Singaporean Culinary Highlights 

Singaporean cuisine offers a delicious fusion of cooking cultures, techniques and flavours that have earned it a reputation as one of the most beloved cuisines in the world. From flavourful dishes to aromatic ingredients to bustling street food cultures, there’s plenty to explore during your visit to Singapore. Here are some of the best highlights from Singaporean culinary culture.

Hawker Centres

Singapore’s hawker culture is a significant part of its culinary world, dating back to the 1800s. Today, Singapore features bustling hawker centres that bring several hawker stalls under one roof that serve everything from local savoury noodle favourites to flavourful snacks to a range of beverages. Making your way past the stalls, taking in the aromas of spice and flavour and meeting with local vendors and sellers make the hawker experience unlike any other.

Kopitiams

Coffee or Kopi in Singaporean, is a favourite local beverage. In fact, Singapore has a thriving coffee culture that dates back to the 19th century. The best way to try the thick-flavoured coffee in Singapore is to visit a ‘kopitiam’, a combination of the Malay word for ‘coffee’ and the Chinese word for ‘shop). A Kopitiam is essentially a cross between a coffee shop, a bar and a neighbourhood breakfast joint. Visitors can enjoy breakfast, lunch or dinner with a cup of hot Singaporean kopi made with condensed milk. A popular snack enjoyed with coffee is Kaya Toast – toasted bread with a spread of coconut-egg jam, and a serving of boiled eggs and black soya sauce.

Peranakan Cuisine

Peranakan cuisine constitutes a significant part of the Singaporean culinary world. Also known as Nyonya or Straights Chinese Cusine, it is a combination of Malay, Chinese and Indonesian flavours and is celebrated for the array of ingredients it often uses. Key elements of the cuisine include belacan (a shrimp paste), lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime, turmeric and candlenuts. A few of the popular dishes within Peranakan cuisine include Nyonya Laksa, Babi Pongteh, Ayam Buah Keluak, Otak-Otak and more.

Hainanese Chicken Rice

This is perhaps Singapore’s most iconic dish consisting of fragrant rice infused with chicken broth and pandan leaves, with tender and succulent poached chicken. It is also served with minced garlic, chilli sauce, dark sauce, and cucumber. If you’re looking to try the best chicken rice in Singapore, make your way to the Tian Tian Chicken Rice at the Maxwell Food Centre.

Chilli Crab

Crab meat is featured in several local dishes prepared by some of the best restaurants in Singapore. But the iconic Chilli Crabi dish is a must-try. It serves up hard shell crabs that are steamed and then partially cracked, after which they are stir-fried in a paste made of chilli sauce, tomato sauce and eggs. It is this curry paste that forms the gravy and gives the dish its iconic fiery orange look. Chilli crab is often enjoyed with a serving of steamed rice or with bread to soak up the gravy.

Satay

Satay is a popular dish that you can find at any of the local hawker stalls or even at high-end hotel restaurants like Entrepôt. It is a serving of skewered grilled meat, usually chicken, beef or lamb. The tender meat is marinated in a mix of spices before it is grilled, skewered and then served with a smooth peanut sauce and a fresh cucumber-chilli relish.