Spicy aroma and sassy sauces are omnipresent in the culinary capital of Singapore. Food is quintessential in this gastronomic city where eating is our favourite past time. From economical traditional hawker centers to high-end seafood restaurants, there is so much variety to satiate your craves and thirst. The food junkie in me has always loved gastronomic travels where food plays an important part in discovering the real side of a country. Jump on the bandwagon as I bring you on a foodie trip through Singapore!
Chilli Crabs
It’s hot, spicy and finger-licking good (literally so since you’ll be eating with your hands). With fresh crabs simmered in generous portions of rich thick gravy, this is the nation’s pride and a must-try when you visit Singapore.
Where to find the best: Chilli Crabs are known to be the best at ‘No Signboard Seafood Restaurant’ and ‘Jumbo Seafood’. Both with tops reputations, you can’t go wrong with that.
Barbequed Sting ray
Found at every other hawker center, the sting ray is barbequed on a banana leaf, then topped with abundance of sizzling blachan chilli. Cooked to perfection, the tender meat of the stingray combined with a tinge of spicy flavour, it’s the local favourite!
Where to find the best: Lau Pat Sat, a sprawling food center in the heart of the CBD, is famous for the best stingray in town!
Flickr photo by dboy
Hokkien Prawn Mee
A daily dish that everyone loves, Hokkien mee originated from China, and was slowly transformed into a uniquely Singaporean platter adding some local flavours. This platter of fried noodles is the masterpiece of perfect seasoning, and ingredients consisting of seafood and stock.
Where to find the best: Golden Mile Food Complex at Beach Road serves up the best hokkien mee in Singapore, while the stall at Gluttons Bay is also a strong competitor.
Flickr Photo by Chris Chen
Carrot Cake
Unlike the British or American style of carrot cakes, the Singapore’s rendition is fried in black sauce or with egg, to crispy perfection, and sprinkled with spring onions. A popular side dish, the carrot cake is simple but tasty.
Where to find the best:Bedok Hawker Center is reputed for its black carrot cake that keeps its regulars coming for more.
Photo by Krista
Chwee Kueh
My personal favourite – this simple snack consisting of steamed white-flour paste topped with fried pickles – it’s heavenly. Not for the healthy eaters, it can be quite oily at times, but trust me, it’s worth it.
Where to find the best:Tiong Bahru Hawker Centre is the pioneer and the creme de la creme of Chwee Kueh. After a night out at Zouk, this is the best supper spot for some of Singapore’s finest.
Photo from Wikipedia
Laksa
Thick with spicy coconut gravy, this white noodle dish is smelling of Asian spices and unique taste. Not many foreigners fall for its charm, but watch out for its tempting aroma. A laksa of high calibre should taste perfectly rich but not overly thick, refreshingly spicy and not tear-jerking.
Where to find the best:Katong Road Tong Kee has years of reputation as the best Laksa stall in Singapore. Watch out for the long queues thou!
Photo by punzy
Beef Horfun
Horfun refers to the type of noodle that is flat and fat, similar to the italian fettucine. Braised with tender beef slices and seasoned oyster sause, this paradisical platter is favoured by all Singaporeans.
Where to find the best:Undoubtedly Geylang Lorong 9 has the best Beef Horfun in the entire country, expect to pay a higher price here thou.
Satay
Originally Malaysian, these meat skewers are extremely well received, and are made Singaporean with its crisp barbeque flavour and sweet peanut curry sauce. Regardless of your ethnicity, you would love this tender grilled meat.
Where to find the best:East Coast Park Hawker Center boasts of the best Satay stalls, as well as Lau Pat Sat.
Photo by Edsel Little
Durians
Without a doubt, this fruit is the pride of the nation. Unique for its strong aroma and unmistakable flavour, this fruit is also known as the ‘King of Fruits’. Commonly found all over South East Asia, it is extremely popular here among Singaporeans.
Where to find the best:The D24 species is the best – the brightly-lit stalls along Geylang Road have a wide selection to choose from.
Salivating? Oooh yes, Singaporean food can be pretty enticing. Any other local favourites I’ve missed out? Leave me a comment!
Hey! Great article, good to see some really cool articles on this site.
I'll be looking to try the Barbequed Sting ray next time I'm in Singapore!!
TravMonkey
Nice Articles, thanks for this, looking forward to your next post. Keep your good work.
Everything looks delicious, I think I'll take a look to Singapur for a long term trip
hey thnx for dropping by, my partner – Spanish too – loved the food in Singapore too, not the spicy bits, but yes almost everything.
My time spent in Singapore was too brief. I need to go back and do some serious sampling. All of these dishes sound amazing!
Wow ,what dishes that is.. very nice…looking good….nice pictures….
All of that looks (and is) amazing. I had no idea that Singaporeans did carrot cake, especially in such a unique (odd?) manner. Definitely must try this the next time I'm there!
I just saw your post via Twitter. Mouth watering pictures. The ones that I missed the most when I am overseas, Char Kway Teow and prata. Singapore has a crazy variety of food, I only come to realise that when I'm overseas. We are so fortunate that we can have so many good food that don't come with a hefty price tag (: