A Day of Epic Food Adventures in Singapore
This article details a day-long food adventure in Singapore, filled with iconic dishes, unexpected encounters, and culinary exploration.
Starting the Day: Breakfast at Ya Kun
The food journey began early in the morning, surprisingly starting with a rooster encounter in the CBD area. The first official stop was Ya Kun, a Singaporean institution known for its kaya butter toast. This particular location has been operating since 1944.
Kaya Butter Toast and Soft Boiled Eggs
The classic "Set A" was ordered, featuring kaya butter toast served with soft-boiled eggs. The proper way to enjoy this set is to add light soy sauce and white pepper to the eggs. The kaya butter toast is dipped into the prepared egg mixture. The toast itself is crispy and buttery, providing a sweet and savory experience when combined with the salty and slightly eggy dip.
Kopi: The Local Coffee
The meal was complemented by Kopi, a strong local coffee. It is made from a different coffee bean variety and strikes a good balance between strength and sweetness. The addition of Kopi to the leftover soft-boiled eggs creates a surprisingly pleasant salty coffee flavor.
Learning to Make Hainanese Chicken Rice
Next on the itinerary was a cooking class at Commune Kitchen, where the process of making Hainanese chicken rice was explored.
Mastering the Chicken Rice Recipe
The cooking class involved every step of the dish, from preparing the chicken to making the sauces. Two sauces were created: a classic ginger sauce and a zesty chili sauce. The chicken was described as soft and flavorful on its own. The ginger sauce adds a salty, tangy, acidic, and garlicky flavor, while the chili sauce provides a refreshing zest. The link to the chicken rice recipe has been left in the description.
Tasting the Creation
The chicken rice itself was well-balanced, flavorful, and chickeny, with a hint of ginger. Mixing everything together created a delightful blend of flavors and textures.
Exploring Chinatown and Marina Bay Sands
After the cooking class, it was time to explore Singapore. The Chinatown area boasts colorful buildings and striking murals.
Underground Walkways
An attempt to reach Marina Bay Sands led to the discovery of Singapore's underground walkway system, which is filled with shops and restaurants. This allowed for navigation around the city without being on street level. After some wandering, the narrator surfaced right next to Marina Bay Sands.
Meeting Zermatt Neo and Roast Meats
A meeting with Zermatt Neo, a competitive eater, at a roast meat restaurant was a highlight of the day. The restaurant is known for its char siu and roast pork.
Indulging in Roast Meat
A roast meat platter was ordered, featuring char siu, roast duck, and roast pork. The char siu was described as one of the best tasted, known for its smokiness, juiciness, and balance of lean and fatty meat. The roast pork was commended for its crispy skin and melt-in-your-mouth fattiness.
Hawker Centre Adventure: Ji Ji's Wanton Noodle
Next, Zermatt led the way to Ji Ji's Wanton Noodle in Hong Lim Hawker Centre.
Wanton Noodle and Braised Chicken Feet
A special bowl of wanton noodle was prepared, containing char siu, pork lard, fried wontons, and noodles. A soup with boiled wontons was also served. Off-menu fried chicken skin with sweet chili sauce was also offered. A touch of soup was added to the noodles to loosen them up. The noodles were described as flavorful and able to latch onto all of the sauce.
Braised Chicken Feet and Pickled Green Chillies
The braised chicken feet were praised for their tenderness and dark soy sauce flavor. The addition of pickled green chillies to the wanton noodle was a local custom. The chillies adding a refreshing zinginess to the dish.
Competitive Eating at Chomp Chomp and Bak Kut Teh
Zermatt and the narrator filmed a food challenge video for Zermatt's channel at Chomp Chomp Food Centre. The day concluded with a visit to Founder Bak Kut Teh.
Experiencing Bak Kut Teh
Bak Kut Teh, a peppery and garlicky meat soup, was tried for the first time. The ribs were tender and the broth was comforting. It is commonly paired with youtiao (Chinese fried dough).
Old School Bread
The meal ended with some old school bread from a nearby bakery. The bread was described as soft and slightly sweet, a typical Singaporean bakery item.
Final Thoughts
The day was an incredible food adventure, filled with diverse flavors, textures, and cultural experiences. The narrator thanked Zermatt for joining and encouraged viewers to check out both of their channels. The narrator ended the video by saying "Singapore Really? Really? I can speak Chinese! -You speak so well! -Wow So do you!".
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