As a melting pot between the different cuisines, Peranakan food is reflective of Singapore’s status as a melting pot in Southeast Asia. We break down five classic nonya dishes and where to get your fix.
Ayam Buah Keluak
This spicy chicken dish is cooked with a native Indonesian black nut, buah keluak, that gives it a black tint. It’s a tedious cooking process as the bitter, poisonous fruit needs to be soaked and fermented in order to make it edible. It’s then ground into a paste or rempah of candlenuts, turmeric, galangal, lemon grass, belacan and dried chilli, and made into a stew with assam paste juice and shrimp-stuffed buah keluak.
Where to get it: Housed in a grand black-and-white heritage house, Indocafe serves this succulent dish drenched in plenty of sauce ($24).
Ding Dong’s asam pedas salted barramundi
Gerang Asam
This popular Malacca Nyonya dish can feature chicken, fish or other meats and has many variations. But most versions feature tamarind juice, kaffir lime leaves and a paste of candlenuts, fresh turmeric, galangal, lemongrass, chili and belacan.
Where to get it: In Ding Dong’s modern take of this dish, chef Jet Lo uses salted barramundi fish meat ($22). This asam pedas salted barramundi also has okra and baby eggplant to elevate its texture.
Violet Oon’s Kitchen’s babi pongteh
Babi Pongteh
This non-spicy but umami-licious braised pork belly dish is flavored with tau cheo (fermented soy beans), light and dark soy sauce and gula melaka. The ingredients are slow-braised to (a heavenly) death, and the end result is hearty but balanced by a sweet-salty sauce.
Where to get it: Violet Oon’s Kitchen has a great version slow-braised with mushrooms and bamboo shoots, flavored with yellow-bean paste, cinnamon and cloves ($19).
Flavours at Zhongshan Park’s deep-fried otak with curry-dusted chips
Otak-Otak
This steamed fish cake is made up of a finely ground blend of red chillies, lemongrass, turmeric and belacan. The silky, pasty texture is enhanced by kaffir lime leaves and coconut milk.
Where to get it: Flavours at Zhongshan Park where they whip up silken smooth otak-otak as a side dish to any meal ($8.90). They also will do an otak-otak fish and chips (battered otak-otak with curry-dusted steak fries) in their new menu.
The Blue Ginger’s itek tim
Itek Tim
A mainstay in many Chinese-leaning Peranakan households as a “sick man’s dish” this soup is wholesome and comforting. Salted vegetables, duck, tomatoes, tamarind juice, assam skins and chilli are simply boiled and simmered for a long time to ensure a tasty and rich broth.
Where to get it: Having been around for more than 15 years, The Blue Ginger is one the best Peranakan places around. Their itek tim has a rich broth and fall-off-the-bone duck meat ($19.50).
Lime’s Udang Masak Nanas
Udang Masak Nanas
This prawn-based dish can be made with or without chili, though we like the heat against the slight fruitiness. The traditional Nonya recipe calls for slightly underripe pineapple, as well as a ground paste of candlenuts, galangal, turmeric and shallots. The prawns, paste and pineapples are then simmered with belacan, lemongrass and tamarind skins until the flavors are fully infused.
Where to get it: ParkRoyal on Picker’s daily buffet spread ($45-62) at Lime also includes over 30 Nonya offerings. This version comes with juicy prawns and a generous serving of sauce and pineapples.
