The document discusses Singapore's food culture, which has been influenced by different ethnic groups. It provides details on Chinese, Malay, Indian, Eurasian and other global culinary traditions, including common ingredients, cooking methods, dishes and dining etiquette. It also describes how fusion food and different dining experiences like fine dining, casual dining and fast food have developed in Singapore society.

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AT A GLANCE
By the end of this chapter, you will be
able to:
1
• Identify different ethnic and global influences on the
development of food
• Distinguish the dishes used in various cultures and ethnic
groups
• State some examples of fusion food from different cultures
and ethnic groups
• Identify different kinds of dining experiences and the
appropriate table setting and dining etiquette

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• Singapore is a multi-racial society with
people from different cultures and ethnic
groups
• Each culture and ethnic group have their
unique culinary traditions:
• Traditional dishes
• Common ingredients
• Methods of cooking
• Table setting and dining etiquette
2
Ethnic influences on Singapore food culture

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Chinese culinary traditions
• Chinese culinary traditions are influenced by
the Southern dialect groups such as Teochew,
Hokkien, Cantonese, Hakka and Hainanese.
• Some traditional dishes include:
Fish ball noodles (Teochew)
Balls of fish paste served with
noodles in soup or served dry
Bak kut teh (Hokkien/Teochew)
Pork ribs boiled with herbs and
spices

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Chinese culinary traditions
Char siew
(Cantonese)
Skewered meat
cooked by roasting
Suan pan zi (Hakka)
Pieces of yam dough
stir-fried with
cuttlefish, mushroom
and minced meat
Kaya toast
(Hainanese)
Toasted bread with
Hainanese kaya

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Chinese culinary traditions
Some common ingredients used in the
cooking of Chinese dishes include:
Sauces (e.g. soya
sauce, oyster sauce,
black bean sauce)
to marinate meat
and flavour dishes
Herbs and spices (e.g.
ginger, onion, cloves,
star anise, coriander
leaves) are used in the
cooking of dishes
Condiments
(e.g. rice wine,
vinegar,
sesame oil) to
flavour dishes

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Chinese culinary traditions
Methods of cooking
• Stir-frying – small cuts of vegetables
and meat are stir-fried with sauces
and herbs
• Steaming – meat, fish, dim sum
• Boiling – soups
Festive food
• Chinese New Year – steamboat,
yusheng
• Mid-Autumn Festival – mooncake
• Dragon Boat Festival – rice dumplings

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Chinese culinary traditions
Table setting and dining etiquette
• Chopsticks are commonly used
• Do not use your own chopsticks to take food
from the shared dishes
• Do not stick chopsticks vertically into your food
as they would look like joss sticks. When not
eating, rest the chopsticks on the bowl or
chopstick rest
• When eating noodles, hold chopsticks in one
hand and soup spoon in the other. It is
inappropriate to slurp noodles

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Malay culinary traditions
• Malay culinary traditions are influenced by
Indonesia and Malaysia.
• Some traditional dishes include:
Nasi lemak
Rice cooked with coconut
milk and pandan leaves and
served with ikan bilis, peanuts,
eggs and sambal chilli
Rendang
Meat simmered with coconut
milk and spices until the liquid
has evaporated and the
meat is tender

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Malay culinary traditions
Satay
Seasoned meat skewered
and grilled and served with
peanut sauce, cucumber,
onions and ketupat
Soto ayam
Chicken soup served with
noodles or ketupat

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Malay culinary traditions
Some common ingredients used in the
cooking of Malay dishes include:
Coconut milk gives
dishes a rich taste
and creamy texture
Spices such as chilli
and turmeric give
intense and spicy
flavours in dishes
Belacan is a
fermented shrimp
paste used as a
base for sambal
sauce

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Malay culinary traditions
Methods of cooking
• Frying – chicken, keropok, fruits
• Grilling – satay, whole chicken
• Boiling – soups
• Preparation of Malay dishes
follows Islamic practices – no pork
or alcohol
Festive food
• Hari Raya Puasa – ketupat,
rendang, sayur lodeh, kuih

