The 50 Cents Fest is a two-day event
held on the 29–30 July 2017, is where you can feast on local delights at a affordable
price. It aims to bring us back to the olden days in the 80s where culinary
delights serve at economical prices. It is a not to be missed event by foodies.
There are many
local delights available. Here are some which I tried that day.
Ice Ball (Ice Kacang Ball) - 50 Cents
This popular dessert is initially served
as a finely grated ice packed into a ball topped with red beans, sweet corn,
grass jelly and cubes of agar-agar, coloured with syrup and topped with a final
squirt of evaporated milk. In the past, it is typically eaten with just the
fingers or hands. Due to convenience, Ice Kacang is now commonly served in a
bowl of shaved ice instead of iced ball.
Muah Chee - 50 Cents
A traditional snack made of glutinous
rice, usually mixed with crushed peanuts and sugar. It is very easy to make. All you have
to do is to steam sticky dough basically made of glutinous flour, cut in small
pieces and coated with sugar and fine or crushed roasted peanuts and sometimes
also with toasted sesame added.
Steamed Peanuts - 50 Cents
A deliciously simple and tasty snack. In
the old days, people tend to do a quick detour to the peanut man standing at
one corner of the cinema entrance, after purchasing the movie ticket. Peanut
man is perpetual surrounded by a wreath of steam emanating from the large pot
topped with a conical metal lid attached to his tricycle.
Wa Ko Kueh (Steamed Rice Cake) - 50 Cents (2 piece)
A childhood favourite of mine…Many
friends of my generation would remember this lovely cake. It is steamed rice
cake, made from fermented rice and rice flour. Often it is served in multiple
colours. These beautiful soft steamed cakes are eaten with shredded coconut and
orange sugar. I don’t know why but my favourite is always the green.
Tea Leaf Egg (Cha
Ye Dan 茶叶蛋) - 50 Cents
Tea leaf egg is a common street delight in Asia. It is
a very easy to prepare dish. All you have to do is to dump almost hard boiled
eggs into a soup containing tea, herbs and spices. It would be better to make
some cracks on the eggs so that the soup can sipped in easier.
Ah Balling (Glutinous
rice balls / Tang Yuan汤圆) - 50 Cents
A dish where Chinese usually eaten during the Lantern
Festival / Chinese winter solstice). Glutinous
rice balls filled with red bean, green bean, yam, peanut or sesame seed paste. Normally
served hot with sweet clear syrupy soup or other variations such as soya bean
milk, peanut paste or coconut extract. As for this case, it is served in peanut
soup.
Sambal La La –
50 Cents x 2 = $1
In Singapore, clams are often fried with sambal
belacan as many Singaporean love our chili here. Sambal belacan is chili with
toasted shrimp paste.
Mee Goreng – 50 Cents x 2 = $1
A flavorful and
spicy fried noodle dish common in Indonesia,Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam and
Singapore. It is made with thin yellow noodles fried in cooking oil with
garlic, onion or shallots, fried prawn, chicken, beef, or sliced bakso
(meatballs), chili, Chinese cabbage, cabbages, tomatoes, egg, and other
vegetables. It is commonly available at Mamak stalls in Singapore, Brunei
Darussalam and Malaysia and is often spicy.
Char Siew Rice –
50 Cents
Char siew means
"fork burn/roast”. A traditional cooking method for the dishis long strips
of seasoned boneless pork are skewered with long forks and placed in a covered
oven or over a fire.
UFO (Fried Oyster Cake) – 50 Cents
First introduced to Singapore's hawker
scene by our forefathers who were China Fuzhou immigrants. This savoury snack
is fried using a ladle, giving the dish its unique rounded base and charming
name "UFO" for its resemblance to UFO spaceships.
Kong Bak Pau –
50 Cents x 2 = $1
A dish
originating from the Fuijian province that favours food cooked slowly, fried
with lard, or seasoned more liberally than in neighbouring provinces. The Kong
Bak Pau is a glistening dish of dark-sauced slices of pork belly that is eaten
with fluffy ‘Man Tou’ bun.
BBQ Chicken Wing – 50
Cents For a Mid-Wing
Many of us
pretty much adore the Singapore way of eating BBQ chicken wings – flavourfully
marinated chicken meat with the fragrance of barbecue cooked over charcoal.
Sprinkled with lime juice squeezed all over them before dipping the wings into
spicy chilli sauce, Singaporeans have indeed taken their preparation and eating
of wings to a level of its own.
Bird’s Nest
Drink – 50 Cents
Pandan drink
with jelly within. It is refreshing and delicious.
Satay Bee Hoon -
50 Cents x 2 = $1
Inspired by
Satay, Satay Bee Hoon was invented by Teochew immigrants in Singapore, whereby
bee hoon is tossed together with other ingredients such as tau pok, beansprout
and cuttlefish and topped with a generous amount of chilli-based peanut gravy.
