Tobiko Dumpling Noodle Soup

I love tobiko. Could brush my teeth with it. I also love dumplings, either ShuiJiao or Wantons, in simple noodle soup. And if the noodles are handmade that's the kicker in the same way that my Nana could kick the colonel's ass any day of the week in a fried chicken fight.

Found all three together at Tai Shek Hei (House of Bamboo Noodle) and it is absolutely awesome. I've never had tobiko in chinese-style dumplings before and its a great idea, most likely Taiwanese in origin as Chinese / Japanese fusion. The tobiko adds a firm and somewhat crunchy texture to the otherwise traditional pork and what-all dumplings. The flavors do not clash at all and work together superbly along with a broth that is very simple and clean and not at all bland. Rounding out the trifecta of perfection are the noodles which have that texture that you can only get when they are made by hand and fresh, not dried to a parchment 0% moisture content.

Try it. You'll love it. I promise.

House of Bamboo Noodle is located on Joo Chiat Road at Koon Seng Road in Singapore but if you can't go that far they also have a stall at Lau Pa Sat!

Enjoy!

Sup Tulang

Sup Tulang means "bone soup". It's a rough and tumble homecooking Indian muslim staple that is not really a soup but rather a pile of lamb bone knuckles in a very heavy stew base served on a plate. A simple dish with an extremely complex sauce as deep and pure a red as you've ever seen, scalding hot, deeply but not overly spicy. The freaky red color is from tomato sauce and chili powder; the chili dominates but is well-rounded by the tomato, onion and garlic.

The picture above really doesn't do this dish justice and I would have taken a better photo but my knee was blistered from the old guy who spilled the scalding hot red sauce on it when he brought it over to the table.

Try it at the Golden Mile Food Centre. You won't see many tourists there. On the lower level towards the back right corner (as you face the center from the car park) is Deen Tulang Specialist at stall B1-17. They do a great job but keep your knees under the table when the codger comes a 'shakin with your pile of goodness.

We had it with nasi goreng puti (fried rice - the white one but you can also have it slathered in the red tulang stew) and a pile of satay from a nearby stall. The lower level of the Golden Mile is very malay / indian muslim oriented and the satay we had was a great malay recipe with tumeric, ginger, lemongrass and palm sugar. SGD 50 cents a stick which is a great deal.

When you're stuffed it's a nice walk back down towards Arab street for late-night carpet shopping.

One more thing - bring plenty of wet wipes.

Singapore Satay

Grilled meat on a stick. 'Nuff said.

Actually one could discuss grilled meat until the end of time since we wouldn't be human without it. After all we're the only animals that use fire to roast our prey so that it is good and safe and tasty and makes us happy. And we are the only animals to use sauces and spices unless you consider dragging a carcass across the dusty savannah a type of dry rub before eating it tartare (which I do, and says a lot about the French but I digress).

One of the oldest surviving original cultures, Indonesia, does this spectacularly well. And since Indonesia is the 3rd most populous country on the planet - and if you didn't know that you must be American - Indonesians make satay a lot. Singapore is a great place to eat fantastic Satay because there is a great variety of styles to choose from, its still relatively cheap, and the meat is generally high quality.

In most countries Satay is in the padang style, which is the yellow marinade with tumeric, galanga, coriander, garlic and salt. There's often other stuff in there but that's the basic spice mix. I like this style, but it's a bit run-of-the-mill and doesn't offer too much variety from purveyor to purveyor.

My favorite style is madura which is a darker sauce made from a special sweet sticky soy sauce and shrimp paste with various spices depending on who made it. It can be sweet, so ask for a dipping sauce that isn't so, but in my opinion is killer with beef or mutton.

One of the better satay madura places I've found is at Lau Pa Sat (also known as the festival market) in Singapore. At night along the outside of the iron-roof market which is really beautiful in its own right is a line of 19 satay stands. There appear to be only about 6 owners of these 19 stands, but there is a decent variety and they're all pretty good. In classic hawker style you'll be grabbed by one of the "handlers" upon entering the area, so if you know which stall you want say so and they'll leave you alone. Don't be threatened by them - the hawkers do this to drive business to their stands and you simply need to say "no thanks" as they're all pretty friendly.

Lau Pa Sat is at 18 Raffles Quay. Simply tell your cab driver "Lau Pa Sat" or "Festival Market" and he'll know where to drop you. Or it's a short walk from the Raffles MRT stop.

If you don't know which stall you want, try stall #6 and #7. They're two different owners, but it is fun to pitch them in a grill-off. They're both great but different - 6 is madura and 7 is padang.

A plate of 30 skewers is about SGD$28 which is sort of higher-priced but still a bargain. You can ask for beef, chicken, or mutton (lamb, not goat). The grillmaster and waiters are friendly and will answer your questions despite working their fannies off for most of the evening. If you want to try your hand at fanning the flames with the coconut fan just ask!

Shrimp is also great, and at Lau Pa Sat is served with a spice / shrimp paste rub. They're pretty big if you ask for them from the guy running stall 6 and a test of your shrimp-peeling skills so bring wet wipes or buy them from the old guys hawking kleenex as they weave through the tables.

If you want a drink, holler at one of the blue-uniformed ladies and they'll be happy to bring soda, a fresh coconut, or pitchers of tiger beer. You pay the drink ladies separate from the satay stand.

Enjoy!

Why Not?

I am a very lucky person. The last few years I've traveled over 300,000 airmiles each year. My job takes me all over the world, frequently. I live in Singapore but am a California native, and I speak Chinese and enough Spanish, which means that I can get by just about anywhere and also know good wine when I drink it.

And I eat. Boy, do I eat. It is probably the most important thing outside of the people in my life.

I tend towards the spicy stuff, but I do enjoy good continental cuisine occasionally, and I'll try anything at least once.

So check back often, hopefully you'll be traveling somewhere I've been and this blog might just point you in the direction of some great food. Or point you away from crappy food.