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Malay culinary traditions
Table setting and dining etiquette:
• Dishes with gravy are served with a spoon
while dry dishes are eaten by hand
• Wash your hands with water from a
teapot called teko before eating
• Malays traditionally eat with their right
hand due to hygiene purposes

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Indian culinary traditions
• Indian culinary traditions are influenced by the
different regional cuisines from India.
• Some traditional dishes include:
Roti prata
A flour-based pancake
cooked over a flat grill. It is
usually served with curry.
Chicken curry
Chicken simmered with a
variety of spices and
coconut milk.

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Indian culinary traditions
Nasi briyani
Rice cooked with spices and
served with different types of
meat
Vadai
A savoury deep-fried
fritter snack

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Indian culinary traditions
Some common ingredients used in the
cooking of Indian dishes include:
Pulses such as
chickpeas, black-
eyed peas, kidney
beans are used to
make dhal.
Spices such as
turmeric, cumin,
coriander seeds
are used to
flavour dishes.
Ghee is a clarified
butter used to
prepare main
dishes and sweets.

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Indian culinary traditions
Methods of cooking
• Grilling on flat iron pans – roti prata,
thosai
• Deep-frying – meat, fish, Indian sweets
• Stewing – pulses, meat
• Using tandoor – tandoori chicken,
naan
• No beef is used as most Indians are
Hindus which believe that cows are
sacred. Vegetarianism is also common.
Festive food
• Deepavali – laddu, jalebi, other Indian
sweets

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Indian culinary traditions
Table setting and dining etiquette
• Traditionally, Indian food is served on clean
banana leaves
• Indians use their right hand to eat for
hygiene purposes
• When eating roti, use the roti to scoop the
curry to prevent the gravy from touching
your hand
• Fold the banana leaf in half after the meal
to show that you have finished your meal

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Eurasian culinary traditions
• Eurasian culinary traditions are derived from a blend
of Portuguese, Dutch and British food cultures
infused with local ingredients.
• Some traditional dishes include:
Devil’s curry
A rich and fiery hot dish
cooked with mustard
powder, turmeric powder,
vinegar, candlenuts and lots
of chillies.
Eurasian smore
A beef stew cooked with
carrots, potatoes and dark
soya sauce.

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Eurasian culinary traditions
Vindaloo
A hot and tangy dish cooked
with mustard seeds and
vinegar.
Sugee cake
A butter cake made with
semolina flour and sliced
roasted almonds.

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Eurasian culinary traditions
Some common ingredients used in the
cooking of Eurasian dishes include:
European
ingredients such as
Worcestershire
sauce, mustard
powder and vinegar
gives flavour.
Herbs and spices
such as nutmeg,
chillies, candlenuts,
tamarind and
lemongrass give
flavour and texture.
Semolina flour is a
product of wheat
that gives a
unique texture in
sugee cake.

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Eurasian culinary traditions
Methods of cooking
• Stewing – devil’s curry, Eurasian smore
• Baking – shepherd’s pie, sugee cake
Festive food
• Christmas – roasted turkey, Christmas pudding,
Eurasian dishes

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Eurasian culinary traditions
Table setting and dining etiquette:
• After being seated, unfold napkin and
place it on your lap
• Place the napkin on the chair if you
need to leave your seat temporarily
• Hold the fork with your left hand and
knife with your right hand
• Place the cutlery together across the
centre of the plate when you finished
your meal. If you are just taking a
break, criss-cross the cutlery

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Singapore food culture
The different ethnic influences from early
immigrants have led to the creation of
many famous Singaporean dishes, such as:
• Chicken rice
• Chilli crab
• Fish head curry
• Laksa

