I've been trying to locate Hong Kong style dim sum near my hood in Singapore, and thanks to Toto, I've now a local haunt for one of my favorite cuisines! Dim sum is best shared by a group so Toto got his Indonesian friends together at the local spot near Toa Payoah on the red line, one quick MRT from my stop at Novena. The restaurant is located at Toa Payoh Larong 4, opposite the library, above the mcdonalds. From the MRT stop, you walk through Toa Payoh central which is an outdoor market and makes for an interesting stroll (which i plan to enjoy more next time around when I'm not running late...!). Fortunately I wasn't the only one running late so people continued to join our large circular table while we started to add plates and steamer baskets made of bamboo from the carts rolled around by women dressed in red chinese jackets. We feasted on all the traditional steamed dumplings in translucent rice flour wraps (餃, Dumpling; 餃子 jiao zi) some filled with with shrimp, pork, chives, spinach, musrooms and pumpkin. One of my favorites is 潮州粉果 chiu-chau fan guo has peanut, chives, mushrooms, garlic and sometimes turnip. I prefer with turnip b/c I love the slightly sweet and almost cinnamon-like touch it adds. We enjoyed the very popular and traditional siew mai, which is a chinese pork dumpling - I grew up eating it at Japanese restaurants in NY and referred to it as shumai - and steamed yam cake and turnip cakes, which are the blocks on white plates, because I can't get enough of yam or turnip anything, oh and red bean too but they don't make steamed blocks of that -go figure. It's all about the firm and smooth textures and sweet taste. MMMM. Don't forget the ever popular, sweet and savory steamed pork bun, char siu baau 叉燒包. They are godly and if you haven't had one of these yet, I suggest you finish reading this blog entry and google search the nearest cantonese restaurant in your area. You will not regret it. What you might regret however is indulging in the chicken feet. Ok, that's a bit strong, they have great, tangy flavor but you have to dig the mushy texture that you suck off the tiny feet bones. They are the orange colored wish-bones on the white place. Also pictured is me taking a bite, with a smile that faded into a chagrin as soon as the tiny piece of chicken foot entered my esophagus. Nah I'm being dramatic, they're aight. Give em a try. The dim sum was really great here and the conversation was even better. I learned about the Chinese Indonesian community that Toto and his friends make up. They were persecuted in Indo for not being Muslim, so many changed their Chinese sounding names to Indonesian sounding ones, like my friend Toto Tan who became Toto Tanujwidjaja. Many migrated to Singapore, a Chinese majority state, to escape this persecution and for better opportunities. So what could make a brunch of dumpling and story sharing even better??? Dessert of course. I'm a huge fan of red bean and yam paste or custard stuffed steamed buns or egg tarts, but I have them often in Singapore so we opted for a new dessert that was carted around, flaky, crunchy rice wraps stuffed with banana and black sesame paste. They were bomb! Toto ordered me a very popular Chinese dessert, Bai Guo Yu Ni, that is often served at chinese weddings. It's a warm soup with a base of lard and yam paste with gingko nuts. Well, let's just say, lard ain't my thang. BUT dim sum certainly is, and this meal is one for the blog and one to be repeated, like say, next weekend?!
Lunchtime in Singapore around the office is fairly quiet - the markets take a breather because the local clients generally take their lunch breaks seriously... and that's not a surprise in the food-frenzied island city that is Singapore. I was happy to jump on that bandwagon with two clients, Toto and Raymond, who were excited to show me to their local favorites after discovering my rivaling enthusiasm for food (and subsequent documentation thereof in the very blog that you are currently perusing). So we started our local lunch adventure in little india to get some spicy south indian. The staple of a south indian meals is rice and the accompaniments are very spicy. Coconut is widely available in the south so is used in southern cooking, and I've mostly seen it in the form of a chutney that you can eat with rice or dosa, a very thin and savory pancake used as an alternative to rice to soak up curries and chutneys...mmmm. We got a vegetarian meals that have different curries, a chutney and sauces in round mini saucers. The rice comes on a banana leaf and there are no utensils for this southern meal, so get your scoop on! Don't forget the cool, sweet and tangy mango lassi to cut the spice.
Malaysian food is also a realm of spice, though different spices... and this was not a vegetarian meal as you can tell from my mouth full of squid tentacles below. Toto, I suggest you quit trading and go into photography cause that picture is a winner! HOT... or perhaps art is your calling because the below diagram of our meal is priceless (thank you!!. The squid dish (please refer to #2) was in it's own ink and was delicious. We tried a variety of sides for our rice at Sinar Pagi Nasi Padang Restaurant that were served on a banana leaf, including chili prawns, tofu and veg, and fried eggs. The coconut and yellow curry sauce was a favorite as well as the egg-like brown potatoes that were soft and sweet. After meals like these it's a wonder we could hobble back to work and focus on our computer screens. Come to think of it, they were dozing a bit during my post-lunch demo (yes, I saw your yawns!!!) ... but oh, so worth it.