Due to the tedious preparation required, there are not many stalls selling
Satay Bee Hoon in Singapore today.
Chee Cheong Fan
- 50 Cents
Chee Cheong Fun
can be taken either as a breakfast, simple snack or a companion when your tummy
is bored. It’s literally translated at pig intestine noodles, yet don’t jump
out of your seat, it’s purely rice noodles and visually resembles a pig
intestine. The texture of the rice noodles is pivotal and the thick gooey prawn
paste and chili sauce is what completes the dish. It might sound simple,
however it requires lots of skills and savoury.
Salted Egg Yolk
Crab - 50 Cents x 4 = $2
Crab served
with rich salted egg yolk sauce. Very flavourful!!
Early Teochew
immigrants brought with them this hot dessert that has been well-loved by many
locals. Traditional Yam Paste, otherwise known as Orh Nee, was topped with pumpkin,
shallots and water chestnut syrup instead of coconut milk and gingko nuts. Lard
was added into yam paste for a silky texture and a touch of glisten.
Paper Wrapped
Chicken – 50 Cents
Invented and
made famous by a chicken farm named Union Farm in Singapore in 1953 when a
famous actor from Hong Kong suggested that the owner should create an iconic chicken
dish. The technique of paper wrapping prevents the aroma and flavourful chicken
essence from escaping.
Abacus Seed –
50 Cents x 2 = $1
Historically,
Hakkas grew yam and sweet potato in the mountains, hence the bulk of their diet
came from these crops. Abacus Seed consists of round pieces of yam balls that
are dimpled in the centre. Hakkas were believed to be good with money, so they
made the yam balls in such a way that they look like abacus, a tool used to
calculate money.
Red Glutinous
Wine Chicken – 50 Cents x 2 = $1
Red Vinasse,
made from fermented glutinous rice, is a classic ingredient of the Hakka
cuisine. It is used in a dish specially cooked for women under confinement to
nourish and promote blood flow. In the past, mothers prepare this dish for
their daughters who had just given birth. Hence, this dish is also commonly
known as “Mother’s Wine”.
Dried
Cuttlefish Peanut Congee – 50 Cents
In the olden
days, this dish was found along the streets and makes for a filling breakfast.
This porridge is traditionally cooked under the heat from charcoal and is more
watery than other Cantonese porridge. For this dish, fragrant peanuts and
cuttlefish are added to enhance the flavour of the usually bland porridge.
Rickshaw
Noodles - 50 cents
Named after the
rickshaw pullers who plied the streets of old Singapore, this humble creation
is made of yellow Hokkien noodles stewed in a thick pork broth and topped with
fried garlic and shallots – a dish the rickshaw pullers relied on as a source
of energy.
Fried Vegetable Fritters - 50 Cents
Crispy and light, these fritters are great
for brunch or a snack.
Dumpling – 50 Cents
( 2 Piece)
Dumpling is a
broad classification for a dish that consists of small pieces of dough (made
from a variety of starch sources), often wrapped around a filling (as in
ravioli or wontons). The dough can be based on bread, flour, or potatoes, and
may be filled with fish, meat, sweets, or vegetables. They may be prepared
using a variety of methods, including, but not limited to, baking, boiling,
frying, simmering, or steaming.
Soya Sauce
Chicken Rice – 50 Cents x 2 = $1
All Singaporeans know about chicken
rice, after all, it’s a national dish. You can find chicken rice all around the
island, in coffee shops, food courts, food centres, Hotel Lounges, Cafes and
more! There is different variety of chicken rice, one of them is soya sauce.
Cereal
Prawn (麦片虾)-
50 cents x 4 =$2 ( 3 piece)
Cereal Prawn is a constant favourite in many restaurants or zi char
stalls in Singapore. In this dish, chili and fresh curry leaves are added to
give a slight kick to the sweet savoy butter cereal prawns.
Sng Bao (Red Bean / Corn) – 50 Cents
Local Ice Pop - Our Traditional form of ice cream.
Tutu Kueh
- 50 Cents x 2 = $1 (2 Pieces)
In the past,
Tutu Kueh was larger and did not contain any fillings and over the years,
grated coconut and peanut fillings were introduced. In the 80s a man named Tay
Low Long singlehandedly popularised Tutu Kueh with the inventions of steam
carts and stainless steel moulds, bringing back this nostalgic snack to the
locals.
Hope that I will have a chance to
try all next year. Here are list of food available in the event.
Location
The 50 Cents Fest 2017
Chinatown Food Street
Smith St, Singapore 058938
Operating Hours:
29 July 2017 (Sat): 12pm to 11pm
30 July 2017 (Sun): 11am to 11pm
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