SINGAPORE: My List of Best Food Souvenirs to Bring Home

SINGAPORE: My List of Best Food Souvenirs to Bring Home

The most famous Singaporean dishes are Laksa, Hainanese Chicken and Chili Crab. If you were to bring home a piece of Singapore, the best is to bring home these three dishes. Prima Taste premix is my favorite brand to bring home. 

Why I Love Prima Taste Premix

1. Prima Taste premix captures the authentic taste of Laksa , Hainanese Chicken and Chili Crab. 

2.  It's easy to cook.

3. Each package has all the complete ingredients to make up the dish. You only add the meat. For instance, the Hainanese Chicken premix not only contains the hainanese flavor mix, it also has a pack of chili, soy sauce and ground ginger that are side sauces to the dish.

4. A box of premix is not expensive. As of August 2013, one box cost 7.40 SGD.

5. It's easy to buy. It's available at any Cold Storage supermarket located all over Singapore. Checkout Cold Storage website for the location of branches.

Below is a preview of what's inside the box and what it looks like when cooked:

Chili Crab

Above photo taken from Prima Taste website

What's inside the box:
Chili Crab paste
Chili Crab premix
Extra Hot Chili Mix

You only need to add crab to make this dish
Suggestion: add crabmeat to sauce 

Hainanese Chicken Rice

Above photo taken from Prima Taste website

What's inside the box:
Hainanese chicken rice premix
Hainanese chicken rice fragrance oil
Sesame soya sauce oil
Chili sauce, Chicken rice dark soya sauce, Chicken rice ginger sauce

You only need to add chicken to make this dish

Laksa

Above photo taken from Prima Taste website

What's inside the box:
Laksa paste
Laksa premix
Sambal chili

Cooked sauce

You only add shrimp, tofu, spaghetti, mongo sprouts.
You can add other ingredients depending on your taste.

Food Tripping at UP Diliman: Tapsilog at Rodic's

Food Tripping at UP Diliman: Tapsilog at Rodic's

What is Tapsilog?

Tapsilog is a Filipino term coined from the words tapa (fried beef), singangag (garlic fried rice) and itlog (egg). It's a Filipino meal of fried beef, garlic fried rice and egg.

Inside Rodic's

Price of Tapsilog

80 pesos per meal

Location

University Shopping Center

UP Diliman

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You can see the branches and the telephone number above

Hours of Operation:

Monday to Sunday. 6:30 AM - 9:30 PM

Food Tripping at UP DILIMAN: Mang Larry's Isawan

Food Tripping at UP DILIMAN: Mang Larry's Isawan

What is an Isawan?

An "isawan" is a food stall selling grilled isaw. Isaw refers to the intestine of the pig or chicken. An isawan, however, not only serves grilled intestines but other innards of the pig or chicken like tripe, gizzard, etc. 

The different grilled innards served by Mang Larry's Isawan

How much is it

Menu displayed in front of the stall

Product and price per stick:

Balun Balunan (chicken gizzard) - P6.00

Special Isaw Pork (pig intestines) - P6.00

Pork Barbecue  - P10.00

Atay (Liver) - P6.00

Botchi - P6.00

Isaw Manok (chicken intestines) - P3.00

Isaw Baboy (pig intestines) - P3.00

Goto (tripe) - P6.00

Tainga (pig's ears) - P6.00

If you wish to try one of each kind like the one above, your total cost is P52.00

From left to right: Balun balunan, special isaw pork. botchi, pork barbecue, atay, tainga, goto, isaw pork, isaw chicken.

Where it is located

Mang Larry's Isawan is located at the parking lot across the parking lot of the UP College of Law. It is also across the Parish of the Holy Sacrifice and the University Arcade and Swimming Pool. 

Update as of Feb 11, 2015: Mang Larry's Isawan was relocated to the parking lot across the Parish of the Holy Sacrifice and near the University Arcade and Swimming Pool. Checkout the map shown below.

Hours of Operation: 

Monday-Sunday: 10:00 AM - 9:30 PM

SINGAPORE: My Guide to Visiting Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice Restaurant

Singapore: My Guide to Visiting Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice Restaurant

Why visit Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice:

1. It's the hawker that made the hainanese chicken rice famous.

2. It's the authentic and original hainanese chicken rice that Singaporeans love. By tasting the original hainanese chicken rice, you can compare with other versions of hainanese chicken rice available at nearby hawker stalls.

