real food” so my older cousins put them on hold while I took the photos. The wilted spinach with two types of egg comes with a rich stock. The two types of eggs are salted egg and century egg and both add flavour and their own distinctive taste to the dish. The sauce is somewhere between a soup and a sauce.
Fried egg plant with pork floss $17.90
The fried eggplant comes out as strips and have one of the crunchiest batters I’ve come across and are sprinkled with that wonderful mixture of sweet and savoury pork floss. The eggplant in the centre is appealingly soft against the crunchy batter.
Putien prawn roll $25.90
The kids loved this and I must say that it was all crunchy, fluffy deep fried goodness. I can’t say that I tasted a lot of prawn but it was very good indeed.
Chicken cutlet with fermented red rice wine $25.90
This is a dish that my mother cooks at home and no-one else in the family likes it except for me. It is a red wine chicken and whilst she usually uses wings as I prefer them here they come as fillet pieces. The sauce is thick and with a light red wine flavour to it. And if you’re curious, it is unlike a red wine sauce that comes with a steak as it is a fermented red rice wine.
Steamed bamboo clam with minced garlic
The steamed bamboo clams comes generously portioned with finely diced garlic. The clams are fresh and garlicky (that is a given considering how much garlic there is on top of them) and all I can think is how much garlic they must go through here!
Fried noodle (mee sua) $20.90
The fried noodles called mee sua are super fine noodles, even finer than rice vermicelli, and come topped with bean curd, vegetables, prawns, pork, peanuts and hijiki seaweed. They’re very soft and light which saves it from being too dry although I couldn’t imagine eating a large plate of this by myself.
Hing Hwa bee hoon $23.90
These noodles were the saucy, soupy counterpart of the fried noodles but the noodles in this were thicker and served in a soup type of sauce with the same accompaniments as the dish above which I preferred slightly more.
It’s a sad goodbye to Singapore. After countless meals and drinks I still feel like I’ve only scratched the surface of this food obsessed country. And all I can think of is how long until my next trip back.
I leave you with one of my favourite things: Asian snack foods. Japan has amazing flavours of Kit Kat, Bali has cheese Tim Tams and Singapore has Duh, Tomato! and BBQ Curry Dude Twisties!
So tell me Dear Reader, is the rest of your family as food loving as you? And do you like to try snack foods from the countries that you visit? Which country in your opinion has good snack food?
NQN travelled to and explored Singapore as a guest of the Singapore Tourism Board. The meals in today’s post were paid for independently.
Island Creamery
10 Jalan Serene, Singapore
Tel: +65 6468 8859
Pu Tien Restaurant
127 Kitchener Road, Desker Road Conservation Area, Singapore
Tel: +65 6295 6358
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36 Comments | Add your own
I love Singapore but I do struggle with some of the food ingredients. I will try everything but often not try again. Braised Pigs intestine and Century Eggs are a no no for me. But other than that bring it on-Delicious. GG
Nothing would induce me to eat those pigs intestines!!! The rest looks pretty good though.
Wow what an array of Garlic. No vampires at your place for at least a year. I dont know anybody but bloggers who are as obsessed about food as I am!
Awesome!! Cool Twisties. I’d love to try those prawn rolls.
You must have loved that meal with your family. I wonder what they think of your food blogging career?
My family generally have less adventurous food tastes then me. Growing up, we’d go to the same Chinese restaurant for every birthday and order the exact same meal every time.
They have yet to discover Thai food!
Hi Lorraine your story about being called Auntie reminds me of the time early this year when a school boy stood up on the bus to offer me a seat and called me mam….it was very sweet but I spent the bus ride feeling quite depressed! We are a family of food lovers, holidays are always about where to eat (not forgetting about where to shop also!). I love snack foods from other countries and I’m known to head to the supermarket before leaving a holiday to stock up and bring back what I can.
the selection of ice cream just makes me swoon!
my mom is an expert in terms of food. i suspect that if she knows how to use the net well, she will be a more successful blogger than me. i am amazed by her sensitive palette!
