Jan 14, 2012 - ST Forum
MR YEO Choon Seng's letter ('There's a heritage role for
preserving flea markets'; Tuesday) also reminds one of the
deteriorating quality of hawker fare.
In the 1950s and 1960s, a row of hawker stalls beside the canal
at Jalan Jurong Kechil were famous for char kway teow, satay mee
hoon and mee jiang kuih. The char kway teow at Zion Road and Newton
Circus were also the talk of the town. Students from Raffles
Institution, CHIJ and St Joseph's Institution along Bras Basah Road
used to make a beeline for the Indian rojak along Waterloo Street
and chendol at the old Rex Cinema after school.
Frying char kway teow is a skill acquired with years of
practice. You need to ensure the right temperature and the bean
sprout, water and black sauce must be added at the right time. The
old satay mee hoon hawker would place his prawns and pork on a
block of ice and use them only when necessary. His grandson has
taken over the stall and the prawns and pork are precooked many
hours before use.
The elderly hawker selling mee jiang kuih had roasted the
peanuts and pulverised them using a pestle and mortar. Her mee
jiang kuih tasted like the emperor's favourite dish. Today, her
replacement uses peanut butter as a substitute and the
characteristic flavour is gone. The present mee siam tastes
different because the hawker uses mashed potato instead of the
dearer mashed sweet potato.
The chendol of yore was made from fresh coconut milk squeezed
using a large towel. Today, the hawker uses carton-packed coconut
milk.
There is no short cut to preparing delicious and palatable
food.
Heng Cho Choon