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Singapore food culture
Chicken rice
• Different versions – Hainanese, Malay
• Method of cooking Hainanese chicken rice:
– Steam chicken till fully cooked
– Fry raw rice with chicken fat
before boiling with chicken broth
and pandan leaves
– Serve chicken and rice with
cucumber slices, soup and
condiments (ground chilli paste,
ginger paste and soya sauce)

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Singapore food culture
Chilli crab
• Popular among the Chinese
• Method of cooking chilli crab:
– Cut hard-shell crabs into smaller pieces
– Fry crab in oil
– Cook crab with tomato paste, sambal and
lemon juice. Thicken gravy with corn flour
and beaten eggs
– Serve with fried or steamed
buns

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Singapore food culture
Fish head curry
• Popular among the Chinese and
Indians
• Usually served with rice
• Method of cooking fish head curry:
– The head of a red snapper fish is
commonly used
– Stew fish head in curry with
coconut milk, tamarind juice,
spices and vegetables

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Singapore food culture
Laksa
• Peranakan dish made of thick
rice noodles in curry gravy
• Method of cooking laksa:
– Boil thick rice noodles
– Prepare gravy by heating spice paste with
coconut milk, ground dried prawns,
chicken stock and water
– Serve rice noodles and gravy with other
ingredients such as fried bean curd puffs,
fish cake, shrimp and cockles

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Global Influences on Singapore food culture
• Global influences have significant
effect on Singapore’s food culture
• Two main causes of global
influences are:
– The influx of foreign cultures into
Singapore
– Increased instances of
Singaporeans travelling abroad
• As a result, some traditional dishes
of other ethnic groups are now
widely found in Singapore

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Global Influences on Singapore food culture
Japanese
• Traditional Japanese meal – rice or noodles
with main dish, side dishes, soup and
condiments such as wasabi
• Dishes can be served raw or cooked
• Popular cooking methods – grilling, deep-frying

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Global Influences on Singapore food culture
Korean
• Traditional Korean meal – rice or
glass noodles with vegetables,
meat, seafood, side dishes and
soup
• Popular cooking methods –
grilling, boiling

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Global Influences on Singapore food culture
Vietnamese
• Traditional Vietnamese meal – rice, rice paper
or noodles served with meat and condiments
such as fish sauce, shrimp paste and soya
sauce
• Popular cooking methods – boiling, steaming

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Global Influences on Singapore food culture
Western
• Western food – food from countries such as
Italy (pizza, pasta), France (baguette) and
the United States of America (burger)

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Fusion food
• Global influence on Singapore’s food
culture has led to the creation of fusion
food
• Fusion food = dishes that are prepared
using a combination of elements from
different culinary traditions

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Fusion food
Fusion food Ethnic elements
Otak-otak burger Malay, Western
Chicken curry pasta Malay, Western
Cheese-baked
dumplings
Chinese, Western
Chicken floss bun Chinese, Western
Cheese prata Indian, Western
Tandoori chicken in
focaccia sandwich
Indian, Italian
Creamy spaghetti
with fish roe
Italian, Japanese
Kimchi quesadilla Korean, Mexican

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Dining experiences
Fine Dining
• Full range of table service
• Serving staff highly trained and
dressed in formal attire
• Guests follow a strict dress code
• Pays attention to fine details such
as restaurant décor and food
presentation
• Pricing is high
• Menu
– Multiple courses for a set price per
person
– Limited choices within each course

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Dining experiences
Casual Dining
• Provides table service in a
relaxed and casual setting
• Atmosphere is relaxed and
suitable for the entire family
• Serving staff have no uniform or
the uniform is casual
• Minimal or no dress code for
guests
• Pricing is moderate
• Menu is often fixed and have a
large variety of main courses and
beverages

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Dining experiences
Fast Food Dining
• No table service. Customers
go to the counter to order
and pay for their food
• Atmosphere is casual
• Emphasises the speed of
food delivery
• Food is affordable
• Menu
– Limited choices
– Food often comes in set
meals