OMG, Lorraine – this MUST be one of my favourites of all time as far as your blogs go
! This Sunday morning I would just love to sit in that Singaporean restaurant making a thorough piggie of myself! Some of these dishes I have never had 
! The drunken cockles, fried eggplant with pork floss and the chicken cutlet in red rice wine are all calling out to me! Have had century eggs in various forms, but don’t remember pig’s intestine. As I loved it in N Europe as a child [OK, prepared differently - very crispy!], I believe I would enjoy. Methinks I would even tuck into the ice creams: soursop and black sticky rice, please 
! And look at the fab prices when away from the madding throng! Thank you for a wonderful culinary treat 
!
Years ago I was very close to be in Singapore, in fact, I had the tickets, but I had to stay more time in France because of job so I lost that trip. Now I realized how close I was to experiment with new kind of food, I like to try different flavor when I’m out of my country, of my city.
Tiger beer sorbet sounds interesting and probably quite appealing on a hot day. Singapore is my favourite city because of food. So much to discover.
What a feast (both icecream and lunch!) – and even more pleasurable to enjoy it with extended family
I love wandering through supermarkets in different countries and picking up a few items of local snack food – depending on the location depends on the success….we once bought icecream with beans in Japan. As a 15 year old expecting cookie dough (from looking at the picture!) I wasn’t overly impressed
What an alluring array of authentic food. Even the intestines look inviting. I remember Singapore from various visits in the 70s, when Orchard Road still had a collection of the best food carts in the world, rather than upscale shops. McDonald’s Circle as well. Ditto for the lovely curries served on banana leaves on Clang Road in Little India. What a country for eating! And yes, my family, both the Italian side and the Southern, loves to eat and every gathering centers on food! Happily so. Nice post. Thanks.
Much of this looks delicious although pigs intestines?? Not sure I could go there!
I love garlic so I think i’d enjoy the clams & cockles
I always miss chocolate when i’m in Asian countries but I do like trying some of the local snacks & different flavoured chips
Sounds like a fab ice creamery – and I would love to try the century eggs too. My family definitely don’t like being adventurous with their food – I am the black sheep in that department.
So thrilled by the post: in for second innings! Sorry!! @ Victoria Challalncin: did you, in Little India, ever get to ‘Banana Leaf Apollo’, where, after washing your hands in a corner sink, you always ate fish head curry off a banana leaf and that with your fingers? An unforgettably wondrous experience? My parents ate well [Estonian, Swedish, Baltic Baronial background], but certainly not excitingly, BUT – I could not have had more foodie husbands than I did. Both cooked, my second making the best Madras curries and Indian breads I have ever eaten. My first ‘went’ more for Japanese and Chinese – we’d take a fortnight off in HK JUST to eat
! All my past and current ‘special’ males are so much into food, I cannot imagine . . . 
!
Wow! As usual a wonderful cross section of food oddities
tasted & reported by the ultimate food Goodess her self!I am from an Italian background so food was always paramount in our lives which is all rather tame compared to these amazing treats!The last snack food I tried was in Italy, they were called “Fonzies” which are pale coloured Twisties without the glow in the dark yellow powder that we are used to…The world is getter smaller by the moment…Cheers!
Oh, how I miss Singapore! Every time you post about it, I get a little twinge of homesickness…
I guess we really are at the “auntie” stage of our lives, aren’t we?
goodness, you are a brave woman… pig’s intestines! I am working myself down the nose-to-tail ladder but I never heard of eating the intestine. Why not? Stupid western ugh factor I guess. I must look into this further… thanks for the interesting post and all those exotic ice creams!
What the? Icy bittergourd? HmMmm…. and the ice-creams! mMmmm
You went to 2 of my absolute favorite places in Singapore. I love Teh Tarik ice cream! During one of my office pot luck parties, I bought a total of 10 tubs of ice cream from island creamery! We had a go at almost all the flavors. Pu Tien is one of my fave Chinese restaurants. Now that I am going back to Singapore for the next 3 months, I am planning my list of foods that I have been craving for whilst in Sydney.
