23 Sep 2007, ST
Geylang Serai is the place to go for great food, especially during the fasting month
By Huang Lijie
SINCE the start of Ramadan on Sept 13, housewife Sharifah Ahmat, 34, has been making almost daily half-hour trips from her home in Jurong to the Geylang Serai Temporary Market to break fast.
'It's a Muslim food paradise. The food there is varied, good, traditional and economical. It doesn't get better than that,' she says.
Indeed, many of the 98 food stalls at the Geylang Serai Temporary Market have been at the food centre for decades and are well-established.
Last March, most of them moved to the temporary centre between Eunos Road 5 and Sims Avenue when the original site across the road was shut down for renovations. It is expected to be completed by 2009.
Although it is customary to break fast at sundown by eating dates, following the way of Prophet Muhammad, Muslims are free to choose what they have as their main meal.
Most opt for traditional dishes such as nasi padang and mee rebus, but shawarma - a Middle-Eastern-style sandwich stuffed with grilled meat - is enjoying a small burst of popularity at the market recently.
During this fasting month, there are some four stalls selling shawarma, double the usual number.
When LifeStyle visited the market last Tuesday, the stall A Rahman-Salamah - which also sells Indonesian stuffed pancakes, roti boyan - had almost sold out its 10kg worth of chicken shawarma in three hours.
Rita Yong, 30, a helper at A Rahman-Salamah, says: 'Shawarma is an alternative option for those bored of the usual fare. It's also a lighter meal that sits easy on the stomach.'
LifeStyle highlights eight other food items at the Geylang Serai Temporary Market that are just as yummy.
-----------------------------------
CHENG TNG, $1.50 or $2
Geylang Serai Chee Kong, 01-355
Opens: 8am to 6pm; noon to 11pm during Ramadan
THIS Chinese-owned cheng tng stall has been at the Geylang Serai Market for more than 40 years, and it's so popular among Malays that the Chinese dessert soup is sold by its Malay name, chee kong. Chockful of 10 different ingredients, including green beans, sweet potato, sugared winter melon strips, white fungus and gingko nuts, this bowl packs a punch.
CHICKEN RICE, $2.50
Maya Pesona Chicken Rice and Seafood, 01-354
Opens: 10am to midnight; 11 to 1am during Ramadan
AFTER selling nasi padang for 13 years, Rahim Majid, 51, switched to chicken rice two years ago and business has never been better. The flash-fried chicken, marinated in a special homemade sauce, is tinged a bright orange.
Crispy on the outside, the meat remains juicy and tender on the inside. The fragrant rice, cooked in sesame oil, garlic and ginger, rounds off the dish perfectly.
OTAK OTAK, $1 for three
Otak Otak Kampong Wak Murset, 01-331
Opens: 10am to 8pm; 2pm to midnight during Ramadan
UNLIKE most other otak otak which use ground fish paste, the fish at this stall is chopped into small pieces so the meat actually crumbles in your mouth.
Be warned that the freshly grilled sticks are a tad on the fiery side as chilli padi is used. But the spicy kick does not overwhelm the rich coconut and lemongrass flavours.
THOSAI MASALA CHICKEN, $2
Geylang Serai Thosai and Food Stall, 01-329
Opens: 6am to 8pm; 6am to midnight during Ramadan
OWNER Oli Abdul Latiff, 48, gives thosai, a traditionally Indian vegetarian offering of thin egg and flour crepes, a slight twist by serving his version stuffed with chicken and potatoes. Polish off the flavourful crispy thosai with sides of coconut gravy, a refreshing onion with chilli relish and stewed dahl.
GANDOS, $1 for four pieces
House of Gandos, 01-323
Opens: 9am to 7pm; 1 to 8pm during Ramadan
SINK your teeth into this soft, traditional Malay coconut and rice flour kueh only if you are prepared to be addicted to its aroma and creamy coconut flavour.
The trick to perfecting this seemingly simple-to-make grilled kueh is in making sure that the coconut isn't too overpowering, says owner Mohd Samsudin, 57. The subtly savoury kueh is best eaten by dipping it in brown sugar.
NASI PADANG, $4.50 for a set with four or five dishes
Hajjah Mona Nasi Padang, 01-301
Opens: 7.30am to 7.30pm; 11am to midnight during Ramadan
MANY dishes stand out at this stall, which has been at the Geylang Serai Market for some 30 years.
Must-trys among the 50 or so dishes are the urap (a crunchy, refreshing beansprout salad), opor ayam bakar (barbecued chicken in coconut gravy), nangka lemak (tender young jackfruit stewed in a coconut gravy) and sambal goreng (stir-fried tempeh and long beans).
MEE MAIDIN, $2.50
Warong 170, 01-308
Opens: 7.30am to 5pm; 11am to 7pm during Ramadan
WHILE this yellow noodle dish bears similarities to mee rebus, it uses ground fresh shrimps instead of dried shrimps to make its thick gravy.
This lends a stronger shrimp flavour and is more savoury than sweet. Garnished with beansprouts, green chilli and spring onions, the dish boasts a refreshing taste.
CHICKEN BRIYANI, $3.50
Geylang Briyani Stall, 01-327
Opens: 10am to 3pm; 10am to 6pm during Ramadan
IF YOU'RE patient enough to join the line at this stall, which has an average waiting time of 20 minutes during peak hours, you will be rewarded with a generously heaped plate of briyani, a Muslim-Indian rice dish.
Fried onions lend the briyani rice from Pakistan a mouth-watering fragrance, while the chicken - stewed for 11/2 hours with constant stirring - falls off the bone easily.
