Singapore cuisine (top ten dishes)

[Thomas Paikeday]

Barry's menus are sometimes very mouth-watering, at least for me. I've never
been to Singapore, but having lived in or visited South India till the
Fifties, I can relate to some of the items on the menu. However, here's a
linguistic comment to take the edge off the curry. "Prata" is better known
as "parata," esp. in N. India. The second "a" is the longest (or the
accented one if you like), so the word gets syncopated into two syllables,
like
"creer" for "career" in rapid conversational style.

Keep watering mouths, Barry!

TOM
www.paikeday.net

----- Original Message -----
From: <Bapopik at AOL.COM>
To: <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Sent: Wednesday, November 10, 2004 4:31 AM
Subject: Singapore cuisine (top ten dishes)


> ---------------------- Information from the mail
> header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Bapopik at AOL.COM
> Subject:      Singapore cuisine (top ten dishes)
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> OT: MORE "BARRY POPICK"--In a review of THE BANANA SCULPTOR, THE PURPLE
> LADY
> AND THE ALL NIGHT SWIMMER: HOBBIES, COLLECTING AND OTHER PASSIONATE
> PURSUITS
> (2002), the Wall Street Journal found the story of "Barry Popick" to be
> poignant. I wrote in to say that this sounded to me like the story the
> Wall Street
> Journal wrote about "Barry Popik" in 2001. My letter was not printed.
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> --------------------------------------------
> SINGAPORE CUISINE
>
> This would normally be on my food web site, but I can't find anyone to pay
> (for any price) to help me set it up.
>
> I'm not even going to bother checking with OED.
>
> EAT! had a display at the Asia Food Expo on Sunday.
>
>
> EAT! (Singapore), August 2004, cover:
> WHAT MAKES A DISH SINGAPOREAN?
> Pg. 10:
> In fact, we are so spoilt for choice that the Singapore Tourism Board
> (STB)
> ca,e up with not one but 10 must-try dishes. In no particular order of
> importance, they are: Crab--Chilli Crab and Black Pepper Crab, Hainanese
> Chicken Rice,
> Fish Head Curry, Satay, Bak Kut Teh, Roti Prata, Laksa, Char Kway Teow,
> Fried
> Carrot Cake, and Rojak.If the smattering array does not get your mouth
> watering, maybe you will prefer Nasi Lemak, Mee Rebus (For you math fans
> out
> there--ed.), Nasi Briyani, Curry puff, Fried Hokkien Mee or Popiah? The
> list goes on.
>
>
> UNIQUELY SINGAPORE:
> YOUR ESSENTIAL SINGAPORE GUIDE
> www.visitsingapore.com
> Singapore Tourism Board
> February 2004 edition
>
> Pg. 36:
> BREAKFAST SPECIALS
> _Kaya toast with a cup of local coffee_
> _Kaya_ is a sweet egg-and-coconut jam that is spread geneoursly over
> toasted
> bread. Eat the toast with hard-boiled eggs and add a dash of black soya
> sauce
> for extra taste!
>
> _Roti prata_ and _teh tarik_
> _Roti prata) is a crispy, crusty South Indian pancake, made with or
> without
> eggs, and served with a bowl of thick curry gravy.
> Pg. 37:
> _Teh tarik_ ("tarik" is a Malay word for "pull") is tea mixed with both
> evaporated and sweet condensed milk where it is "pulled" from one mug to
> another to
> create a perfect blend of tea and milk with a wonderful light creamy
> froth.
>
> _Bak kut teh_ and rice
> This is a Chinese dish--pork ribs cooked with five spices, garlic and
> pepper
> in a tasty soup that is served with a choice of rice or fried dough
> fritters.
> _Bak kut teh_ can be accompanied by Chinese tea to heighten its flavour.
>
> _Nasi lemak_
> _Nasi lemak_ is a hearty meal comprising coconut-flavored rice, a slice of
> omelette, anchoviesm a slice of cucumber and some chilli paste, often
> uniquely
> packed in brown paper or banana leaf.
>
> 10 LOCAL FAVOURITES
>
> 1. Hainanese chicken rice--Steamed chicken served with fragrant rice
> cooked
> in chicken stock.
>
> 2. _Laksa_--Rice noodles in coconut curry gravy with shrimp, egg, chicken
> and
> cockles as garnishing.
>
> 3. _Char kway teow_--Broad white noodles fried with dark sweet sauce, bean
> sprouts, fish cake, clams and Chinese sausage.
>
> 4. Hokkien prawn _mee_--Vermicelli andf yellow noodles fried with prawns,
> sliced cuttlefish and pork bits.
>
> 5. _Murtabak_--a local version of pizza stuffed with minced mutton or
> chicken
> away inside and served with curry.
>
> Pg. 38:
> 6. Fish head curry--a huge fish head and vegetables cooked in curry and
> served with rice. Have a glass of "calamansi" or local lime juice to go
> with it.
>
> 7. _Satay_--meat kababs served with rice cake, cucumber and peanut gravy.
>
> 8. _Rojak_--a local salad comprising a mixture of fruits and vegetables
> such
> as cucumbers, bean sprouts, pineapple, white radish, fried crullers, dried
> bean curd, sometimes even mango and cuttlefish, which are all tossed into
> a bowl
> and stirred in a prawn paste, topped off with peanuts.
>
> 9. _Nonya kueh_--a local dessert born out of a fusion of Chinese and Malay
> cultures which comes in an assortment of shapes, flavours and colours!
> Common
> ingredients include glutinous rice, tapioca, pandari, and tropical fruits
> like
> banana, durian and coconut!
>
> 10. Chilli crab--Hard-shell crabs cooked in thick gravy with a tomato and
> chilli base. Best eaten with bread soaked in the gravy. Don't be afraid to
> use
> your hands! This dish is usually ordered wuth other seafood dishes.
>
> Down your food with a glass of fresh fruit juice or fresh coconut water.
> On a
> hot day, you should also end your meal with a local cold dessert like _ice
> kacang_ or _chendol_. _Ice kacang_ is a mound of grated ice, smothered
> with
> different sweet syrups with a base made of jelly, red beans, corn and
> attap seeds.
>
> _Chendol_ is a coconut milk drink mixed with brown sugar (_gula melaka_),
> green starch strips and red beans.
>