The old adage, “so much food, so little time”, certainly rings true for Singaporeans. I think they love their food more than Italians and that’s saying something but how do they manage to stay so slim,lol.
I would make a bee-line for Island Creamery right now!
I love the look of the eggplant indeed!I’m just so impressed you turned down icecream, it would not have been easy! My extended family are very fussy with various food taboos,so sometimes my little family sneak off for something exciting
They called you auntie?? That’s hilarious, as we would normally say, he must have had a stamp patched across his eyes!
Putien is one of my parent’s favourite restaurants. They love the fried beehoon and meesua there…. oh got longchamp Pliage… the cheapest place to get them in Asia is Seoul Duty Free. I must have gotten like 10 from there
You were in Singapore??!! Come up la to KL! You do know that all Singaporean food actually originated from Malaysia right?? HAHAHAH! Nice to see local fare being featured on your blog and always nice to see you enjoying food!
OH… and sorry to add on, but in my books you are No Where near an Aunty. More like a Leng Loi! *Grin*
My love of tracking down snack foods while travelling is second only to my love of exploring grocery stores while travelling
Loved this peek into Singaporean cuisine (most of which I haven’t even come near to trying!) and am glad to know your family knows how to treat Queen Lorraine 
Sadly my family isn’t quite into trying food as much as I am although I think I got a few addictions from my dad like mint chip anything!
My family all love food too! When I lived in Japan I tried all of the different kit kats. The strangest, but not the worst tasting, was the creme brûlée kit Kat! I haven’t tried the twisties in Singapore yet, but will give them a go. which would you recommend?
Fabulous presentations, Lorriane. Think I’ll pass on the braised pig’s intestine, though. The eggplant looks intriguing….
Fried 100-year-old eggs? Wow, never ever have seen that, even though, I grew up eating my share of those fermented, pungent eggs. Just a word of warning, don’t ever brush your teeth with mint toothpaste or drink a glass of orange juice after eating a century-old egg. The combination of flavors in your mouth is just disgusting. LOL I did both of those by chance as a kid and have never forgotten the experience. Hah.
Haha I love it when everyone is aunty, uncle or cousin. Its so warming – even if you barely know them. Such a great feast! Perfect people to share it with
Haven eaten Heng Hua food before but my kind of food Looking forward to visiting Pu Tien the next time I’m in Singapore.
Me and family are fans of local flavoured ice creams (also the “ice cream potongs”) and my two adult children love twisties and the Jack n Jill potato chips.
That’s it. I’m going there on my next trip overseas. Was going to be KL, Melaka (also a foodie heaven) and Bali, but now Singapore has to be added in. There is nothing unusual in bringing back packets of Twisties from Singapore by the way. We do it all the time. Love the Asian flavours, you picked my two favourites for your photo. Who would have thought tomato sauce could taste so good?
Do try the intestines (try your darndest to look past the fact that you’re eating innards). You won’t regret it. You can also have them at any hawker centre at a stall which sells “zhu zha tang”, although I can’t guarantee the standard across the island. You shouldn’t go wrong with Putien’s version!
good on you lorraine for reviewing Singaporean food on NQN!
Island Creamery is one of my favourite ice-cream places for Asian flavours. There’s also Tom’s Palette, which does more “Western” flavours but their dark chocolate and sea-salt and caramel is soooo good.
Oh my goodness Pulut Hitam Ice Cream!! Last trip to Malaysia I ate rendang and pulut hitam for every dinner – I haven’t touched rendang since but I just got completely addicted and couldn’t stop myself. I went on a search for pulut hitam ingredients here in Aus – they are sitting in the pantry now waiting for me to give it a go. But Pulut Hitam ice cream!! I’ll be in Singapore next July, I guess that’s only… 7 1/2 months to wait?!!
Twisties is totally one of the things I bring back from home, all the time! My favourite is the curry flavour.
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