- Nasi putih “ Steamed rice on banana leaf”
- Sotong Hitam “Stewed squid in ink”
- Brinjal “Stir fried eggplant topped with chilly paste”
- Sambal Goreng “spicy salad of tofu, bean cake and long beans”
- Perkedel “fried mashed potato”
- Kuah Curry “curry gravy”
- Telur Goreng “egg omelet”
Thanksgiving at the Teeters has happened across the globe, and this year, I was thankful to take part in a Teeters thanksgiving right here in Singapore. Thanksgiving in the states is not just another hallmark holiday. Well alright, it is a hallmark holiday but it feels like the most genuine and is shared by all Americans despite religion and background. Sure enough (and in the American spirit...), Thanksgiving is also exportable to other countries! Thus, our enormous table of colleagues and friends from all over the globe enjoyed that which is makes this holiday such a favorite.... good food! Just like all holidays, there is a standard menu, with some adaptations for preferences and availability. Fortunately for us, Singapore is one of those countries which has embraced all commercial holidays (not sure yet about kwanza but I'll let you know) so the supermarkets even carried canned cranberry sauce... which we did use b/c they did not in fact have actual cranberries! The two obese turkeys were pre-ordered and accompanied by hand-mashed potatoes, roasted sweet potatoes with pecans, fresh corn, green beans, and three types of stuffing, which were creative, fresh and by far, the best I've had to date! Top your turkey with home-made applesauce and whiskey gravy (yes, that's the reason for the bottle pictured below not my drinking habits) and you're in business. And what am I most thankful on Thanksgiving? That Pies and tarts are a staple of this fine holiday. There isn't a pie I wouldn't give thanks for, top with whipped cream and then destroy. Our dessert spread included David's pumpkin pies, Monica's apple crumble, Junji's Japanese strawberry n red bean rice cakes (after all, we are still in Asia), and my chocolate, banana tart and pecan pie (notice the painstakingly arranged pecans please!)... Thanks for thanksgiving in Singapore!
Pumpkins are always in season in Singapore but the time of the year that brings to mind pumpkin carvings and pies, and all that is this versatile gourd is known for, is the season of autumn, and the month of October in particular. Versatile is an understatement when referring to this vegetable. It is used in soups, salads, entrees, sides and desserts. All parts can be consumed. You can carve a pumpkin for decor before you eat it too!... my fav (see NYC archive entry for cool pumpkin carving idea). I love toasting the seeds with a sprinkle of kosher salt the way my dad used to for a delicious snack and the mushy insides can be ground for just about any type of flavor added to fillings and foods. The bright colored meat (and skin if you're into that sort of thing... I am) can be cooked up and used in just about any meal. SO Kay and I used pumpkin as the staple of our smorgasbord one night in Singapore. We boiled slices of Japanese pumpkin (the one that is widely available here in Asia... though there are plenty of varieties) for a diced pumpkin appetizer - tossed in salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste - along side whatever we could find in the fridge... which turned out to be fried bacon wrapped cabbage (finely diced and crunched by hand free of it's natural liquids - which to my surprise turns out to b the same form as sauerkraut), a board of freshly chopped cheeses and prosciutto and my dad's bruschetta which is nothing more than fresh tomato, oregano, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper. Don't forget the dessert of ritter and haribou grapefruit and a game of Jenga for a perfect night in!
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Walking out of my friends apartment in Central, Hong Kong is a breath of fresh air. O wait, no, that's fish, steamed buns, spices, organs, and smoke... all mixed into one morning whiff. And I couldn't create a better site to wake up to on the morning run for goods to brunch at home. Everything is right at your doorstep. So as good expats would, we head straight for the supermarket... how boring?! Nah, just needed to grab some ground coffee. BUT the way back, we hit up stalls and stands to pick up fresh fruit for a colorful and worldly fruit salad of figs, grapefruit, mango, watermelon and blueberries and freshly steamed black sesame/lotus paste and custard filled buns and sauteed pork dumplings. Arrange them all of a table alongside some cool yogurt and just-brewed coffee, you have an zen-like brunch in your home.
Sundays are for family and friends, and good food of course. Every enclave has it's Sunday home-style meal. Whether that's an egg and french toast brunch or pasta dinner in my family, Sunday meals should be shared. One of my all-time favorite brunch meals is Dim Sum. From Flushing with my uncles, Chinatown NYC with my hungover mates, or Din Tai Fung, everyone's fav chain dim sum here in Asia (though admittedly not really mine...!), with colleagues, Dim Sum is the perfect Sunday meal everywhere! My brother and I went to Happy Valley in HK for our Sunday dim sum to a place called, you guessed it, Dim Sum. It's an older establishment with a huge variety of dim sum, traditional and non, AND it serves dim sum ALL day... which isn't easy to find! We tried a variety from savory including crystal veggie, the classic steamed pork bun, scallop/shrimp, and tofu-wrapped mushroom, ending with the sweet of toasted- sesame, macadamia morsels and the godly mango tempura with mango custard filling.
Oh Lan Kwai Fong... you'll try to branch out but know you'll end up there every at some point during the weekend when spending times with visitors in HK. The street (L-shaped to be exact) in Central, Hong Kong, is packed with tables and chairs that are filled with people, mostly expats, drinking wine and beer on Saturday night when my brother and friends headed out for some food and drink. Chinese, Malaysian, Thai-fusion and beer? What else?! And how about Middle East for dessert? Hookah, wine and baklava anyone??
