Singapore and brief excursion to Thailand food blog

[huiray]

(snip)

Also, I would like to clarify that what is available here is the standard thick stemmed kailan (which I also enjoy) but is different from the 'baby kailan' that I found ubiquitous in S'pore. I would consider that to be completely unavailable here. (snip)

(snip)

 

KennethT, have a look at the photo of baby kai-lan (芥蘭苗) I posted on another thread.  I somewhat suspect that what you had in Singapore would be young (baby) plants of kai-lan like these? See here too for the Google image set... This is available in my local Chinese/SE Asian/Vietnamese stores from time to time, in addition to the more "mature" plants which are always available.  I might imagine this ought to be available in NYC Chinatowns (both Manhattan and Flushing) at least on occasion, but it's just that they may not have been around when you happened to be there? 

 

{BTW kai-lan and (Western) broccoli are actually the same species, Brassica oleracea. They are just different cultivars, developed in different places over many years long ago. Kai-lan is in the alboglabra group; (Western) broccoli is in the Italica group.}

[KennethT]

Huiray, the kailan you posted on the other thread is very different from what we had in Singapore, although I have had the one you linked to... I used to grow it!  I would commonly bring it to my local Chinese take out joint for them to add to a stir fry, and the first time, they looked at me like I was crazy - they had never seen it before....  the ones ubiquitous in S'pore were leafy, but didn't really have any stems to speak of.  They almost looked like individual leaves of very large brussels sprouts, but with a different flavor and texture.

 

ETA: I have never seen anything other than the standard mature kailan in Manhattan's chinatown... I don't go there very often (maybe once a month) but I still have never seen anything other than that there... not to say that something else doesn't show up from time to time.  Unfortunately, I haven't been able to spend any significant time at Flushing's chinatown, so I can't answer about that.  And also, unfortunately, I don't have enough free time to go there on a regular basis to look for produce... hopefully that will change one day...

Edited September 20, 2015 by KennethT (log)

[KennethT]

I just caught the last half hour of Bourdain's recent CNN show on Singapore...  his questions/discussions were very topical of that place - namely how to keep the local food of Singapore from disappearing.  He visited Guan Hoe Soon, the Peranaken restaurant we visited upthread, where it came out that there are very few Peranakens cooking Peranaken food in restaurants anymore...  it seemed like the main focus of the show was him wondering "why can't you charge more for local food"?  It's true that Singapore has some the highest GDP in the world - it's a relatively wealthy country, and the people there are obsessed with food - they're willing to pay $$ for French, Italian, etc, but they expect their chicken rice to still only cost SGD3.  He makes a good point that if it were accepted to charge more - say SGD12 a plate rather than 3, you'd have a lot more Singaporeans wanting to stay in the family food business - thereby preserving their unique food and culture.  Even the government is trying to encourage young people to want to stay in the hawker business, but they're finding it's a hard thing as it's long, hard hours for (currently) very little pay.

 

It was also nice to see him, at the end of the show, visit the Hong Lim food centre and get the Outram Park Char Kway Teoh... delicious!  But, rather than his ever-present beer, he should have gone across the aisle to the great fruit drink vendor who is one of the few left who makes his lime drink (limeade) from scratch and not a concentrate.

[KennethT]

On 7/19/2015 at 6:39 PM, KennethT said:

Next dinner was here:

 

 

This place is completely off the tourist radar - most taxi drivers didn't even know where it was!  This place was recommended to me a few years ago by an eGullet member who lives in Singapore.  He said he used to go to this restaurant all the time, and I can see why.

 

They are known for this dish:

 

 

This is sambal pomfret.  A pomfret is coated in their heavenly sambal paste, which is a combination of fermented shrimp paste, chili, and who knows what else, and is then fried.  The result is shrimpy, slightly spicy and ridiculously addictive.

 

We also had this:

 

 

This is how chili crab should be.  Their sauce is much deeper and aromatic compared with the sauces of the big name restaurants...  by comparison, the big name ones taste like ketchup (which I actually think may be an ingredient in their sauces).  Also pictured are fried mantou buns, which are great for sopping up the sauce. 

 

Not pictured is a plate of baby kailan, stir fried with garlic.  I love this vegetable.  Kailan (or gailan) is the chinese name for what we'd call here Chinese Broccoli, although I personally think it has nothing to do with regular broccoli.  In most of the versions here, it is actually the stems you eat, and only a little bit of the leaves - the stems actually resemble asparagus (in appearance, not flavor or texture).  This is also the standard type of kailan that you'd see in Hong Kong.  But in Singapore, the "baby kailan" is the one that is ubiquitous.  I don't know if it is really just a young version of the other type, or if it's a different strain.  This version is very leafy, with thin stems that are tender, but a little crunchy.  I love this vegetable... I could eat it every day... one of these days, when I get more time, I have to set up my leafy windowsill garden again and start growing it so I can have a never ending supply.

I am sad to report that I just found out that (Old) Lai Huat closed as of November 26, 2023.  The owner wanted to retire and had no one to pass the business to, which is becoming a trend in Singapore.  Yes, some of the younger generation get an MBA and then expand their parents businesses to become a mini chain around Singapore, but many more just close for good.  I plan to make my sambal fish soon in their memory....

Edited February 6 by KennethT (log)

[shesmfoody]

@KennethTThanks for sharing all the delicious food photos and insights from your trip! Singapore really does have an amazing food culture. It's such a shame to hear that traditional places like Lai Huat are closing though.