Geylang Serai is the place to go for great food, especially during the fasting month
By Huang Lijie
SINCE the start of Ramadan on Sept 13, housewife Sharifah Ahmat, 34, has been making almost daily half-hour trips from her home in Jurong to the Geylang Serai Temporary Market to break fast.
'It's a Muslim food paradise. The food there is varied, good, traditional and economical. It doesn't get better than that,' she says.
Indeed, many of the 98 food stalls at the Geylang Serai Temporary Market have been at the food centre for decades and are well-established.
Last March, most of them moved to the temporary centre between Eunos Road 5 and Sims Avenue when the original site across the road was shut down for renovations. It is expected to be completed by 2009.
Although it is customary to break fast at sundown by eating dates, following the way of Prophet Muhammad, Muslims are free to choose what they have as their main meal.
Most opt for traditional dishes such as nasi padang and mee rebus, but shawarma - a Middle-Eastern-style sandwich stuffed with grilled meat - is enjoying a small burst of popularity at the market recently.
During this fasting month, there are some four stalls selling shawarma, double the usual number.
When LifeStyle visited the market last Tuesday, the stall A Rahman-Salamah - which also sells Indonesian stuffed pancakes, roti boyan - had almost sold out its 10kg worth of chicken shawarma in three hours.
Rita Yong, 30, a helper at A Rahman-Salamah, says: 'Shawarma is an alternative option for those bored of the usual fare. It's also a lighter meal that sits easy on the stomach.'
LifeStyle highlights eight other food items at the Geylang Serai Temporary Market that are just as yummy.
-----------------------------------
CHENG TNG, $1.50 or $2
Geylang Serai Chee Kong, 01-355
Opens: 8am to 6pm; noon to 11pm during Ramadan
THIS Chinese-owned cheng tng stall has been at the Geylang Serai Market for more than 40 years, and it's so popular among Malays that the Chinese dessert soup is sold by its Malay name, chee kong. Chockful of 10 different ingredients, including green beans, sweet potato, sugared winter melon strips, white fungus and gingko nuts, this bowl packs a punch.
CHICKEN RICE, $2.50
Maya Pesona Chicken Rice and Seafood, 01-354
Opens: 10am to midnight; 11 to 1am during Ramadan
AFTER selling nasi padang for 13 years, Rahim Majid, 51, switched to chicken rice two years ago and business has never been better. The flash-fried chicken, marinated in a special homemade sauce, is tinged a bright orange.
Crispy on the outside, the meat remains juicy and tender on the inside. The fragrant rice, cooked in sesame oil, garlic and ginger, rounds off the dish perfectly.
OTAK OTAK, $1 for three
Otak Otak Kampong Wak Murset, 01-331
Opens: 10am to 8pm; 2pm to midnight during Ramadan
UNLIKE most other otak otak which use ground fish paste, the fish at this stall is chopped into small pieces so the meat actually crumbles in your mouth.
Be warned that the freshly grilled sticks are a tad on the fiery side as chilli padi is used. But the spicy kick does not overwhelm the rich coconut and lemongrass flavours.
THOSAI MASALA CHICKEN, $2
Geylang Serai Thosai and Food Stall, 01-329
Opens: 6am to 8pm; 6am to midnight during Ramadan
OWNER Oli Abdul Latiff, 48, gives thosai, a traditionally Indian vegetarian offering of thin egg and flour crepes, a slight twist by serving his version stuffed with chicken and potatoes. Polish off the flavourful crispy thosai with sides of coconut gravy, a refreshing onion with chilli relish and stewed dahl.
GANDOS, $1 for four pieces
House of Gandos, 01-323
Opens: 9am to 7pm; 1 to 8pm during Ramadan
SINK your teeth into this soft, traditional Malay coconut and rice flour kueh only if you are prepared to be addicted to its aroma and creamy coconut flavour.
The trick to perfecting this seemingly simple-to-make grilled kueh is in making sure that the coconut isn't too overpowering, says owner Mohd Samsudin, 57. The subtly savoury kueh is best eaten by dipping it in brown sugar.
NASI PADANG, $4.50 for a set with four or five dishes
Hajjah Mona Nasi Padang, 01-301
Opens: 7.30am to 7.30pm; 11am to midnight during Ramadan
MANY dishes stand out at this stall, which has been at the Geylang Serai Market for some 30 years.
Must-trys among the 50 or so dishes are the urap (a crunchy, refreshing beansprout salad), opor ayam bakar (barbecued chicken in coconut gravy), nangka lemak (tender young jackfruit stewed in a coconut gravy) and sambal goreng (stir-fried tempeh and long beans).
MEE MAIDIN, $2.50
Warong 170, 01-308
Opens: 7.30am to 5pm; 11am to 7pm during Ramadan
WHILE this yellow noodle dish bears similarities to mee rebus, it uses ground fresh shrimps instead of dried shrimps to make its thick gravy.
This lends a stronger shrimp flavour and is more savoury than sweet. Garnished with beansprouts, green chilli and spring onions, the dish boasts a refreshing taste.
CHICKEN BRIYANI, $3.50
Geylang Briyani Stall, 01-327
Opens: 10am to 3pm; 10am to 6pm during Ramadan
IF YOU'RE patient enough to join the line at this stall, which has an average waiting time of 20 minutes during peak hours, you will be rewarded with a generously heaped plate of briyani, a Muslim-Indian rice dish.
Fried onions lend the briyani rice from Pakistan a mouth-watering fragrance, while the chicken - stewed for 11/2 hours with constant stirring - falls off the bone easily.
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