3. It won against Gordon Ramsay and the recently held Singtel Hawker Heroes Challenge.

Check out my post "SINGAPORE: Singtel Hawker Heroes v. Gordon Ramsay: A Visit to the Hawker Heroes Challenge Winners"

It's located between along Joo Chiat Road between Joo Chiat Community Club....

... and Katong Junction.

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Restaurant hours.
Take note that all branches are closed on Mondays.

A view of the inside of the restaurant

The menu

The two of us ordered a half chicken at 14 SGD and chicken rice at 3.80 SGD each

The chicken is so tender it melts in your mouth.
The serving is large for 2 people. It's actually good for 3 people.

My tip:

If you're unable to visit this place or would want to bring home a taste of Singapore to your home, I recommend purchasing Prima Taste hainanese chicken rice premix at any Cold Storage supermarket in Singapore located on the shelves of Marinades and Sauces. The taste of this premix is as authentic as the of Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice. Photo is shown below.

Photo taken from Prima Taste website
The cost at Cold Storage is 7.40 SGD per box

SINGAPORE: My Guide to Visiting 328 Katong Laksa

SINGAPORE: My Guide to Visiting 328 Katong Laksa

Why visit 328 Katong Laksa:

1. It's the hawker that made laksa famous.

2. It's the authentic and original laksa that Singaporeans love. By tasting the original laksa, you can compare with other versions of laksa made available at nearby hawker stalls.

3. It won against Gordon Ramsay and the recently held Singtel Hawker Heroes Challenge.

Check out my post "SINGAPORE: Singtel Hawker Heroes v. Gordon Ramsay: A Visit to the Hawker Heroes Challenge Winners"

You can find 328 Katong Laksa at the corner of East Coast Road and Ceylon Road

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Outside dining area at the corner of East Coast Road and Ceylon Road

Air-conditioned dining areas are also available

Where you order and where the laksa is prepared

The cook preparing our laksa

They offer different sizes of laksa servings

We ordered the small laksa at 4.50 SGD each

The content of laksa as advertised

The actual content of the laksa

You can see the consistency and the quantity of coconut milk in the laksa sauce

Other meals offered by 328 Katong Laksa

My tip:

If you're unable to visit this place or would want to bring home a taste of Singapore to your home, I recommend purchasing Prima Taste laksa premix at any Cold Storage supermarket in Singapore located on the shelves of Marinades and Sauces. The taste of this premix is as authentic as the laksa of 328 Katong Laksa. Photo is shown below.

Photo taken from Prima Taste website
The cost at Cold Storage is 7.40 SGD per box

SINGAPORE: Singtel Hawker Heroes v. Gordon Ramsay: A Visit to the Hawker Heroes Challenge Winners

SINGAPORE: Singtel Hawker Heroes v. Gordon Ramsay: 

A Visit to the Hawker Heroes Challenge Winners

The Singtel Hawker Heroes Challenge is an event held last July 7, 2013, sponsored by Singtel where they invited Gordon Ramsay of Hell's Kitchen and MasterChef fame (and himself a 14 Michelin-starred chef) to compete with the top Hawker Heroes of Singapore.

The top 3 Hawker Heroes chosen for this challenge were Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken for their Hainanese Chicken Rice, 328 Katong Laksa for their Laksa, and Jumbo Seafood Restaurant for their Chili Crab.

Gordon Ramsay arrived 2 days before the challenge to get tips on how to cook the 3 dishes. On the day of the challenge, about a thousand diners sampled the dishes in the 3 categories and compared the Hawker heroes recipe with Gordon Ramsay's version of the hainanese chicken rice, laksa and chili crab. They voted by SMS and the winners were Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice and 328 Katong Laksa.

In my recent trip to Singapore, I decided to visit these two hawkers to rediscover the famous and authentic taste of Laksa and Hainanese Chicken Rice. I traveled to Singapore several times but my first taste of these two dishes were usually in nearby hawker stalls. I never got to taste it from the original hawkers that made these two dishes famous.

My tip: Visit the branches of 328 Katong Laksa and Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice at Joo Chiat Road. They are within walking distance from each other. So you save time doing this food tour.

Location:

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 A   328 Katong Laksa

Check out my post "My Guide to Visiting 328 Katong Laksa"

 B   Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice

Check out my post My Guide to Visiting Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice Restaurant"